Griffith Uni doubles its donations in new fundraising campaign

Griffith University says it’s halfway to an ambitious $125m fundraising target after a new donation from the Blackmore family foundation.

Griffith University is halfway to its $125m fundraising target.

Griffith University says its under-the-radar $125m philanthropy campaign is on track to reach its goal by next year, which will be the university’s 50th anniversary.

The university quietly launched the campaign, titled A Brighter Future for All, last October after running it in a “quiet phase” since 2019, the year that vice-chancellor Carolyn Evans ­arrived at the university.

The latest donation, $6.3m from natural health magnate Marcus Blackmore’s family foundation, has taken the campaign halfway towards its goal and the pace of fundraising is stepping up.

“We plan to reach the goal by 2025, Griffith’s 50th anniversary year, and we are confident we will exceed it,” said Marcus Ward, the university’s vice-president of advancement.

He said Griffith’s fundraising had more than doubled, with money raised in the past two years exceeding money raised in the four prior years.

“Griffith’s philanthropic performance now consistently exceeds that of several Go8 universities,” Mr Ward said.

The latest $6.3m donation from the Blackmore Family Foundation will establish the Blackmore chair in the Griffith Business School. The appointee to the chair will focus on innovative business leadership.

Marcus Blackmore

The gift will also support three Blackmore Leadership Summits, the first in 2025.

“The summit will create a community of business executives, entrepreneurs and innovators with shared aspirations of leadership excellence for positive impact,” said the university’s pro vice-chancellor (business), Caitlin Byrne.

Mr Blackmore said his foundations’s partnership with Griffith University would “help steer our future business leaders in the right direction”.

“As someone who grew up and went to school in Brisbane, I was keen to invest in my local community, in particular on building a successful business,” Mr Blackmore said.

“I can also pass on how to stuff it up, but the reality is that you learn from your mistakes in life more than your successes.”

Mr Ward said the university had boosted its fundraising with the help of “significant multimillion-dollar partnerships” with philanthropic organisations and benefactors including the Clem Jones Foundation, the Paul Ramsay Foundation, the Stafford Fox Medical Research Foundation, the Perry Cross Spinal Research Foundation, and Rotary.

He said there was a goal to make 100,000 “meaningful engagements” with alumni, including volunteering and support.

Also, 738 staff and university council members have made ­donations in the past 12 months, mostly to support student scholarships. Mr Ward said this was nearly 15 per cent of the workforce, nearly four times the national average for workplace giving.

The money raised in Griffith’s philanthropy campaign will support scholarships for students as well as research and other programs in four areas – health, the environment, deeper relationships with the Asia-Pacific region, and stronger communities in ­Australia.