Missouri State 'not the same university' after $250M+ fundraising campaign

Reflecting on the largest fundraising effort in the history of Missouri State, President Clif Smart said simply: "We are not the same university we were when this campaign started."

Five years after quietly launching the Onward, Upward campaign — made public in October 2019 — the university has planned a huge party for Saturday, as part of homecoming, to celebrate its completion and success.

Smart confirmed the effort exceeded its goal of $250 million. Donations were made by more than 50,000 people, many of whom gave for the first time.

The final tally, and the number of gift-givers, will be announced at the free event.

"We're going to have a helluva party," Smart said. "It's going to be fun."

Brent Dunn, vice president for university advancement, said fundraising was focused on four areas: students, faculty, programs and facilities.

"We said from the beginning that the campaign goal is really to change the face of the campus and to see things we would not have seen without private support," Dunn said. "It's very satisfied to know that so many people participated. And there were a lot of good results."'

Actor John Goodman, chair of the campaign, will host the Saturday event at the Great Southern Bank Arena. It is free and open to the public.

Smart: 'You're helping change the university for the better'

Months after the public portion of the campaign started, the Ozarks and the rest of the world was altered by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Smart said amid the global health scare, people responded differently to the campaign and reached out to offer help for the campus and the students.

"We have a more robust safety net of funds. Things were established to make sure students could continue on in terms of scholarships, financial need funds and the food pantry," he said.

Smart and his wife, Gail, were among those who personally donated to create endowed professorships, which help MSU offer larger compensation packages to attract or keep top faculty.

"It creates a pool of money to do research and helps you pay a better salary," Smart said. "That recognition that you have a named professorship, which is a status symbol, helps us on the recruiting and retention side."

Student scholarships were a major focus of the campaign and were popular with donors. There were a range of gifts from alumni.

"The amount of money we give out in scholarships now is probably doubled in a year. We were probably a little over $1 million a year when the campaign started," Smart said. "I think this year we gave out $2.6 million in scholarships."

More:New Missouri State scholarship to cover tuition, fees for students with greatest financial need

He offered a message for those who have given to the campaign.

"It's a big thank you and we're going to be good stewards of your money," Smart said. "You're helping change the university for the better."

Smart said the impact of the giving, and the level of interest among alumni, will pay dividends for years.

"We're not going to waste this opportunity," he said.

'Transformational' gifts help reshape, expand campus

The largest gift of the campaign was an eight-figure donation from the C.W. Titus Foundation, creating dozens of scholarships — worth $10,000 per student, per academic year — for the College of Arts and Letters.

The gift also funded the creation of an outdoor arts park.

In recognition of the gift, the university named that college and the arts park after Judith Enyeart Reynolds.

“This gift makes a transformational statement as one of the largest in our university history,” said Shawn Wahl, dean of the college, in mid-2020. “Select students in all seven academic departments in the college will receive full-ride scholarships for many years."

Another significant gift, the amount of which was not disclosed, led to renaming the College of Health and Human Services for the multi-generational McQueary family.

At the renaming ceremony, Frank McQueary said: "I speak for the entire family to say we are honored to have a continued relationship with this university and are very humbled to give back to the community in this way."

A gift from the Darr Family Foundation funded new buildings for the Darr College of Agriculture, one of which is now home to the new AgAcademy, a magnet program operated by Springfield Public Schools.

The former Professional Building, at the corner of Kimbrough Avenue and Cherry Street, underwent a renovation and was renamed the Ann Kampeter Health Sciences Hall after a seven-figure gift.

The on-campus arena, where Saturday's event will be held, was opened in 2008. The name of the venue was changed, permanently, after a major gift from Great Southern Bank.

"To be able to have our name on the arena and to be able to help our university," said Joe Turner, present and CEO of the bank, said in April. "They can take the $5.5 million we're giving them and do the things they need to do and endow scholarships and pay faculty and that sort of thing. It's just an exciting day."

There were numerous gifts from the late Bobby Allison that added, among other things, recreational space on campus. Greenwood Laboratory School, which is located on the campus, was renovated and expanded.

There are other marquee projects including the Robert Gourley Student Success Center, part of Glass Hall; the Magers Health and Wellness Center; Heitz House, the residence hall that opened in August; and the Davis-Harrington Welcome Center, which is referred to as the "front door" of the campus.

"It helped create a welcome and convenient environment for prospective students and families to start their experience at the university and allows us to host events," Smart said.

'This will spur more and more support from alums'

Dunn said there were a whole slew of gifts that helped the university support academic programs, the faculty, student experiences ranging from the band to the performing arts.

He said the campaign helped alumni and MSU supporters find new ways to plug in. He wants the momentum to keep building.

"Something is going right on the campus," said Dunn, executive director of the MSU Foundation.

"Hopefully, this will spur more and more support from alums and from friends around the country and, literally, the world."

More:Missouri State's foundation reports record year of donations — $32 million

Dunn added: "We've seen more engagement, from a volunteerism standpoint with the foundation, with the alumni association so there are other things besides just dollars that come of this and that is definitely gratifying."

The Onward, Upward campaign is the fourth in the history of the university.

A feasibility study suggested a goal of $225 million but early success spurred MSU to set a goal of $250 million — double the $125 million the university sought in its previous campaign, which concluded in 2012.

In October 2019, the campaign went public with much fanfare and pledges of just over $151 million.

Goodman, chair of the campaign, called MSU 'one of my blessings'

Goodman, a 1975 graduate of Missouri State, agreed to chair the campaign.

The venerable actor participated in the packed kickoff event along with former NFL player Clay Harbor and David Glass, who at the time was owner of the Kansas City Royals.

In a campaign letter, Goodman wrote: “I stay connected to Missouri State because it’s one of my blessings."

Goodman, who frequently wears MSU shirts on national TV shows and has repeatedly visited the campus, told the News-Leader in 2019 that he jumped at the chance to give back.

"It's not that I owe but I owe. I owe the school not for any unpaid loans, that I know of, or some bric-a-brac and knickknacks that went missing," he joked.

Goodman then turned serious about his time as a student actor in the Tent Theatre program at MSU. "It was like a trade school for me. I learned a trade here as an artisan."

Smart said it was meaningful to have the university's "most famous alum" involved in the campaign.

Goodman was one of the major donors for the new John Goodman Amphitheatre, a permanent home for Tent Theatre and a centerpiece of the arts park. It will be dedicated Sunday afternoon.

"Having his name associated with the amphitheatre was very helpful in both getting people on board and (affirming) that building a permanent structure was a good thing, because that was not a given going into it," Smart said. "And then in helping to get everyone connected with theatre and dance to be excited about it."

Want to go?

MSU will mark the end of its largest fundraising campaign ever at The Celebration, which starts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Great Southern Bank Arena. The doors open at 7 p.m.

The Student Government Association will host a waiting line party beginning at 6 p.m. The event is free.

The event will be hosted by actor, alumnus and campaign chair John Goodman, and will include:

• Warm-up performance by award-winning band KC FLO from Kansas City;

• Special musical set and performance by Grammy-winning singer, songwriter and voice actress Tori Kelly. Kelly lent her vocals as Meena in “Sing” and “Sing 2";

• Appearances, collaborations and performances by the MSU grand chorus, MSU Pride Band and color guard, and other notable guests.

Claudette Riley covers education for the News-Leader. Email tips and story ideas to criley@news-leader.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: How Missouri State's historic fundraising campaign changed campus