Report of the Committee on Development
for the Year ending June 30, 2003

Fiscal Year 2002-2003 saw the beginning of the public phase of the Society's capital campaign to build the Sigma Xi Center in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. Under the leadership of Executive Director Patrick D. Sculley, Sigma Xi has set a five-year goal of $9 million to fund the construction of the Center.

Officially launched in late March, the Sigma Xi Center campaign received donations this year totaling $1,111,312. This included a $1 million gift from the Research Triangle Foundation, made on the recommendation of the Triangle Universities Center for Advanced Studies, Inc., in completion of an earlier pledge of $1.5 million. The multiuse auditorium in the new building will be named in honor of these two groups. The Society owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to Development Committee member Bill Little for his efforts in securing this major capital campaign gift.

Efforts also began this year to enlist the financial support of the Sigma Xi membership for the capital campaign. The first general membership solicitation went out in the spring. In addition, an extensive Web presence for the campaign was developed, including a secure online contribution form and a timeline of construction photos. Articles about the new building and the capital campaign appeared in the March-April and May-June issues of American Scientist.

The opportunity to honor someone with a gift to the building fund is a special feature of the campaign, for which pledges can be made over a three-year period. Additional membership mailings and a major gift campaign are planned over the course of this five-year effort. I would especially like to thank Development Committee member Ray Lutz for his commitment of time, effort and expertise in chairing the capital campaign.

Sigma Xi's fund-raising efforts continue to provide vital support for programs and operations. Unrestricted contributions to annual giving help further the work of the Society by providing seed money for new initiatives and supporting operations. As many not-for-profit organizations experienced declines in giving this past year, Sigma Xi's annual giving program held its own, posting a total of $224,373 for FY 2003. Approximately 3,700 Sigma Xi members and friends contributed to annual giving this year.

To what extent our capital campaign will affect annual giving in the next few years is yet to be seen, since the public phase of the campaign only began in the spring. But experience by other organizations suggests that annual giving may fall off over the next few years and then rebound.

In other areas, the Grants-in-Aid of Research program received contributions totaling $159,668 this year, over and above $2 from each member's dues that goes to support the program. In addition, the National Academy of Sciences provided $23, 624 for administrative support of the program.

Sigma Xi received $40,000 in support of the 2002 Forum, Changing the Face of Science and Engineering, in Galveston, Texas, including grants of $30,000 from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and $10,000 from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund.

The Sigma Xi Student Research Conference, held in conjunction with the 2002 Annual Meeting, received a generous grant of $30,000 from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, which helped ensure the success of this event.

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation provided $190,708 in a final installment on a three-year grant to support an international networking initiative. A grant of $174,905 was received from the National Institutes of Health in support of a national Web site for minority scientists, a Sigma Xi project in partnership with Just/Garcia/Hill.

As the Society's capital campaign gets into full swing, responsibility for program grant applications and reporting was transferred mid-year to Sigma Xi program directors under the direction of Evan Ferguson, Deputy Executive Director and Director of the Sigma Xi Center. This was one element of the administrative reorganization that took place during the year, about which Executive Director Pat Sculley elaborates in his report. Other grants and awards to Sigma Xi in FY2003, for such programs at the Sigma Xi Postdoctoral Survey and the Teacher Link program, totaled $155,686. That figure included a partial payment of a $355,000 grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for the multi-year Postdoctoral Survey.

Contributions and grant revenues received by Sigma Xi in FY 2003 totaled more than $2 million.

Sigma Xi remains indebted to those individual who provide support for the work of the Society. The Companions Club recognizes those members and friends who provide support of $500 or more in a fiscal year. In FY 2003, there were 116 members of the Companions Club.

Over the years, bequests have been important in the life of Sigma Xi, as a way for members and friends to honor a life's work, provide support for future generations of researchers and ensure the vitality of the Society. Extensive information on planned giving was posted this year on the Sigma Xi Web site. It is reproducible in the form of a brochure that can be sent by mail on request. Brief articles on planned giving published in "Sigma Xi Today" in American Scientist represented the first stage of a promotional effort highlighting this important giving option.

The Society's development efforts provide an indispensable source of support for programs and operations. With the help of members and friends, we are optimistic that Sigma Xi can meet ambitious goals and expand its influence on behalf of the science and engineering community.

George Bugliarello, Chair, Committee on Development
Lawrence M. Kushner
William A. Lester, Jr.
William F. Little
Raymond P. Lutz

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