STORRS – The University of Connecticut announced Thursday that it has raised more than $720 million in a $1.5 billion fundraising campaign to shore up its endowment, the most ambitious in the University’s history. This comes at a time when the state’s largest university has received $14 million less in federal funding and stands to lose another $35 million in research grants under the Trump administration.
“This ambitious campaign is fully aligned with a strategic plan that will lead the way to a bigger, brighter, bolder UConn,” said UConn President Radenka Maric. “It supports students to help them excel in the classroom and post-graduation. ‘Because of UConn’ elevates our academic standing and fuels groundbreaking research that moves Connecticut and the world forward. It asks our donors and alumni to invest in a healthier world and our continued excellence in D1 sports.”
The quiet phase of the campaign has been led by some of the University’s most generous lifetime donors, whose significant support has set the pace for this effort, including:
- More than $52 million from alumna Elisabeth DeLuca to build a new state-of-the-art nursing facility at UConn to innovate in the field of nursing and address a statewide nursing shortage.
- $46.5 million from Peter Werth to establish a legacy of innovation and entrepreneurship by creating an institute that empowers students and faculty to transform ideas into impactful ventures that fuel economic growth and opportunity. Peter has also been generous in his support of UConn student-athletes and their championship pursuits.
- More than $25 million from alumni Denis and Britta Nayden who have supported initiatives across the University, with a strong focus on student success. Their generosity has helped launch programming in the School of Business, expand scholarship support, and, more recently, advance initiatives in student athlete financial literacy, mental health, and wellness.
- $15 million from alumna Dr. Trisha Bailey to transform student-athlete support by establishing a world-class facility that advances academic achievement, mental and physical wellness, and athletic excellence.
- More than $11 million from alumna and Wilton First Selectman Toni Boucher, marked by a lead gift to establish the Boucher Management & Entrepreneurship Department, empowering students across disciplines to launch innovative ventures, drive economic growth, and honor the entrepreneurial legacy of her late husband, Bud.
The multi-year “Because of UConn” Campaign is comprehensive, spanning all schools, colleges, campuses, and UConn Health. The campaign focuses on four pillars:
- Students First: making transformative investments in financial aid, student health, career readiness, and life skills to improve time-to-degree and career outcomes.
- Academic & Innovation Excellence: driving investment in top faculty and graduate fellows and building the innovation ecosystem of the state and beyond.
- Health & Wellness of People & Planet: focusing on patient care, medical research, and the development of life-changing technologies that improve healthcare outcomes.
- Husky Pride: investing in athletic excellence and supporting a thriving UConn Nation that includes more than 290,000 alumni worldwide.
Maric unveiled the campaign at a kickoff event Wednesday night on UConn’s Avery Point campus.
The campaign is by far UConn’s largest and most ambitious to date. The momentum of the campaign has sparked the strongest start to a fundraising year ever, up more than 76 percent compared to this time last year.
The campaign pillars support UConn’s 10-year Strategic Plan, designed to make an education more affordable and a UConn degree more valuable by elevating UConn among its national peers on and off the court.
Putting Students First
The campaign’s top priority is to bolster UConn’s academic mission to create opportunities for our students, including more than 8,550 who are the first in their families to attend college.
The campaign will support efforts to improve student retention and graduation rates. Investing in student success will help UConn reach its goal of increasing its six-year graduation rate from 83 percent to 90 percent by 2030, with a particular focus on first generation students.
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As a world-class research institution, UConn encourages students and faculty to ask big questions and find solutions to pressing problems from biotech to advanced manufacturing to advance the Connecticut and national economy. The campaign will help the University provide fellowships for much-needed graduate researchers, help recruit and retain top faculty and invest in lifesaving and world-changing research at more than 80 centers and 100 state-of-the-art STEM facilities on campus. UConn boasts nearly 300 scientists who are in the top 2 percent of researchers investigating everything from cancer to AI.
It will also invest in UConn’s athletic programs and the health and financial literacy of student-athletes, including the men’s and women’s basketball teams, which have brought home three consecutive NCAA National Championship trophies in the last three years. UConn is proud to have 26 national championships across all sports.
Leading the way to a new era
Corporations, including Eversource, Synchrony, Travelers, The Hartford, RTX, Stanley Black & Decker, and Bank of America, have been philanthropically generous in supporting students through scholarships, programming, as well as providing job opportunities.
“Because of UConn will have a profound impact on the University. It will double the number of named scholarships, fund scientific breakthroughs and advanced lifesaving therapies, and engage UConn Nation in the life and mission of the University like never before” says Amy Yancey, President and CEO of the UConn Foundation. “We are so grateful for the generous support of alumni and friends of the university who are investing in UConn to ensure a thriving Connecticut and success for future generations of Huskies.”
The campaign is led by volunteer alumni co-chairs Toni Boucher, Rich and Joyce Eldh, Doug and Sheila Elliot, and Board of Trustees Chair Dan Toscano. The Eldhs have been generous supporters of full scholarships for students from Bridgeport and the Elliots have been generous across many programs, including Elliot Ballpark, home to the UConn baseball team; the Toscanos, longtime supporters of UConn, have invested in scholarships, faculty, innovative programming such as Hillside Ventures, and UConn Athletics. Honorary co-chairs include Vlad Coric, Denis Nayden, Molly Qerim and Peter Werth. They’re among the more than 30 members of the campaign committee.
