Marian University has received a $6 million pledge – the largest gift in the institution’s history – from a former trustee, the school announced today.
The gift was timed to coincide with the Indianapolis-based school’s name change from Marian College to Marian University.
The gift should help further the Catholic college’s plan to raise its profile beyond Indianapolis. The university is in the midst of a campaign to raise $68.2 million. The $6 million pledge will bring the amount raised to $55 million.
Marian said in a press release that the donor, who wants to remain anonymous, was motivated by seeing the college make progress after some of its most “difficult years.”
“We think it’s important to understand that this person, who didn’t experience the university in the same way that our students and graduates do, feels compelled to endorse Marian University’s educational approach,” university President Daniel J. Elsener said in a prepared statement. “Clearly our Franciscan values and commitment to a liberal arts education are valued by others, and needed by our world.”
The gift comes as a $1 million check and a pledge of $500,000 annually over 10 years. The university said it will determine exactly how to use the gift in the coming weeks, and make an announcement at a later date.
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