This hurts a university more than anything else. Penn earned this.
From the Daily Pennsylvanian:
Penn Fund donations down 21% from this time last year amid leadership crisis, donor backlashThe Penn Fund has received less money from fewer donors in 2024 than in any year since at least 2020 — a sign that tensions on campus may be tangibly impacting the University’s financial support.The Daily Pennsylvanian found that Penn was closer to meeting the fundraising goals outlined on The Penn Fund website at this time last year, and as of April 3, donations were down 21% compared to last year. The University has until the end of the fiscal year on June 30 to meet its fundraising goals for The Penn Fund.“We are grateful for the generous support of our donors, who share our passion for and commitment to Penn,” a University spokesperson wrote to the DP. “As the University’s fiscal year has not yet concluded, it is too early to share results or trends at this time.”The Penn Fund is the University’s annual giving program, of which undergraduate students are the sole beneficiaries. The fundraising program supports grant-based financial aid packages, academic programs, and student clubs and organizations.This year’s fundraising goal is $46 million, and a total of $24.9 million in donations were displayed on the Penn Fund “progress” webpage as of April 3. 11,167 individual donors contributed to this total.At this time in 2023, the same web page reported $31.5 million in total donations from 14,976 individuals, website archives show. The fundraising goal of $46 million was the same.The size of the decrease “is an indication that a crisis is affecting the fundraising,” according to Larissa Reece — who studies fundraising in higher education as a senior consultant with nonprofit consulting firm Ashley Rountree and Associates.In November, the DP spoke with Reece about how ongoing controversies related to antisemitism and free speech culminated in backlash from prominent donors.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY