Bowie State University has met its goal of raising $50 million as part of its fundraising campaign, BSU Bold: The Campaign for Excellence, two-and-a-half-years ahead of its scheduled 2025 closing date.
The largest campaign in the history of the university has been fueled by strengthening the university’s professional fundraising organization and developing new relationships with alumni, friends, corporations and foundations.
As part of the campaign, gifts have been raised for a variety of purposes including the endowment, which has increased more than 500% from $7 million to $40 million. This growth provides extraordinary benefits to the university, including a new level of private scholarship funding for students.
“We have not wasted a moment asking our philanthropic partners to invest in the success of our students through this campaign,” said Aminta Breaux, president of BSU. “We are appreciative of all the individuals and organizations who have invested in our historic institution. Now we’re able to provide more of our students with scholarships. While we have met our initial campaign goal of $50 million ― we are challenged and inspired to continue our fundraising and expand the campaign, inviting others to join as we raise an unprecedented level of support for our students. We must continue and work to help make college more affordable and reduce student loan debt.”
BSU is one of 12 institutions and three regional centers in the University System of Maryland, and is one of only two institutions in the system with an increase in enrollment between 2017 and 2022.
The Public Phase of BSU’s Campaign for Excellence began in December 2021, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and required the university to fine tune its fundraising processes and organizational structure. A unit dedicated to administering privately-funded scholarships was established in the Office of Financial Aid, along with new stewardship and alumni engagement units created within what is now known as the Division of Institutional Advancement.
Some of the major contributors during the Campaign for Excellence include Adobe, BGE, the Blackstone Charitable Foundation, the Kevin Durant Charity Foundation, the Maguire Foundation, philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, the Strada Education Foundation and Truist Bank, among many other national funders.