The foundation responsible for managing hundreds of scholarship funds and raising money for the new recreation center has received an award that will increase its credibility with future donors.
The Ball State University Foundation received the Nonprofit Award for Excellence from the publication Foundation & Endowment Money Management. The Alternative Investment News also gave the award at the foundation and endowments summit in San Francisco.
David Bahlmann, Ball State University foundation president and chief executive officer, said the award would help raise credibility with donors to the university in the future.
"We are very capable of managing funds that they would donate on behalf of our students and faculty," he said.
The foundation receives all private gifts to the university and invests them for the university's use, he said.
"There is probably 1,000 different funds that are used from the foundation," he said. "Every department has at least one fund in the foundation."
Bahlmann said the foundation manages about $235 million in assets and invests the donated money to create about 700 scholarships.
The award will not raise money for the foundation, he said, but it recognizes the foundation's ability to manage these important funds.
Tony Schneider, chairman of the foundation's board of directors, said the board tries to invest funds while keeping monetary loss at a minimum.
"How to raise returns and lower risk is what we planned to do," he said about the foundation's mission.
Schneider said although the university and the foundation are in partnership, the foundation has a small role in deciding where money is used.
"The university and the leadership decide where priorities are, and we support those priorities," he said.
Bahlmann said the award meant a great deal to the foundation and that it needs to continue what it's doing.
"We exist as a partner with Ball State University to enhance the educational experience for our students and faculty," he said. "That is why we're here."
Schneider said the award was a testament to the foundation's staff.
"This award is a great honor because it is a reflection of the great work we do," he said. "If the professionals think we are doing good things that is a wonderful sound to hear."
Schneider said the award went beyond investment results and was a representation of the people on the investment committee.
"We have always felt that we were leaders and innovative and creative in the ways we conduct our affairs," he said.
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