“Stunning” campaign success will transform a university on the rise

Seattle University announced today the close to its six-year Capital Campaign that raised $169 million and will the transform the institution in the coming years.

With the generous support of more than 21,000 donors, The Campaign for Seattle University: For the Difference We Make exceeded its original goal of $150 million.

“Our campaign has been a stunning success, not only in terms of dollars raised but most importantly in terms of its impact on our students, faculty and Jesuit mission, and the greater community,” said President Stephen Sundborg, S.J. “My thanks to the donors, volunteers and supporters of a campaign that begins the next chapter of a university on the rise.”

The success of the campaign will transform the 118-year-old Jesuit Catholic university with new scholarships for students, academic programs and professorships, a fitness complex, an arts center and more, all strengthening the university’s mission of empowering leaders for a just and humane world. The centerpiece of the capital projects is the $56 million Lemieux Library and McGoldrick Learning Commons, scheduled for completion next fall.

Thousands of gifts came from alumni and friends of the university, including foundations. Major contributions included the two largest gifts in university history: $10 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and $9 million from Harold and Rita Daubenspeck. President Sundborg noted that the university received 27 gifts of $1 million or more. “This, combined with the fact that 14,000 people made their first-ever gift to SU during the campaign, illustrates the breadth and depth of our support,” Sundborg added. “We are very grateful.”

Funding for the campaign was assigned to four strategic priorities: scholarships, academic enhancements, facilities for teaching and learning, and initiatives to deepen the university’s Jesuit Catholic identity.

The campaign raised $43 million for student scholarships and $44 million for academic programs and initiatives. In addition to the library and learning commons, the campaign also resulted in the renovation of Championship Field for soccer, the new Lee Center for the Arts and the renovation of Pigott Auditorium.

Information and updates are available on the Campaign for Seattle University website. To monitor library construction progress, visit the library web cam. Images of plans for the new library are also available.

Media contact: Katie Gilliam, (206) 296-6114 or cell (206) 371-5281