University of Miami launches MOMENTUM

1 billion dollars. This is the target of Momentum, The Campaign for University of Miami, the largest and most comprehensive fundraising in UM's history, scheduled for launch tomorrow, October 16. Here is a quote from President Shalala's article published in The Miami Herald:

Our goal, ambitious but attainable, is to move the university into the top tier of American research universities. That will take considerable investment in our enterprise. Not surprisingly, most institutions we consider peers now are engaged in billion-dollar campaigns or have recently completed such campaigns. Nationally, 25 universities are involved in campaigns of $1 billion or more.

Some people may wonder why we are launching a fundraising effort of such magnitude now -- especially given a bear market that seems relentless. Because the time is right for us. [...]

The university that emerges on the other side of this campaign in 2007 will be a vastly different institution. We will stay true to our core mission: providing an outstanding education for our students, conducting groundbreaking research and serving the community. But we will be fundamentally different in that we will be able to do all of these things on a much grander scale and with much more impact.

Momentum will be nothing short of transformational for our university -- and for our community.

Update: here is the Campaign's website, http://www.miami.edu/campaign/home.html