By Nicarlyle Hanchard / The Jambar
With upwards of $22 million donated to the Kilcawley: Centered on the Future Campaign, the Kilcawley Center renovations are on track to begin May 5.
The campaign was launched November 2024, with the initial donation made by Scott Schulick, chair of the campaign. He said his time as committee chair has been rewarding.
“It has reconnected me with so many leaders and supporters of the university, and I feel that I am able to lend some of my experience to the process,” Schulick said. “ I have enjoyed every minute of it, as this project is close to me having been a student who spent a lot of time in Kilcawley Center in the 1990s.”
Youngstown State University President Bill Johnson said he is happy with the direction of the campaign and grateful for the support of the stakeholders.
“It’s come along very well, I’m extremely pleased with the response of our philanthropic folk [and] the many donors,” Johnson said. “This is all about students, all about improving the life and experience of the 12,000 plus students that come to YSU.”
As one of the largest capital projects the university has undertaken in the last decade, Johnson urges other interested parties to support the campaign.
Additionally, Schulick said though the renovations begin soon, donations can still be made throughout the duration of the project.
“The campaign will continue throughout the process as we work to raise as many philanthropic dollars as we can,” Schulick said. “We have focused on raising as much as we can to reduce the debt burden the university would face without part of the cost being offset through philanthropic donations.”
As a state institution, Johnson said this reconstruction places the state in debt. For this reason, he said the approved sale of bonds to reduce the debt was a great success to the campaign. He shared the successes of YSU in the stock market.
“About a month ago, we went on the New York Stock Exchange floor to sell $38 million in bonds, and in two hours of trading time, we had $75 million in offers from 19 different investors,” Johnson said. “That says … the market [has] great confidence in what we are doing and our ability to carry out this project.”
Paul McFadden, president of the YSU Foundation, said the campaign has exceeded his expectations and testifies to the donor and alumni commitment to YSU.
“We’re sending out a mailing the second week of May to all 105,000 YSU alumni asking them to consider giving to the project,” McFadden said. “That’s the big thing on the horizon … we have high hopes for [this] as all students use Kilcawley and we’re hoping our alums have fond memories of their days there.”
All three said they were grateful for the contributions, participation of the donors and the capital committee.