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Building Community

Building Community

2019-2023 Comprehensive Campaign

Building community is what brings us together at McPherson College. The sense of community found here made us feel at home as freshmen, laid the foundation for lifelong relationships, brings us back to campus for Homecoming, and welcomes new friends. McPherson College understands it is important not to just maintain our community but also to build it for the future.

Key Areas

Campaign Purposes

With the original $20 million fundraising goal met, an expanded campaign with new goals is being determined. At the cornerstone of this plan is the construction of a Campus Commons, which will be a landmark structure on campus. The new 55,000 square foot, multi-level building will make a more robust community possible with new campus dining, student services and activity spaces.

Additionally, other key campaign purposes include: fostering deeper engagement with MC alumni, especially graduates of the last three decades; growing innovative academic programs; making college more affordable through the student debt reduction project; and bringing awareness to the importance of estate gifts, a crucial piece in reaching a $1 billion endowment.

Building Community

Campus Commons - NW entrance
Campaign donors
Student Debt Project - Meghan
$1 billion endowment

  • Campus Commons

    A bold vision of what campus community could look like begins with the centerpiece of the campaign – a new Campus Commons with an interdisciplinary learning commons to engage a larger, more diverse student body.

  • Engagement

    Cultivating the next generation of support for McPherson College is vital to future success. Ignite excitement and involvement through the Bulldog Pride initiative, young alumni engagement, Bulldog Network for mentoring, local gatherings and 500 donors to the Power Day online giving blitz.

  • Grow Innovative Programs

    Modeling the success of signature academic programs like Automotive Restoration and Health Science to expand innovative degree offerings that attract students and lead to collaborations with industry partners.

  • Debt Reduction

    Increase need-based aid to students through MC Fund scholarships, while recruiting 500 MC student debt project participants - over half the student body - who work towards reducing or eliminating their college loans.

  • $1 Billion Endowment

    At first glance, $1B seems like a stretch. But when the finer points are outlined, it suddenly seems achievable. This is a long-term, planned giving initiative designed to create targeted, incremental growth by inviting donors to include the college in their estate plans. Conversations to date have generated over $225 million of non-binding estate commitments.

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Donor Impact

The Building Community Campaign has provided the resources to support initiatives set forth in the McPherson College Community By Design strategic plan, which focuses on growth and meeting the needs of an ever more diverse campus.

Here is some of the impact made by those campaign contributions:

  • Fall 2021 incoming class

    830 students enrolled for Fall 21

    Institutional aid - often underwritten by donor-funded scholarships - plays a vital role in the recruitment, retention and graduation of MC students. While many state universities and private colleges are shrinking during these turbulent times, we just keep growing. Continuing the upward trend established over the past seven years, McPherson College welcomed the largest incoming class in school history.

    Record Enrollment
  • Student Debt Project mentorship

    Debt reduced by $10,000 per student

    Donor-funded gifts have led to the transformation of the Student Debt Project from a pilot with 17 students to over 250 participating in 2021. The project provides a 25% match of the funds the students contribute toward education costs and a mentorship program that teaches financial literacy skills.

    Student Debt Project

  • $1.5M raised annually to grow innovative programs

    Led by MC Fund and donor-designated gifts, student scholarships, resources for academic program development and entrepreneurial initiatives have blossomed. Two distinctive academic programs, Health Science and Automotive Restoration, are examples of how donors have contributed to growth and awareness for McPherson College.

    Health Science scholarship
  • Miller Library

    $225M toward endowment

    Since the start of the campaign, nearly $225 million in non-binding estate commitments have been made by McPherson College benefactors as part of our ambitious long-term goal to reach a $1 billion endowment. Estate gifts to the endowment generate income for MC operations and lay a foundation for financial sustainability.

    Gift Planning

Contacts

VP for Advancement

Erik Vogel
Phone: (620) 242-0435
Email: vogele@mcpherson.edu

Advancement Officer

Dave Barrett
Phone: (620) 242-0442
Email: barrettd@mcpherson.edu

VP for Auto Restoration

Amanda Gutierrez
Phone: (620) 242-0424
Email: gutierra@mcpherson.edu

Make a Gift

Gift Amount & Designation
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Personal Info

Billing Details

Donation Total: $10.00 One Time