Tuesday, May 6, 2003 | 9:54 a.m.
Nearly eight months ago the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, seemed willing to swim against a rough economic tide by launching its first capital fund-raising campaign.
Talk of that big plan has since slowed to a trickle, however. Chances of raising large sums of money appear murkier than ever.
Among the reasons cited for the plan's delay are lingering economic questions, the difficulty of raising money in a relatively young city such as Las Vegas and the challenge of solidifying the community's perception of UNLV.
"It's very difficult to start a capital campaign when you're in a trough," said Don Snyder, a member of the UNLV Foundation's board of trustees. "It just causes you to reflect on the time when you want to formally move forward with the campaign or if you want to plan it out more cautiously."
The first mention of launching such a campaign was made last fall, on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
UNLV President Carol Harter said that day: "Despite volatile markets and many people who are worried that this is not the time, we may well start with an expanded private fund-raising effort."
The proposed capital campaign, which would bring in large sums of money over a fixed period of time, promised to take the university to "new heights" of giving, with a goal of raising between $250 million and $350 million over six years, Harter said.
But now, UNLV Foundation officials are looking more closely at a number of factors that have come into play since that first announcement. Giving is down nationwide, and other universities are struggling with raising money.
One fund-raising expert said that it may be more difficult to raise money in Las Vegas because they city is not yet "philanthropically mature."
"My observation is that fund-raising in the West isn't the same as other places," said Frank J. Huszar, vice president and Western regional manager of Campbell and Co., a fund-raising consulting firm in California. "It's evolving. It's not as mature as it is on the East Coast."
Huszar said in Las Vegas the presence of "new money" brings with it a set of challenges.
"First you have to adjust to the idea that you are rich," Huszar said. "When it's new money, people acquire. They're showy. Then they start thinking about philanthropy."
Huszar said the demand for culture must also be considered. It may be easier, for example, to raise money for higher education -- or a concert hall for that matter -- in an older city, where there is more of an emphasis on arts and culture.
Local fund-raisers agree that Las Vegas is a unique environment with a unique set of challenges.
Diane Wilson, chief development officer for the Community College of Southern Nevada Foundation, said that Las Vegas' explosive growth presents both pitfalls and promises for local fund-raisers.
"I believe that Las Vegas has opportunities that are not found anywhere else," Wilson said. "The number of people who move here monthly creates new resources all the time. We have to do the work to find those people and we have to convince them that we are worthy of support."
Snyder said once those people are found, it still takes time to cultivate those relationships.
"Former Sheriff Jerry Keller had one of the best comments I have heard," Snyder said. "He said typically when people move to a community they don't get involved in giving back to the community right away. It usually takes about 10 years. He suggested we pass 10-year pins out at the border to get that part over with."
Another problem is one of perception. UNLV must distinguish itself from other nonprofits. Is the university's mission clear and is the community on board with it?
Regent Mark Alden believes that may be UNLV's biggest problem.
"I hear from a lot of pillars in the community that the reason they are holding back is that UNLV hasn't completely defined itself as a research university," Alden said. "You can't confuse research university with an urban university. You can't do both. You've got to put your resources in the big apple not in the small acorn."
UNLV has made progress toward its goal of becoming a research institution. In 2001 it moved out of the regional category of a master's granting institution and into the doctoral research category, a coup. UNLV's Provost Ray Alden said the university continues to make such strides.
"Some people may not be clear on what our evolution has been over the last decade; it has been significant," Alden said.
The university has been more visible in its efforts to secure federal funding for research on nuclear waste and to forge a partnership with the Nevada Test Site to research defense issues.
UNLV has completed a feasibility study on launching a capital fund-raising campaign, but John Gallagher, vice president for development at the UNLV Foundation, said foundation members are proceeding with caution and are "studying the study."
"This is a pretty challenging time with the (stock) market being the way it is and with a war going on," Gallagher said. "When you look around the valley right now, you'll find people are a little more conservative about donations."
National figures support that.
At least 60 percent of colleges and universities reported that giving was at least 5 percent lower in 2002 than it was in 2001, according to a study conducted by Moody's Investors Service Inc.
Giving at UNLV went from $24 million in 2002 to a projected $22 million this year.
This year has seen some successful campaigns too, despite the poor economy.
According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, Duke University went above its $2 billion goal a year ahead of schedule this year. On a smaller scale, Guilford College in North Carolina exceeded its $50 million goal recently.
"I don't think I've ever seen the fund-raising environment as uncertain as it is right now," Huszar said. "Having said that, there isn't a clear pattern out there. We have clients who continue to meet their goals and go above them."
Ray Alden noted that every fund-raising campaign always has what is referred to as "the silent phase," where they secure high dollar donations so they have money in the bank before going public with a capital campaign announcement.
While UNLV Foundation members continue to "study their study," Gallagher said, the key consideration will be timing.
"We are not going to leap into something until we have a pretty good idea of what the outcome will be," Gallagher said. "Timing is very, very important in that."
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