Congratulations to CSU President Tony Frank for the success of the $500 million capital campaign! These donations certainly will benefit the university in many ways for many years to come. That said, we also should recognize that private donations cannot solve the fiscal crisis of public higher education. Fundraising may be a necessity, but it is not a strategy that can repair the damage created by years of state budget cuts. Private donors understandably want to give their money to specific purposes. These may or may not coincide with the most pressing needs of the university. Nonetheless, the university devotes an enormous amount of time, energy and money to cultivate wealthy donors. In doing so, it inevitably starts to shift its priorities in their direction.
http://www.coloradoan.com/article/20120702/OPINION04/307020005/CSU-needs-strategy-survival-cannot-rely-fundraising
