CHANCELLOR AT WORK: NITZSCHKE GENERATES $4.7 MILLION

Dr. Dale Nitzschke believes Southeast Missouri State University is getting its money's worth when it comes to his job of chancellor.

Nitzschke stepped down as university president last year but agreed to stay on for two years as the school's first chancellor. He began his new job on July 1, 1999.

Nitzschke said Thursday that he has helped to secure more than $4.7 million in financial gifts for the university over the past 13 months. The figure includes cash and financial pledges.

Nearly half of the total or $2.1 million is earmarked money from the federal government.

Most of the financial gifts have been earmarked for the university's planned River Campus arts school and for the School of Polytechnic Studies.

When the regents created the position, they said they wanted Nitzschke to concentrate on raising money for the River Campus and the polytechnic school. He said he has concentrated on those two projects but also helped secure donations for other programs and projects at the university.

Donors dictate the uses of the money, Nitzschke said.

Nitzschke won't take all the credit for the fund-raising success. "Fund raising is not something an individual does by himself or herself," he said.

University supporters who don't work for the school often are the most effective fund-raisers, he said. The Southeast Missouri University Foundation and the school's advancement office also have been instrumental in fund-raising efforts, Nitzschke said.

Nitzschke lives with his wife in a Cincinnati, Ohio, suburb. He operates out of an office in his home. But he spends much of his time traveling, meeting with prospective donors in Missouri and other states, and with federal lawmakers and staff members of government agencies in Washington, D.C.

Nitzschke said fund-raising involves more than money. Donors often fulfill a lifelong dream by giving money to the institution for their pet programs or projects, he said.

Nitzschke receives a salary of $95,000. But with an annuity and other benefits, his total compensation is $118,000 a year. In addition, he has a $20,000 budget for travel and operating expenses. But the benefits to the university outweigh the cost, Nitzschke said.

He plans to step down next summer at the end of his two-year contract. But Nitzschke said he believes the university should continue to fund a chancellor position.

Dr. Ken Dobbins, Southeast's president, said the position will be reviewed when Nitzschke finishes his work.

Dobbins said that Nitzschke has tapped into funding that the university previously would have missed, particularly in terms of federal dollars. "He really has done a tremendous job," said Dobbins.

The university also has had several vacancies in its fund-raising office. Without Nitzschke's efforts, Dobbins said the university's on-going capital campaign would have suffered.

Nitzschke reports directly to Dobbins, an arrangement they say has worked well.

Dobbins said Nitzschke isn't sitting at home. "He's working," said Dobbins. "He and I talk a lot."

Until Nitzschke stepped in as chancellor, Southeast seldom had a personal representative in Washington to lobby for federal money.

Today, Nitzschke is a regular visitor to Washington. Nitzschke said he visits the nation's capital about once a month on average.

Nitzschke said he is currently working to land another $7.1 million for the university's River Campus, polytechnic school and other projects. He also said he is working to secure some $3 million to $4.5 million in competitive grants.

As to individual donors, Nitzschke said he already is talking with individuals who combined could give about $10 million.

As to foundations, Nitzschke said he is pursuing another $2.5 million in possible donations.

Nitzschke said he has been working with about 250 foundations. "They are everywhere," he said.

He said it takes time to win over individual donors and those who make the funding decisions for private foundations. It takes more than phone calls, he said. It takes countless personal meetings.

Those meetings keep Nitzschke busy, whether it is at a potential donor's home or out on the golf course.

Nitzschke said it is time well spent.

FUND-RAISING FIGURES

Southeast Missouri State University Chancellor Dale Nitzschke says he has helped secure $4.7 million in cash and financial pledges over the past 13 months.

The total includes:

* $2.1 million from the federal government.

* $1.69 million from nearly a dozen donors, including $584,583 for the planned River Campus arts school.

* $929,785 from private foundations.

The university pays Nitzschke $118,000 a year in salary and other benefits, and budgets $20,000 for travel and operating expenses for the office of chancellor. Nitzschke has a two-year contract, which ends next summer.

Source: Southeast Missouri State University