Vice President for University Advancement Bob Groves said endowments are private donations in the form of investments in the university for at least $35,000 that will last for a number of years, depending on the agreement made between MSU and the investor. Most of MSU’s endowments come from independent corporations and foundations.

While MSU’s endowments have increased, some administrators have said MSU should expand fundraising efforts.

In 2012, MSU ranked 38th among public and private universities nationwide in endowment amounts, the institute reported.

In the past 20 years, MSU has increased its endowments significantly, reaching more than $1.7 billion in endowments in 2012, according to MSU’s Common Investment Fund.

During former MSU President John Hannah’s days, Simon said MSU’s financial priority was not to collect funds from private donations. To Hannah, funding was meant to come from institutional government subsidization.

“I worry that we have not been as successful in fundraising as we need to be,” Simon said. “We are very late in the game (for) a big university.”

Simon said it now is in the university’s best interest to ramp up its funding efforts.

Scott Westerman, executive director of the MSU Alumni Association, said MSU can always improve its fundraising efforts.

“The ultimate goal of any endowment is to make sure that there is enough money to make sure it can (function),” Westerman said. “Any improvement we can make in our endowments will definitely benefit students today and tomorrow.”

To Trustee Brian Mosallam, the answer to increasing MSU’s endowments Endowment Performance.pdf lies in pushing toward a more involved philanthropic tradition at MSU, with funds from private donors to increase endowments that could increase scholarship funds and potentially cut tuition rates.

Mosallam said it is necessary to ensure students realize how much alumni donations affect their education.

“When I graduated from school and I received a call from the College of Engineering to make a donation, I didn’t understand the importance of it,” Mosallam said, adding it now is in his interest to ensure students get past this “disconnect.”

Mosallam said he now donates yearly to the Spartan Fund.

Social relations and policy senior Robert Irland, production manager at MSU Greenline, an organization that gathers donations from MSU alumni and friends, said he sees value in fundraising.

“We are trying to build more of the culture of philanthropy though Michigan State … through just raising awareness among faculty, staff and the student body (about) how a lot of the things they take advantage of here, and might take for granted, are because of endowments and are because of people who have been here before and are helping out,” Irland said.