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Thanks to gifts from supporters around the country, the
Leopold Center was able to formally designate $50,000 in
contributed funds to launch the “Friends of the Leopold
Center Endowment” account in March 2005. The endowment
account grew out of fundraising efforts the Center embarked
upon in 2002 following a $1 million transfer of funds from
the Center’s Agricultural Management Account to the state of
Iowa’s general fund due to the state’s budgetary problems.
Donors were assured that if the Legislature restored funding
to the Center (which it did in subsequent years), a portion
of the gifts would be invested to provide a permanent source
of support for the Center.
“This is a seed that has been planted which will eventually
grow to secure the Center’s future,” said Center director
Fred Kirschenmann. “Each year we will put at least 50
percent of the gifts we receive from friends into the
endowment.”
The endowment agreement between the Center and the ISU
Foundation is intended to provide general support for the
Center as it strives to meet its legislative mandate
regarding sustainable agriculture in Iowa. The ISU
Foundation will administer the account, and the Center
director will be responsible for determining and applying
funds to be distributed by the endowment. The Center plans
to use the funds for support of specific projects within the
research initiatives and for special projects that fall
outside the general boundaries of the current research
focus.
Richard Bundy, the ISU Foundation executive officer for the
College of Agriculture, comments on the endowment, “Private
support for the Friends of the Leopold Center Endowment will
enhance the Center’s ability to contribute to the
development of profitable farming systems that conserve
Iowa’s natural resources.”
The Center received private gifts to begin the endowment
from a number of individuals and groups. Donors of $1,000 or
more were designated as “Friends of the Leopold Center.”
Among those who made gifts at this level were James and
Millicent Cozzie, Susan Futrell, David and Barbara Hurd,
John and Mary Miller, Ann Lennartz, the Lumpkin Family
Foundation, Joe Lynch and Lonna Nachtigal, National Catholic
Rural Life Conference, Jan and Cornelia Flora, Gary and Sue
Osweiler, Margaret Pennings, Richard and Elizabeth
Schnieders, the Sioux City Catholic Diocesan Peace and
Justice Action Network Director, Robert Ware, Stephen and
June Weis, and David and Corrine Williams.
Several other contributors in this donor group opted to
remain confidential.
If you want to contribute, the ISU Foundation accepts and
manages all gifts made to support programs in the College of
Agriculture, including the Leopold Center. For more
information, contact Rich Bundy, (515) 294-9088, rbundy@iastate.edu,
or go to the ISU Foundation web site:
www.foundation.iastate.edu/.
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