The Capital Campaign will be officially launched at 10 a.m. this morning when the Board of Visitors will announce the amount raised from the initial private phase of the campaign. The sum is expected to exceed $1 billion.
Robert D. Sweeney, senior vice president for development and public affairs, said this weekend represents "an important moment to celebrate the University's vision and strategic plans for the future. [This campaign has been] eight years long, and this is a milepost to celebrate. It lets us capture this moment and share it with those who care about the University."
University spokesperson Carol Wood said the goal of this weekend is to focus on the achievements of the University, what its future needs are and why campaign contributions are important and necessary.
No money is expected to be directly raised this weekend, but the festivities should provide momentum going into the public phase of the campaign, Sweeney said.
The event will also "take the University to the next level of being mentioned not as a great public university, but as a great university mentioned in the same breath as the Ivies," Sweeney added.
Events this weekend will include symposiums detailing the importance of the campaign, the South Lawn groundbreaking and the much-anticipated fireworks display on the Lawn which is expected to attract over 10,000 people, including 1,000 alumni and friends of the University, Wood said.
There are 53 different events taking place this weekend involving many of the University's organizations. The "Reflections on Leadership and Positive Symposium" will feature distinguished speakers from the University, as well as a Harvard professor.
Erin Hall, development officer for the College of Arts & Sciences, said the tents recently set up in front of Old Cabell Hall will be the site of the College alumni dinner.
Sweeney said it is the University's goal to become the "first privately funded university that supports a public mandate." This weekend's festivities are an example of the University's ability to attract these types of private donations. Wood said "99 percent of [the cost of] the festivities are privately financed" by the Campaign Executive Committee, which has already donated $110 million to the campaign.
The 3 p.m. ceremonial groundbreaking of the South Lawn will be a weekend highlight that demonstrates "the College has raised enough money that they can say that they are going forward with construction; this is a milepost to celebrate and share with those who will provide the catalyst for our future," Sweeney said.
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