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Celebrating TOGETHER: University's Most Ambitious Campaign Culminates in Record-Setting Total
TOGETHER – The Campaign for Radford University is the largest and most ambitious campaign in the university’s history.
During the Campaign Closing Celebration on Oct. 5, 2024, the university announced that it had raised a record-setting $106,693,338 in support of Radford and its students.
This historic event, held in the newly opened Artis Center for Adaptive Innovation and Creativity, was attended by more than 200 of Radford’s most loyal supporters. The night featured musical and dance performances by current students, inspiring stories from scholarship recipients and uplifting remarks from Vice President Penny Helms White ’85, MBA ’87, and President Bret Danilowicz. A captivating fireworks display served as the evening’s finale.
“In 2017, an ambitious $100 million goal was established. While we didn’t know what the next few years would bring at that time, there could be no more perfect campaign theme,” said White. “TOGETHER, we navigated unforeseen circumstances and world events. TOGETHER, we will celebrate an unprecedented achievement for this university.”
Radford University would not have been able to surpass its $100 million goal without the more than 18,400 donors who made gifts during the campaign. These donors made nearly 56,000 gifts in total, 39% of which were gifts of $50 or less. Every gift, no matter the amount, made a difference.
Common cause, collective effort saw many ways to give
Numerous successes and achievements were made possible by the generosity of donors.
During the campaign, the most successful crowdfunding initiative in the university’s history took place. RAD48 is a giving challenge in which donors have 48 hours to choose the team or area within Radford Athletics they would like to support. In 2023, more than $180,000 was raised in support of Athletics – more than double what had been raised the year before. Additionally, this challenge secured donors from all 50 states for the first time.
Many donors chose to make their impact by providing financial assistance in the form of scholarships. In fact, 51% of the money raised during this campaign specifically supported scholarships. Through this support, 178 new scholarships were created, bringing the total number of foundation and privately funded scholarships available to 662. Establishing a scholarship removes the financial barriers that prevent many students from being able to earn their degree. Scholarships also allow the university to attract and retain promising students, regardless of financial need.
Fully immersed in the spirit of giving, students made their mark during this campaign as well. The Highlander Senior Class Scholarship, created to support a rising senior, was fully funded and endowed by Radford students.
Another dedicated group of Highlanders demonstrated their commitment to the university’s future through planned giving. Ninety-nine new planned gifts were established during the campaign, totaling nearly $33 million. By including Radford in their estate plans, these donors were able to leave a legacy that will endure far beyond the campaign’s lifetime.
The naming of the College of Nursing’s Clinical Simulation Center was made possible by an estate gift. Due to Jo Ann Morehead Bingham’s interest in healthcare, she made an estate gift to support the center’s mission of producing competent and compassionate clinicians. Now named the Jo Ann Bingham Clinical Simulation Center in her memory, her legacy will live on through the lives touched by nursing students and educators in the New River and Roanoke Valleys and beyond.
More than 27% of Radford employees gave during the campaign – a rate that is above the national average. Not only do faculty and staff demonstrate their commitment to students every day on campus, but they also give back to support the university’s future.
Rhett Herman, professor of physics at Radford, is one of the university’s consistent donors. He also encourages others to give. Herman leads the Arctic Geophysics Research Expedition, a biannual trip to Utqiagvik, Alaska, on which students develop their own research projects. However, this experience is expensive. To preserve this tradition of providing an unparalleled research experience to current and future students, Herman has led the charge on several crowdfunding projects that support the expedition and offset travel costs.
“This is another way that we can make a difference in our students’ lives and especially their future,” said Herman. “These types of beyond-the-classroom experiences are key for advancing their careers, and the number one barrier to students’ participation in these experiences is financial. We can make such a difference in overcoming this barrier by setting aside just a bit of each paycheck for them.”
Faculty, staff, alumni, parents, students and friends have come TOGETHER during this campaign for a common cause – supporting students. Whether it’s by making education more accessible, preparing students to excel in their fields of study, increasing academic engagement through hands-on experiences, giving student-athletes the resources they need or readying the university to seize unexpected opportunities and discoveries, students have been the focus.
This unprecedented generosity from Highlanders across the nation and around the world has already made an impact and will continue to shape the student experience for years to come.
“Education is a differentiator,” said Danilowicz. “It changes lives. It breaks down barriers and builds bridges at the same time. At Radford University, we are – and will remain – committed to keeping education accessible and affordable to all possessing the desire to attend.
“What Radford gets right is that community matters; success isn’t singular; there is power in collective effort; and that we, truly, are all in this TOGETHER!”
The Artis Center
On Sept. 20, the Artis Center for Adaptive Innovation and Creativity was officially dedicated during a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by several hundred people.
Named in honor of Nancy E. Artis ’73 and H. Pat Artis, Ph.D., this 178,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility is a cornerstone of interdisciplinary collaboration. It is home to the College of Visual and Performing Arts and provides unique learning spaces for students in the Waldron College of Health and Human Services and the College of Nursing. Highlanders from a variety of disciplines across the university will use the facility to exchange ideas and engage in hands-on learning and problem-solving.
As the largest academic building on campus and the most significant capital construction project in Radford’s history, the Artis Center represents a tremendous commitment to the university’s future. Thanks to the Artises’ generosity, generations of Highlanders will benefit from the opportunity to learn, collaborate and innovate in this space.
As members of the TOGETHER Campaign Steering Committee, the Artises inspire others to give by leaning into their own motto: “Find a need and fill it.” Their gifts, focused on providing scholarships and enhancing student-focused facilities, are outstanding examples of this campaign’s commitment to changing countless lives and leaving a lasting legacy.
Nancy Artis graduated from Radford with a degree in biology and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree in 2021. She formerly served on the Radford University Board of Visitors and Radford University Foundation Board of Directors, and she currently serves on the Artis College Dean’s Advisory Council. Pat Artis holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Virginia Tech, a Master of Science degree from Rutgers University and a Ph.D. from the University of Pretoria. Currently, he is a professor of practice in the Kevin T. Crofton Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering at Virginia Tech.
At the Artis Center dedication, the Artises offered one piece of advice to every current and future student who enters the building: “Your dreams are not large enough.” On behalf of Radford University, we extend a heartfelt thanks to Pat and Nancy Artis for their remarkable support during TOGETHER – The Campaign for Radford University.
