Private support in higher education was once the sole province of private colleges and universities, while public institutions like North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University relied, for the most part, on state and federal government appropriations.

Those days are long gone. A decline over the past 30 years in public funding combined with alumni and other donors increasingly interested in giving to public campuses has dramatically changed the game. In 2017, the 20 campuses across the nation that raised the most money included seven public institutions that brought in nearly $3.19 billion between them. 

Historically black colleges and universities are not represented among those top 20 campuses. In fact, a Bloomberg Business feature reported in 2017 that none of the 90 schools with billion-dollar endowments are HBCU.

But HBCUs have been working in recent years to improve their success in attracting philanthropic support, marking increases in 2015 and again in 2016, when private giving topped $320 million.

North Carolina A&T recognized the need for increased private support when we quietly began a capital campaign in fiscal year 2013. That effort, which we will unveil publicly along with its goal on Nov. 1, has now raised $68 million. Just as importantly, it has doubled the university’s combined endowments, pushing them past $74 million.

That work is as critical to the current financial health and capacity of our university as it is to our future. If we are to continue to compete successfully with other institutions for the best and brightest students and faculty, take on important questions in our research laboratories and engage the communities we seek to serve, we must have the resources necessary to fund those ambitions.

We embrace this challenge, and within it, the opportunity to share with donors our singular story of success and achievement. The return on investment for a gift to A&T is exceptional, and the chance to truly make a difference, extraordinary.

As we continue to grow and develop as America’s top-ranked public HBCU and as one of North Carolina’s top public research universities, we look forward to making the case for A&T and to connecting with individuals and organizations who share our enthusiasm for the future of this remarkable place. 

- Chancellor Harold L. Martin Sr.

Above, N.C. A&T leaders accept a $1-million check from BlueCross/BlueShield of North Carolina in April of this year to support nursing education.

The university received more than 10,200 individual gifts, a 7 percent increase over the previous year, including gifts from more than 4,500 alumni, an 8 percent jump over last year. More than 100 donors made major gifts of $25,000 or more.

A&T supporters gave more than $4 million to support endowed scholarships for the second year in a row, while gifts to support current-use scholarships exceeded $3 million.

Giving over the past two fiscal years adds up to a combined total of $30.3 million – by far the largest amount raised in any two-year span in the university’s 127-year history.

Private support allows A&T to provide scholarships to students in need, upgrade facilities and equipment, and bring the brightest minds into our faculty and student body. In the recent months, it includes gifts such as $1.5 million from BB&T to support A&T Athletics (celebrated at a special event pictured above) and $2 million from alumnus and retired pharmaceutical industry executive Willie Deese to support student activities, scholarships and A&T overall.

Those funds come in the form of endowed scholarships and general scholarship funds. For fiscal year 2018, A&T supporters gave more than $4 million to support those scholarships for the second year in a row, while gifts to support current-use scholarships exceeded $3 million. Among those donations was a gift from AT&T to support the Cheatham-White Scholars program; the debut class of Cheatham-White scholars is pictured above.

“When we see the level of activity that we did in FY18, it’s clear that our donors enthusiastically support the university’s mission,” said Ken Sigmon, vice chancellor for university advancement.

Scholarship support is one of the four major giving areas of the Campaign for North Carolina A&T, which university leaders will unveil on Nov. 1.  Other areas include faculty support, funding for academic programs and support for enhanced facilities and infrastructure.

The university currently maintains 351 endowed scholarships and 446 current and general use scholarship funds. Donors can support any of them by visiting the N.C. A&T website.

As a leading doctoral, higher-research activity university, North Carolina A&T competes successfully for research funding from federal sources like the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Increasingly, however, A&T research funding comes from private sources, as well.

Whether supporting studies on the production of allergen-reduced peanuts, health disparities or a medical device to treat gallstone disease, funds from businesses, foundations and industry associations are making a difference in a growing range of research areas. Around $3.75 million of the record $64.3 million in research funding earned by A&T faculty in fiscal year 2018 came from private interests.

One A&T project benefitting from private support is a high-profile effort in the College of Engineering aimed at creating a self-driving car. Project leader/Associate Professor Ali Karimoddini and a team of Engineering students are collaborating with General Motors and the Society of Automotive Engineers as part of the AutoDrive Challenge, a three-year competition between eight universities across North America.

Dubbed Aggies Autonomous Auto (A3), the A&T team is adapting a Chevrolet Bolt provided by GM for the competition, which will focus on avoiding dynamic obstacles, safely passing through intersections, navigating challenging road conditions and accomplishing multiple lane changes.

A3 performed well in the first leg of the team competition held earlier this year in Yuma, Ariz., placing third in a portion of the event that required each vehicle to autonomously follow a two-mile track in the shortest timeframe while appropriately following stop signs and general traffic obstacles. The second leg of the competition is set for May 2019.

“The role of private organizations in supporting research of strategic and critical needs is important not only to their own businesses and other interests, but to the advance of science overall,” said A&T interim Vice Chancellor for Research Sanjiv Sarin. “This is a growth area for our university and many other significant research institutions, and the opportunities are enormous.”