Letter from the Foundation Chairman

 

Let me begin simply: Thank you. As chair of the University of Georgia Foundation Board of Trustees, I had a front-row seat to witness UGA’s overwhelming success during the past fiscal year. What made this year memorable absolutely could not have happened without you.

In Fiscal Year 2022, you gave $257.4 million, more than any year in our University’s history. Your remarkable generosity pushed UGA’s three-year rolling average to $212.5 million, a statistic that points to the consistently strong philanthropic culture throughout the UGA community.

The UGA Foundation stewards each and every gift, carefully managing the donations entrusted to us for the betterment of the University, with assets now totaling approximately $1.8 billion. This year, the Board of Trustees awarded over $7 million from unrestricted operating surplus funds to University and board priorities. Some of these priorities enable UGA to better support rural Georgia, such as the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences’ Rural Scholars Program, the Planning Rural Opportunities for Prosperity and Economic Leadership (PROPEL) program, and the Connected Resilient Communities program. The Board also directed surplus funds to the School of Law’s Graduate Assistant program, Georgia Commitment Scholarship Program, and many other scholarship programs, experiential learning opportunities, student emergency funds, and endowed faculty positions.

By fueling the achievements of UGA’s administration, faculty, staff, and students, your contributions brought us here and have positioned UGA to ascend even higher in the future.

Neal J. Quirk Sr.

One additional priority of the UGA Foundation was the Jere W. Morehead Honors College. Financial support of the initiative to elevate what was previously the UGA Honors Program was spearheaded by our emeriti trustees, who were joined with financial support from 100% of our board and many others. We are deeply grateful for President Morehead’s selfless leadership and tireless effort in serving our University in so many capacities for over three decades.

By fueling the achievements of UGA’s administration, faculty, staff, and students, your contributions brought us here and have positioned UGA to ascend even higher in the future. On behalf of the hard- working and dedicated men and women of our Board of Trustees, I close where I started—extending my heartfelt and sincere thanks to each and every supporter of the University of Georgia.

Sincerely,

Neal J. Quirk Sr.