Fullerton Fund-Raisers Not Troubled by Economic Times

War rages in the Middle East, recession grips the economy and Cal State Fullerton is embarking on its first major fund-raising campaign, to benefit its athletic department and on-campus stadium.

Could their timing be any worse?

Probably not, but that hasn’t discouraged school officials and fund-raisers, who are confident they will be able to raise $6.3 million in two years to keep their athletic department in the black and their stadium in the first-class range.

“If we didn’t think the potential was there, we wouldn’t put our necks on the line,” said Robert B. Sharp, whose Santa Ana-based company will run the campaign. “We have ample opportunities for financial support.”

Sharp has spent nine months interviewing prospective donors and is convinced the campaign will be successful, so much so that he has recommended the school proceed with the drive.

This isn’t the case with all feasibility studies. Sharp said 65% of his studies result in a recommendation that the client not go forward with a large capital campaign. Sharp, however, believes there is enough interest in the Titan Sports Complex and athletic department to warrant a campaign.

But all signs point toward a difficult road ahead.

“There’s a real tightening in Orange County, and I think it will continue,” said John R. Miltner, UC Irvine’s vice chancellor for university advancement. “The recession has really affected giving.”

Miltner said fund-raising efforts in some of the county’s traditional target markets--home-builders and small office building developers--have ground to a halt, and they are no longer the primary sources of gift-giving they’ve been in past years. He has also seen a tightening in the corporate sector.

“Profits are down and margins are strained,” Miltner said. “For a corporation to decide to make a big gift is not really prudent right now. We’ve had to make a major shift toward individuals and de-emphasize corporations.”

A recent survey, conducted by UCI social ecology professor Mark Baldassare, also indicated that charitable donations in the county sagged in 1990, from a median donation of $285 in 1989 to $223 last year, despite a 9% increase in median household income.

“Declining consumer confidence and widespread fears about the economy could make 1991 a tough year for charities,” Baldassare predicted in December.

Sharp and his associates are obviously aware of the economic climate and said they won’t target industries, such as real estate, that are hurting. They also say there are strategies they can use to raise money in the face of the recession.

“There will be industries that are up and we’ll target them,” said Stephen D. Christensen, Sharp’s senior consultant. “We’ll try to turn negatives into positives. For instance, bankruptcy attorneys are doing well these days.”

Christensen said he will emphasize more personal, face-to-face solicitations and arrange frequent meetings with prospective donors. In the past, the Titan Athletic Foundation has relied largely on pledge cards, mailers and phone calls for solicitations, and these methods usually aren’t as effective.

Goals will be modified, too.

“Instead of targeting one person or corporation for a $75,000 gift, we’ll look to find three $25,000 donors,” Christensen said.

Hindering Fullerton is the fact that the school is a rookie in the fund-raising game. The $3.5 million raised last year was the most the school has ever generated, President Milton A. Gordon said.

There has been turnover in administration--Gordon is in his first year as president--and the school hasn’t developed the longtime contacts in the community that schools such as USC, UCLA and UC Irvine have.

“We’ve had success raising money because we’ve been working at it for eight years,” Miltner said. “At Fullerton, they’ve changed presidents and they don’t have the fund-raising infrastructure in place. A corporation doesn’t give a gift, people within the corporation do, and you have to be involved with your support base.

“I’m not putting Fullerton down, but these are some of the challenges they face.”

One way to combat this, Sharp said, is to target Fullerton’s huge alumni base, which is believed to number 65,000 living in Orange and Los Angeles counties.

“Alumni haven’t been called upon to give in large levels,” Sharp said. “They’ve never been handed a project that might be exciting.”

Gordon said recent media attention on the Titan football team, which was on the verge of being dropped four weeks ago but was saved, has spurred interest and increased potential for raising money. About $150,000 has already been pledged to the TAF.

“I’ve heard from more people in the last four weeks than I did in my first six months,” Gordon said. “We’ve never attempted a campaign on this scale, but if we’re successful, we’ll have a track record to fall back on.”

There are plenty of reasons to be skeptical about the campaign. Fullerton athletic teams have received minimal fan and financial support, regardless of their success or failure. The most the TAF has raised in one year is $453,000, and even when the Titan football team went 11-1 in 1984, its average home attendance was about 8,000.

And a new stadium won’t guarantee increased interest.

But even Miltner, who has outlined many of the obstacles Fullerton will face, wouldn’t rule out a successful campaign.

“Fullerton hasn’t had the same level of resources applied to fund-raising (that we have), but it’s a sleeping giant,” Miltner said. “They have a great alumni base. Hiring Sharp was a great idea. He’s very experienced and will share his knowledge.”