Alumni Fundraiser Reflects

The office, in the center of downtown Boston, is a shrine to Harvard memorabilia: two Harvard chairs, a picture of Harvard's stadium, a framed collection of 100 Harvard 350th anniversary stamps and a collection of Harvard financial books.

The office belongs to Ernest E. Monrad '51, one of the University's chief Boston-area fundraisers.

A past head of the Harvard College Fund, Monrad has a longtime association with the University's finances--both as a fundraiser and a contributor.

A few years ago, Monrad endowed a professorship at the Russian Research Center--a gift with $1 million price tag. The position was filled last year by Monrad Professor of Economics Martin L. Weitzman and is considered a key appointment for the center.

But these days, Monrad says, endowed chairs are going for $2 million.

And Monrad would know. Recently, he got one of his fellow graduates to give a chair to Harvard.

"Once I said [to a prospective donor], 'I'm endowing a chair'--a few days later he called and did the same," Monrad says.

But, the Boston mutual fund executive says raising money hasn't always been quite that easy.

"When I was younger, I used to not like asking people for money," he says.

But, by his 25th reunion, Monrad says he didn't mind so much. And in the last five to 10 years, Monrad says he's been working "the upper end of the scale" in alumni fundraising.

"It gets to be sort of a challenge," Monrad says.

Part of that challenge is hitting on the right strategy for persuading alumni to open their checkbooks.

Monrad says it's important to find out the potential giver's interests. For example, he says, "if the person's conservative, find a conservative professor [for them to talk to]."

"One of my lines was, 'I'm giving 10 percent of my income to Harvard this year, will you do the same?'" Monrad says.

And, if he gets $10,000 or more, Monrad says he's had a successful afternoon. But, he adds, "I always want more."