Harvard Studies Major Fund Drive Like Most Ivy Schools

While several Ivy League schools are conducting major fund drives for over $100 million, the Harvard Development Office has hired two New York consulting firms to consider the possibility of launching such an overall drive at Harvard within the next few years.

Dr. Chase N. Peterson '52, vice president for alumni affairs and development, said yesterday that although the decision to launch a major drive at Harvard would not be made until sometime next year, the two consulting firms are considering fundraising prospects among alumni, foundations, and corporations.

Such a drive, according to one development office official, would involve the combining of Harvard's separate "mini-drives," which over the past few years have raised an annual amount of more than $50 million for Harvard.

The official added that within five years "I would be willing to bet that Harvard is involved in a major fundraising project."

According to Henry F. Colt, Jr. '46, assistant to the vice president for alumni affairs and development, "no definite plans have been made."

George Putnam, Jr. '49, treasurer to Harvard College, said yesterday "there is a lot of talk [about a major drive], it's under consideration, but no decision one way or the other could be expected for some time."

Among the Ivy schools currently running drives over $100 million are Cornell, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton, and Yale. Dartmouth and Brown both have major drives under consideration, with Dartmouth's $100-150 million expected to be announced next year.

In addition to the Ivy schools, the University of Chicago has raised $144 million out of a goal of $280 million, and Stanford has raised over $262 million in the five-year drive for $300 million expected to be completed next spring.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has raised over $81 million toward its five-year goal of $225 million, an MIT spokesman said yesterday.

The campaign for Yale has raised $165 million out of $370 million, spokesman Donald M. Marshman Jr., said yesterday.

Marshman said that although the five-year drive will be entering its fourth year this January he is "cautiously optimistic".

A spokesman for Princeton University said yesterday that Princeton is near completion of its $125 million five-year drive, scheduled to end this spring.

Cornell has raised $45 million in its first year drive for $230 million, a Cornell spokesman said yesterday.

Kenneth W. Moore, campaign coordinator for the University of Pennsylvania, said that in the first year of the five-year $225 million drive, $81 million has been raised.

Robert J. Finney, director of development for Dartmouth, said that Dartmouth is "still contemplating a major drive but has not yet made a definitive decision."

Finney added that a decision to launch a drive, which would probably be for $100-150 million, would not be announced until next year.

A Brown University spokesman said that although the Brown development office is seriously considering a drive, a move cannot be announced until its president-elect, Howard Swearer, takes office in January