Oxford University’s plans to raise more than a billion pounds are faltering after it was revealed that the rate of donations to the high-profile fundraising drive have slowed dramatically.
The University’s Oxford Thinking campaign has so far achieved almost half of its ambitious £1.25bn target, raising more than £104m since its high profile launch last May.
Approximately £75m of this sum was, however, donated in the first three months following the launch, with a mere £29m accumulated by the University in the following nine.
The measley figure means that the total for this financial year, which runs from July to August, looks set to fall well below the previous years of the campaign. The University amassed more than £100m in the previous financial year, a total the campaign seems unlikely to match in just three months.
The general slowing of the campaign would appear to be supported by the donation figures published on University’s campaign website. There, the University publishes its largest named donations, but the pages only report £2.45m large named donations to the institution since July 2008—a mere 0.195% of the campaign’s ambitious aim.
Official pledges and new gifts from August 2004 – July 2008 amount to £624m, although the cash actually received was £311m. This means that the University is almost halfway towards its aim of £1.25bn, with pledged donations included.
This news comes as Oxford’s Vice-Chancellor John Hood praised Oxford Thinking in a termly letter to staff this week, particularly commending philanthropist James Martin’s pledge of $50m in matched funding.
The Oxford Thinking fundraising crusade was first launched in 2004, with the drive operating in a “quiet phase” before a global launch in May of last year, amid much fanfare.
In his letter, Hood also urging them to maximise efficiency and exercise “care and restraint” around the University in light of the current economic situation. He called for a review of investments and announced a new recruitment protocol. As part of it the creation of new posts will need to have very strong justification and the refiling of vacant posts will be subject to a process of careful review. No redundancies are currently planned.
“Amid all the current economic travails, we must not lose sight of the need to safeguard a future for the generations that follow us,” said Hood. “We must maintain our cash position in the short term and return to building surplus budgets in the future.
“This will inevitably present challenges for all of us” he added. “I would like to thank colleagues in advance for their help in meeting these challenges.”
Staff across Oxford acknowledged that the institution would have to tighten its belt in light of the credit crunch and dwindling flow of donations.
One University employee confirmed that everybody has been “tighter financially”. They said, “That’s the situation and we will have to deal with it.”
Meanwhile a spokesman for Oxford University added, “It is also fair to say that everyone in the University is alert to the potential impact of the global financial downturn on fundraising.”
Tabassum Rasheed, a first year PPE student, commented that she is not sure how University’s financial problems will affect her life as a student.
“I’m not sure how this obvious drop in funding will translate to students. Government decides on fees and in terms of accommodation it is college based,” she said. “I really hope that Oxford will continue to provide excellent services it provides. But right now, I have no idea how the drop in funding will affect me and I find that really scary.”
