Leaders of the University of South Alabama Foundation weighed two very different visions for boosting student scholarships during a board meeting in Mobile, ultimately deciding to take more time before committing millions of dollars.
At issue were competing proposals to support the Mitchell-Moulton Scholarship Initiative. The foundation’s investment and audit committee recommended a $1 million gift, spread across four annual payments of $250,000. A second, far larger resolution, put forward by faculty senate representative J. Allen Tucker, called for a $10 million commitment paid in five yearly installments of $2 million to establish a dedicated foundation scholarship fund.
Every dollar carries added weight because gifts to the initiative are matched dollar for dollar by businessman Abe Mitchell. The scholarship program represents half of Mitchell’s $50 million pledge to the university, which was announced in May 2013 during the school’s 50th anniversary celebration. The overall fundraising target for the initiative stands at $25 million, of which about $3.8 million had been raised at the time of the meeting.
Before turning to the proposals, directors reviewed the foundation’s finances. Net assets stood at $321.2 million as of Sept. 30, up roughly 5 percent from a year earlier, while the value of the foundation’s stock holdings reached $132 million by late November. Directors also noted that the foundation had made its final payment on the Brookley by the Bay property, purchased in 2011 for $20 million, and approved a semi-annual contribution of $2.2 million for scholarships, professorships and university programs.
The debate over the larger gift revealed some hesitation. Bob Word, who chairs the investment and audit committee, said he wanted more research before endorsing the $10 million plan, and director Lowell Bonds urged the board to first determine where the money would come from.
Others made emotional appeals in favor of acting boldly. Ken Simon, a foundation director and vice chairman of the university’s Board of Trustees, described how his own education at South Alabama had transformed his life and called scholarships a “real game-changer” for underprivileged and minority students. University President Tony G. Waldrop reminded directors that a major gift tends to encourage additional donors because “they can see the impact.” Dr. Steve Furr argued the timing was right now that the Brookley debt was cleared, calling the $10 million figure “a very doable number.”
In the end, the board voted to postpone a decision until its March meeting. Foundation director Maxey Roberts said the investment and audit committee would meet with university development officials to review options and deadlines. Joe Busta, the university’s vice president for development and alumni relations, said organizers were aiming to fully fund the scholarships by 2018, though he described that target as flexible rather than a firm cutoff.