Ivy Tech Community College Launches $285 million First Statewide Campaign; Evansville Campus Kicks Off its Local Campaign
Evansville, IN – Today marks the beginning of the public phase of Ivy Tech Community College’s first-ever statewide campaign. Ivy Tech Evansville announced its $12.1 million Invest IN Ivy Tech Capital Campaign, at a public event on the Ivy Tech campus, as a part of the Ivy Tech overall goal of raising $285 million. The live-streamed and in-person events were made simultaneously with all 19 campuses statewide.
Announced recently was a Community Economic Impact Report for the college and each campus. According to the report, Ivy Tech Community College’s impact is felt all across Indiana. When the College’s students succeed, communities and local businesses thrive, the state attracts new industries and entrepreneurs, and futures are bolder and brighter. A recent study revealed Ivy Tech has a $3.9 billion cumulative annual impact to the state, the report states.
“Ivy Tech, Indiana’s community college, plays an outsized role in upskilling Indiana’s workforce and increasing Hoosier prosperity,†said Sue Ellspermann, President of Ivy Tech Community College. “This campaign is largely a ‘human capital’ campaign ensuring we reach, educate, and serve all Hoosiers from first-generation high school graduates to single parents and displaced workers allowing them to launch successful careers in high wage, high demand fields that will drive Indiana’s future economy.â€
Shawn McCoy, chair of the Evansville Region campaign, CEO of Deaconess Health System, and secretary of the Ivy Tech Campus Board of Trustees said, “Ivy Tech’s healthcare-field graduates come to our organization—and other health systems, hospitals, and clinics—well-prepared and trained to provide quality patient care. He added that Investing in Ivy Tech’s education programs allows individuals and organizations to “invest in their future employees who will care for our patients, families, and community.†McCoy today announced that Deaconess Health Systems is contributing $250,000 to the campaign.
Evansville Chancellor Daniela Vidal agreed about the need and desire of employees and the public to support Ivy Tech students. “One thing you discover quickly when you talk to an Ivy Tech employee is their strong passion for our mission and our students,†she said. “This is because we experience daily the life, and even generational changes our students achieve through Ivy Tech. We also quickly realize the size of the need. Without the help and support of our community and donors we would not be able to support our students to the degree we do, not just academically but also with any other challenge that gets in the way of their success.â€
Invest IN Ivy Tech provides greater opportunity for each of the college’s 19 campuses to educate, train, and support its students. The funds raised through the campaign will benefit all of the campuses serving the 92 counties across Indiana. It reflects the College’s strategic plan and each campus’ strategic priorities and will make a substantial difference for students, communities and the state.
Silvia Barreto, a medical assistant and an Ivy Tech nursing student since August of 2020, said the support she has been provided at Ivy Tech means the difference of being able to continue, or not, and finish her Associate Degree. “I was working with a clinic providing COVID-19 testing to patients while attending school. Recently, my contract ended abruptly due to the decline in the number of patients being seen daily. I did find another job; however, it took a while for the hiring process to take its course,†Barreto said. “During that time, I fell into some financial hardships. I was just about to begin the current semester that I’m in, and everything began to accumulate as far as payments and school expenses. Ivy Tech has given me the opportunity to not only have free books this year, frozen tuition, but also, the Lamkin Center and its incredible donors have given me something I cannot begin to describe. They have given me hope-the positive reinforcement that I needed.†Barreto said that support led her to be able to successfully complete her first two nursing courses.
“I have been able to make it without the overwhelming feeling of my financial burdens keeping me from pursuing my educational goals and dreams,†Barreto said.
The campaign is being co-chaired by Glick Art Owner & Chairwoman of the Eugene & Marilyn Glick Family Foundation Marianne Glick and Old National Bank Retired Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bob Jones. Ontario Systems Co-Founder and former Chief Executive Officer Ron Fauquher is serving as the Chief Operating Officer for the campaign.
“I believe that an investment in Ivy Tech is the most impactful on the future of our citizens, our communities, and our State. I am honored to co-chair this campaign and help tell the Ivy Tech story,†stated Glick.
“I have seen first-hand the role of Ivy Tech graduates in our communities. They graduate ready to work and to contribute to the quality of life in their hometowns,†said Jones.
Ivy Tech’s impact supports the equivalent of 56,697 jobs. For perspective, the activities of Ivy Tech and its students support one out of every 70 jobs in Indiana. A recent economic impact study showed that students invested $502.8 million in time and money that will generate a cumulative return of $2.2 billion in higher future earnings over their working careers.
“Ivy Tech’s impact goes well beyond the benefits students derive from their education,†said Ellspermann. “When the College’s students enter the workforce, whether right out of Ivy Tech or after continuing on to earn a bachelor’s degree, they bring with them valuable skills acquired through their education, resulting in increased productivity for their employers. That has a lasting impact on our state and the dozens of communities where our students live and work.â€
To unite the past with the future, Invest IN Ivy Tech will be completed in 2023, the 60th anniversary of Ivy Tech. Learn more at www.InvestINIvytech.org.
