Thanks for a Record-Breaking Year

BY DEAN ROBERT JOSS

November, 2003

Earlier this fall, as I reviewed our 2002-03 financial year, which closed August 31, I was struck once again by the commitment and generosity of our alumni.

This was evident to me in a variety of ways. In 2003, a record-breaking 37 percent of our MBA alumni contributed to our annual giving campaign, which provides us with essential, unrestricted funds with which to operate the School. This represents a steady increase since 1999, when the participation rate hovered around 30 percent. And at 37 percent, our current alumni giving activity exceeds that of nearly all our peer schools. Naturally, I am very pleased and proud to see so many of our alumni engaged in supporting the school financially, and hope to see this participation continue to rise.

Other records were broken this year too: The Class of 1977 set a 25th reunion participation record in 2003 with a 69 percent participation rate, beating a 13-year-old record by 7 percentage points.

I also have been impressed by the sense of optimism and enthusiasm displayed by our last two graduating classes. Despite having to cope with uncertainties surrounding the difficult economic climate and job market, the Classes of 2002 and 2003 each broke records with their class gifts. The Class of 2002 pledged $311,200, more than double and in some cases even triple most of the class gifts in earlier years. More important, 91 percent of the class participated, the highest participation rate ever and a huge increase over previous years. Not to be outdone, the graduating Class of 2003 raised $334,300 this year with a very healthy 87 percent participation rate.

These recent classes have understood the fundamental importance of strengthening our operating funds. In the past, graduating students have generously left the School with gifts that have been enhancements to the physical plant, such as a new student lounge. But these two classes earmarked their giving to help support ongoing programs that are important to students. By working closely with staff members before graduating, they were able to commit expendable funds to be used for budget line items. The monies from the Class of 2003, for example, will support Career Management Center programs and needs. We are most grateful to our recent graduates for supporting the operating budget by helping to sustain and enhance areas that matter most to them.

Annual giving is critical to us because, as many of you may already know, our financial model leans heavily on alumni giving. Every September, we start the year with the need to raise $15 million to $20 million in annual giving to balance our budget. We depend on your annual support as well as endowment income from gifts made by alumni in years gone by to cover 45 percent of our $91 million annual operating budget—a much greater percentage than other schools, which typically depend on alumni giving to fund only 10 to 20 percent of their budgets. This is in large part because of our decision, made in close consultation with our alumni four years ago, to remain small and of high quality—to offer the same experience you and I had as students here in earlier years. This has meant resisting a major expansion of the full-time MBA student body size or adding on company-paid, part-time Executive MBA programs as some of our peer schools have done.

We have taken important steps in the last year to enhance revenues and rein in costs. We have greatly expanded our offerings of short-course Executive Education programs, which produce important revenue for the School. This year we raised tuition 9 percent to $36,252—near the top of the range of similar schools. We also trimmed parts of the operating budget without compromising academic quality.

I want to thank each and every alumna and alumnus who supported the School this past year—in both large and small ways—through either participation or giving. Our goal is for you to engage with the School in a variety of ways to keep your GSB connection alive and strong—whether it is through our Lifelong Learning online newsletter and research resources, or participation in alumni seminars, reunions, recruiting, orientation, student mentoring, admissions interviews, and classroom participation. Keep up your involvement. We need you now and even more in the future for the GSB to continue its leadership and impact.

From the Editor

Dean's Column