Jack Finlaw
President and CEO
University of Colorado Foundation

Total Private Support

Donors made 72,370 gifts in fiscal year 2018, totaling $440.4 million in private support benefitting CU. This total reflects the ninth straight record-breaking year for private support.

LTIP Investment Performance

For the 12-month period ending June 30, 2018

Financials

As of June 30, 2018

Trustees invited to apply for presidential search committee

This month the Board of Regents will initiate a national search for the next president of the University of Colorado to succeed our esteemed President Bruce Benson when he retires in July. The Regents’ goal is to have the search completed by spring of 2019 with the intention of having the new president start in July.

Earlier this month, the Board of Regents elected Regents Heidi Ganahl and Irene Griego to co-chair the search committee. (Heidi is also a CU Foundation trustee.) The Board of Regents uses a search committee to ensure that CU’s faculty, students, staff, alumni and community members have a voice in the search process. Under the regent policy for the presidential search, the composition of the search committee is:

• A dean of a school, college or library
• Four faculty members who are members of the Faculty Senate, one representing each campus
• One student
• One staff member
• Two alumni/ae
• Four community members

In appointing the members of the search committee, the Board of Regents will strive to appoint a diverse committee that includes a variety of backgrounds, expertise and perspectives to represent the interests of the university and the state.

CU Foundation trustees are invited to apply for membership on the search committee. Submission of applications closes on October 8, 2018. Please apply through the website the Board of Regents has established to accept nominations. Note that search committee meetings are expected to take place in the later afternoon/early evening on Tuesdays. A full schedule of meetings will be posted once the committee membership is set.

Leadership transitions at the CU Foundation

Our fall trustees meeting will mark a time of transition for the CU Foundation’s volunteer leadership.

At Foundation gatherings in November, we will fete Margaret Bathgate and express our appreciation to her for her two years of gracious and effective leadership as chair of the CU Foundation’s board of directors. During Margaret’s tenure as chair, we celebrated the Foundation’s 50th anniversary, we achieved record-breaking fundraising growth, our investments outperformed most of our peer institutionally-related foundations, we changed our advancement funding model to make it more equitable for endowment donors and we hosted some truly transformative trustee meetings on the campuses. During her eight years as a director, Margaret also was vice chair of the board, chair of the Governance Committee and chair of a CEO search committee. It is good news that Margaret will continue to advocate for and serve CU as a trustee and member of the advisory board for the Center for Women’s Health Research at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus.

Two other directors who have made significant contributions to our successes are exiting the board due to term limits. Dave Baker, who for many years has chaired the Finance/Operations Committee, and Jim Linfield, who chaired the board from 2014 to 2016 and who is a member of the Investment Policy Committee, will step off the board of directors this fall. Both Dave and Jim will remain involved with CU as trustees. Dave also will continue his affiliation with the Graduate School of Banking at CU Boulder and Jim will serve as a non-director member of the Investment Policy Committee.

Margaret will pass the chair’s gavel to Mike Imhoff, currently the vice chair of the board of directors, chair of the Governance Committee and a member of both the Investment Policy Committee and the Finance/Operations Committee. Mike begins his two-year term as chair of the board of directors on November 16. Mike received his BS degree in finance and international finance from the business school at CU Boulder. Mike succeeded on the academic side at CU Boulder despite (or maybe because of) the many hours he spent as an undergraduate running Ralphie around Folsom Field on fall weekends. Mike has been an active volunteer at CU Denver where he has served on the business school advisory board since 2002. Mike is an experienced community leader - he currently serves on the boards of the Denver Area Boy Scouts and the Denver Botanic Gardens. In his professional life, Mike is a managing director of the investment firm Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. in Denver. Mike and his wife and CU sweetheart Patty, who herself has two degrees from the University of Colorado, have two daughters Katie and Grace.

Mary Sissel, currently chair of the Membership Committee, will be vice chair of the board and chair of the Governance Committee effective November 16. Mary has a BS in English and Mathematics from Iowa State and an MA in Communications from Ball State. A retired law firm administrator, Mary is an active community volunteer. She is a past chair of the Craig Hospital Foundation board of directors and a former member of the Craig Hospital board of directors. In 2015, Mary chaired the successful $50 million capital campaign for Craig Hospital. Mary currently is co-chairing the Rocky Mountain PBS capital campaign. Mary also is past chair of the Center for Women’s Health Research Advisory Board at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, the Women’s Foundation of Colorado and the Denver Foundation. Mary is very familiar with higher education foundations having served as chair of the boards of both the Ball State University Foundation in Indiana and the Front Range Community College Foundation here in Colorado. Mary is married to George Sissel, a former chair of the CU Foundation board. They enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren in Denver.

Four trustees will join the Foundation’s board of directors for three-year terms beginning on November 16. We welcome their breadth of experience and expertise and their passionate investment of their time and treasure in CU.

Bob Eastman, who received dual degrees in economics and engineering from CU Boulder and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, has been a trustee since 2005. Prior to that, Bob served on the CU Boulder Arts & Sciences Advisory Board for five years. Bob retired in 2012 from The Boston Company Asset Management where he was a qualitative analyst and then a portfolio manager. Bob lives in Marco Island, Florida. He serves on the board of the Boston Lyric Opera, he is a member of the Marco Island Beach Advisory Committee and he handles singer registration for the New England Region Auditions of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

Kevin Kratt, the president and founder of Kratt Commercial Properties, a Colorado Springs based shopping center development and brokerage firm, has been in the shopping center industry in Colorado for over 30 years. Kevin and his business partner recently completed the University Village Colorado (UVC) shopping center directly across from the UCCS campus. UVC has created a scholarship program in public art for undergraduate sculpture students. Kevin is the recipient of the University Medal presented by CU’s Board of Regents, and he is a member of the UCCS Chancellor’s Ambassadors, UCCS Regional Connect, a business advisory committee, the UCCS Sports Booster Club and the fundraising committee for the Ent Center for the Performing Arts. Kevin and his wife Jamie live in Colorado Springs.

Gary Meggison received both his BS in Civil Engineering and his MBA from CU Denver. Gary now is one of CU Denver’s outstanding alumni leaders with a focus on support for the engineering and business schools. At CU Denver, Gary serves on the Engineering Leadership Council and the Chancellor’s Development Committee, and he is the Fund for CU chair. In 2003, Gary received the Alumni Mack Easton award. In his business career, Gary provides owner’s rep services for all phases of commercial construction to building and property owners, developers and project investors in the Denver metro area and along the Front Range. Gary is a past president of the Associated General Contractors. Gary and his wife Kathy enjoy spending time with their daughter Emily.

Heather Mulvihill has a BA in Psychology from Lynchburg College and an MA in Counseling Psychology from the University of Denver. She has worked as a mental health consultant helping individuals and families identify treatment programs and services to meet their needs. Heather is a founding leader of the Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus and she has served as the Depression Center’s board chair since 2014. She plays a key role in the center’s fundraising and board and organizational development. Heather has been involved with several local educational organizations as well. She is currently a trustee of the Kent Denver School and she has served on the boards of the Denver Venture School and the Joshua School. Heather and her husband Jimmy live in Greenwood Village.

The engaging engaged trustees of the Trustee Engagement Committee

Those of us who attended the trustees meeting at CU Denver last month heard from Carol Frank and the members of the Trustee Engagement Committee about exciting plans for CU-themed salons, tours and other events in the year ahead that members of the committee will host. Barb Duran will send out invitations to trustees for each event when details are finalized.

First up is Win Johnson’s tour of the Champion Center at Folsom Field on Saturday, October 6, prior to the Buffs vs. Arizona State football game. Assistant athletic director Mitch Watkins is coordinating the event and all trustees are welcome to join. Please email Win at winthropdjohnson@aol.com if you would like to join the tour. Win will then provide you with the details about where and when to meet the tour group on October 6.

Committee chair Carol Frank will be co-hosting a salon in Boulder on Thursday, November 29, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The guest speaker will be Sharon Matusik, Dean of the Leeds School of Business at CU Boulder. Carol will co-host another salon in early April 2019 featuring talented student musicians from the CU Boulder College of Music. Carol invites trustees interested in co-hosting either or both of these events to let her know by emailing her at carol@carolfrank.com.

Kimbirly Orr and Joanne Posner-Mayer will be co-hosting a salon at Joanne’s beautiful home in Denver sometime during the first quarter of 2019. Details to come!

Kathy Finley will be working with Heather Mulvihill to organize a luncheon, tour and presentation at the Depression Center for a group of twenty or so interested friends and trustees. Target date is spring of 2019. Kathy welcomes other trustees to join forces with her. If interested in coordinating with Kathy on this, please email her at finleykathryn@aol.com.

DC resident Michael Savage is planning a cocktail party at his home for Washington-area trustees, alumni and friends of the University of Colorado. Targeting a spring 2019 date, Michael is hoping to feature as speaker either a CU Boulder law school grad or professor who has gone on to a prominent role in the federal government. Michael especially invites other DC-area trustees to join with him in this endeavor. If interested, please email Michael at michael.r.savage@ustrust.com.

Andrew Larson, along with co-hosts Nan Joesten and Gary Jacobs, will be inviting trustees to a party poolside at Andrew’s home in Boulder next summer. CU Boulder’s School of Engineering Dean Bobby Braun will be the featured guest. To join the cohort of co-hosts, email Andrew at andrew.larson@galarson.com.

CU Advancement and the CU Foundation are very grateful for the energy, creativity and thoughtfulness exhibited by the members of the Trustee Engagement Committee.

Highlights of the August trustees meeting at CU Denver

CU President Bruce Benson, CU Denver Chancellor Dorothy Horrell, CU Foundation board chair Margaret Bathgate and Advancement and Foundation leaders welcomed trustees to a sneak(er) peek at the new Lola & Rob Salazar Student Wellness Center at CU Denver on Thursday evening, August 16. Chancellor Horrell reminded trustees about the leadership role the students played in getting this ambitious new structure built and equipped. Amber Long, the center’s executive director, spoke about the role the wellness center will play in building community. Trustees participated in behind-the-scenes tours of the new facility. Clad in sneakers and casual attire, trustees had the opportunity to play games located around the gym floor during the cocktail reception. Quite a few competitive teams formed that evening!

On Friday, August 17, trustees met at CU Denver’s Lawrence Street Center for University and Foundation updates from President Benson and Jack Finlaw. Katy Kotlarczyk, who leads CU Advancement’s planned giving team, spoke and led a brainstorming session about planned giving options at CU. Carol Frank, chair of the Trustee Engagement Committee, and members of the committee shared their plans for hosting salons, tours and other events for trustees in the year ahead.

Chancellor Horrell provided trustees with an overview of her vision for the CU Denver campus and shared some highlights about the things that CU in the City is doing to connect with Denver’s business and government leaders. Trustees were treated to another sneak peek when Nolbert Chavez, CU Denver’s chief of external initiatives, led trustees on a tour of the new CityCenter ahead of its official grand opening slated for October 10. The CityCenter is CU’s front door to Denver – it will enable students and faculty to build partnerships with civic leaders. The morning concluded with A Brief History of Urban Development presented by Ken Schroeppel, an assistant professor in the Urban and Regional Planning Department of the College of Architecture and Planning. Trustees deeply appreciated Professor Schroeppel’s engaging lecture, the slides from which are accessible here.

A highlight of our two days on campus was the opportunity for all of us to meet and get to know Melisa Baldwin. Melisa joined CU Denver in early August as Vice Chancellor for Advancement. Trustees expressed how they look forward to working with Melisa and her advancement team in the years ahead to be sure that CU in the City has the financial resources it needs to accomplish the grand vision articulated by Chancellor Horrell.

New trustees to join us in November

We will welcome 10 new trustees at our November reception and meeting at CU Boulder. The new trustees will attend an orientation session in the Benson Geology Building prior to the reception for all trustees at the Touchdown Club on Thursday evening, November 15. We will share bios of the new trustees with everyone at our meeting on Friday morning, November 16.

Here is a list of the loyal friends and advocates of the University of Colorado who will be joining us as new CU Foundation trustees this November:

Maria Garcia Berry

Jeffery Delaney

Bill Fisher

Daniel Graham

Jacob Pruitt

Paula Sandoval

Tim Schultz

David Tryba

Walter Weil

Barbara Winter

All of the 33 trustees with terms expiring this November have opted to serve another term and so they will continue to serve as CU Foundation trustees. Thanks to all trustees for your enthusiasm for, and engagement with, the University of Colorado!