Staff Editorial: Wharton sets the fundraising bar

There's a very good reason that the Wharton School is one of the top business schools in the country. And if the donation rates are any indication, graduates of the school certainly appreciate the education they received during their stay.

Wharton has just completed a seven-year, $400 million-plus fundraising drive, the largest drive that any business school has ever put together. The Campaign for Sustained Leadership, as it was called, was driven by the participation of over 20,000 current and former members of the Wharton community.

Most impressively, the fundraising efforts included an absurdly high 98 percent participation rate from the MBA class of 2003 and an 86 percent faculty participation rate.

The overall numbers are slightly inflated because much of the fundraising was done during the dot-com boom of the late 1990s. And historically, Wharton graduates have been more likely to give back in larger quantities because they often have the most money to spare.

But no matter what the reason, this fundraising campaign has been extremely impressive, and Wharton School administrators and fundraisers should be commended for their hard work. This drive will go a long way toward keeping the Wharton School at the very top of the list for potential MBA students.

Part of the reason that students are likely to keep giving back to Wharton is that the school offers its students tangible rewards for their generosity.

The technology that is only available to Wharton students in buildings that are reserved exclusively for Wharton use is a direct result of alumni contributions, something that does not go unnoticed by current and former Whartonites. In fact, the school has already earmarked over $120 million of the newly-raised money for academic programs and nearly $50 million for financial aid.

All in all, the Wharton School has created one of the strongest fundraising blueprints in recent history, one that will keep the school at the top of academia for years to come.

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