Leaders of foundations and universities from the United Kingdom and the United States will meet today (Monday, November 11), at Magdalen College, Oxford University, to discuss ways of strengthening philanthropic support for universities and cultural institutions in both countries. Professor C Duncan Rice, Principal & Vice-Chancellor, University of Aberdeen, will be attending and speaking about the role of private support for universities and cultural institutions in the US and UK.
The meeting will be chaired by John Brademas, President Emeritus of New York University (NYU) and a long-time Member of the US Congress where he was a leading champion of legislation to support schools, colleges and universities; the arts and the humanities; libraries and museums.
Principal Rice is delighted to have been invited to the conference as someone who has been closely involved with major university fundraising campaigns on both sides of the Atlantic, as a Vice-Chancellor at NYU, and now at the University of Aberdeen.
Principal Rice, said: “The contribution that philanthropy can make to Universities has long been recognised in the US. Universities in the UK are now increasingly recognising that we to must embrace philanthropic support if we are going to compete with the best Universities in the world. In my own University's case we have begun a fundraising campaign that aims to raise £150 million by the end of the decade, and which in two years has already made significant progress towards that target.
He added: “Tax reforms made by the UK Government two years ago are helping to bring Britain closer to a US culture of giving which has helped Universities there, but there is still a long way to go. However, I am delighted to have the opportunity at this conference to emphasise why it is vital for higher education in Britain that our Universities embrace philanthropy.”
The host of the conference is Anthony Smith, President of Magdalen College and Vice President of the Development Campaign of Oxford University.
In addition to discussing the role of private support for universities and cultural institutions in the US and the UK, conferees will describe methods of giving by individuals, corporations and foundations.
Attention will also be directed to ways by which governments can encourage philanthropy.
Among the other participants in the conference include:
Robert Conway, Senior Director, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Harvey Dale, Director, National Center on Philanthropy & the Law, NYU
Peggy Egan, Director, Royal Society for the Arts
John Glier, President, Grenzebach, Glier & Associates
Les Hems, Director of Research, Institute of Philanthropy, University College London
Debra LaMorte, Senior Vice President for Development & Alumni Relations, NYU
Theresa Lloyd, Director, PhilanthropyUK
Simon Morys, Team Leader, Strategy Unit, UK Cabinet Office
James Allen Smith, Senior Advisor to the President, The J. Paul Getty Trust
Mike Smithson, Director, Development Office, University of Oxford
Marjorie Wallace, Director, SANE
The sessions, to be held in the Magdalen College Auditorium, will be open to the public, including the news media, members of the Oxford Development Forum and the Oxford community. The Magdalen conference will open at 9.30am on Monday, November 11, and conclude late afternoon.