Pie chart of the million-dollar gift allocation

Pie chart of the million-dollar gift allocation

By Emily Temple, The Whetstone

Last spring semester, the administration of Wesley College raised funds for a proposed $1 million gift to the college in honor of retiring President William N. Johnston and his wife, Susan Johnston.

During May commencement ceremonies, Chris Wood, vice president for institutional advancement, announced that the gift would allow for the renaming of the Health Sciences building to William and Susan Johnston Hall.

“It’s a big honor to have your name put on a building, so you want a gift that’s high enough,” Wood said.

The amount raised, $1,027,490, was given in cash donations, pledges, and, in some cases, physical gifts to Wesley College. Donors included trustees, alumni, community members, faculty, staff, and businesses.

The honor of naming the Health Science building was given to the Johnstons, but Wood said the funds will support campus renovations and expansions, among other projects.

“When you give a gift to Wesley, there’s three or four buckets that you can give to,” he said.

Each of the 54 donors, with gifts ranging from less than $100 to $100,000, selected one of these “buckets” to determine their gift’s purpose.

Wesley’s Student Government Association donated $10,000 into the Campaign General fund near the end of last semester. The primary focus of this fund is Wesley’s Capital Campaign, the future Student Activity Center across Governor’s Avenue.

SGA President Savannah Durham said she was optimistic about the new funding for the center.

“If an activities center is built, it would help students immensely,” she said. “There’s been talking about this for a long time, and I’m excited to see they are moving forward with the fundraising and planning.”

Aside from the campaign’s general fund, unrestricted donations may be made to the Wesley fund; or, money also may go toward a scholarship fund, which is invested and left untouched aside from interest earned; and restricted funds, which are specific projects designated by the donor to benefit Wesley.

For example, one donor contributed a gift specifically to put a new roof on Wesley’s gym, while another funded the construction of a ramp to meet ADA guidelines at the campus chapel.

A unique gift, Wood said, was offered by a Dover woman seeking to honor the president and his wife through art.

“Instead of giving us money, she chose to donate a sculpture in honor of the Johnstons,” he said.

The donor commissioned the sculpture, which is to be installed in the South plaza and dedicated this fall, as an homage to Susan Johnston’s interest in the arts.

“Susan really engaged the Dover community,” Wood said. “Susan was fully engaged with the downtown businesses, the arts community, and some of the social circles in Dover, and she was promoting Wesley College in that process. Both for me personally and for members of the board of trustees, when we started talking about this possibility there was never any question that it should be for both Bill and Susan.”

Gifts to Wesley during the 2014-15 school year totaled just under $2.8 million, up more than $2 million from 2009’s $675,000. Wood attributed this not only to the opportunity opened through Johnston’s retirement, but to increased efforts by administrators to raise money for student life.

“Any way we can improve our facilities, and particularly facilities that will directly impact students—that’s residence halls, and some type of activity center for students—those are the highest priorities that we have right now,” Wood said.

Dru Sottnick, SGA representative of the junior class, said she believes the impact of the gift is yet to be seen on campus.

“The way it’s been laid out should’ve been explained,” she said. “I don’t see any differences on campus.”

The limited information students have received regarding the purpose of the gift also frustrated Sottnick.

“At graduation, they said the gift is naming the building,” she said. “But the money didn’t really go to doing that, so why would they say that?”

Durham agreed.

“I can understand the secrecy, because they were trying to surprise Dr. Johnston with the naming of the Health Science building,” she said. “I do wish that we had known more about where the money was going, so that congress could have been more informed.”

Wood admits there was no report to SGA aside from a letter of thanks sent to the board, but he is willing to speak further with the association about how this funding is being used.

“Wesley has really been working hard to raise additional gift support for our school,” he said. “It’s helpful for the students, and it’s helpful for the college.”