Northwestern Increases Campaign Goal to $5 Billion

A major new commitment from Northwestern University Trustee T. Bondurant “Bon” French ’75, ’76 MBA and his wife, Hollis “Holly” S. French, has pushed fundraising for We Will. The Campaign for Northwestern well beyond its original goal, more than two years ahead of schedule.

The “We Will” Campaign was launched publicly in March 2014 with the joint goals of raising $3.75 billion from at least 141,000 supporters. Campaign fundraising now stands at more than $4 billion, thanks to more than 150,000 Northwestern alumni, parents, faculty, staff and friends. The University is increasing its goals to raise $5 billion from 170,000 supporters, including 55,000 members of NU Loyal — the society that recognizes continuous annual giving to Northwestern — by the end of 2020.

“We are calling on the Northwestern community to continue supporting critically important initiatives that will help the University achieve new levels of excellence,” Provost Jonathan Holloway says. “Among those strategic priorities are endowing financial aid support for undergraduate, graduate and professional school students; expanding our expertise and curricular offerings in global studies and the humanities; broadening and deepening our interdisciplinary research and innovation in computer science; updating the University Libraries facilities; and ensuring that our unprecedented rise in biomedical research funding can continue.”

The “We Will” Campaign has had far-reaching impact. Since it began, Northwestern has significantly increased financial aid for its students, including eliminating loans for incoming undergraduates. Support from the Campaign has dramatically increased funding for summer internships, undergraduate research and other programs to help students thrive. Funding for graduate fellowships
has risen substantially as well.

“An important aspect of the ‘We Will’ Campaign is how broadly it is engaging the Northwestern community,” says University Trustee Paula B. Pretlow ’77, ’78 MBA, Campaign co-chair for participation. “Together, we will help Northwestern continue to make a meaningful difference in the world.”