As Emory reaches the midway point of its ten-year Strategic Plan, the Annual Report — released Thursday — demonstrated overall financial progress during the 2010 fiscal year (FY), despite a trend of nationwide economic difficulty.

Administrators attribute the positive results to the University’s dedication to maintaining high standards for research, teaching, health care and social action.

According to University President James W. Wagner in his statement concerning the Annual Report, after two years of budget cuts, Emory’s financial outlook is a positive one. This, Wagner wrote, can be attributed to “the men and women of Emory.”

“This is a remarkable community in every respect ... It is owing to this distinctive community that Emory continues to gain strength during the economic climate change affecting higher education,” Wagner wrote.

Emory’s total assets increased to $9.4 billion in FY2010 from the previous year’s $9.3 billion assets, with some increase in the investment portfolio. Net operating revenue during FY2010 went up nearly $5.5 million, from $3.9 million to $9.4 million, and net non-operating revenue increased from -$1 billion to $75 million.

Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Michael Mandl wrote in the University’s Finance and Administration Report that Emory managed its finances during FY2010 in accordance with the economic climate of the time.

“We completed the budget and operational changes necessary to adjust to the reduction in investment and endowment income as a result of the 2008 global economic crisis,” Mandl wrote, adding that the number of administrative positions was reduced by approximately six percent between 2008 and 2010.

Approximately $39.5 million in gifts and donations contributed to the total revenue, a slight increase from the $39 million from FY2009. Emory raised more than $1.1 billion of its $1.6 billion Campaign Emory goal throughout the duration of FY2010, with $133.2 million coming from new gifts and commitments.

Senior Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations Susan Cruse wrote in an e-mail to the Wheel that the University has seen “a significant uptick in annual giving,” something she wrote that she hopes will continue.

Last year, Cruse wrote, the annual giving program was redesigned, and this year, Emory has implemented the Dean’s Impact Report, in which deans across the University send letters to alumni and other donor groups at the beginning of each fiscal year to explain the positive effect that contributions have on their respective schools.

“This helped our donors to see how important annual giving is, and that the cumulative impact of these gifts is very significant,” Cruse wrote.
In order to continue making progress on annual giving, Cruse wrote that the University will maintain its relationship with contributors and continue to relay the importance of giving.

“We will consistently communicate to our donors the value and importance of their gifts,” she wrote. “We will show our donors that Emory is a good steward of their gifts and their trust. Emory is a wonderful university, and our alumni and friends know they are our partners in helping to create positive transformations in the world. They can be proud.”

Now five years into its ten-year Strategic Plan, Emory has already implemented a Trust Line, a Financial Attestation Process, a Fraud Awareness and Detection Program and an Enterprise Risk Management framework, all of which are geared toward establishing an environment of trust, proper reporting, fiduciary responsibility and accountability, according to Mandl’s report.

The primary goal of the Strategic Plan is to strengthen Emory’s faculty and is carried out by the $35 million Faculty Distinction Fund that has helped the University gain 138 tenured and tenure-track faculty members over the past five years. In addition to supplementing faculty excellence with funding, Emory continues to hold its “Life of the Mind” lecture series, which showcases the work of professors at the University.

Emory also opened its Center for Faculty Development and Excellence last year, which matches senior and junior faculty members and offers grants to assist with new teaching initiatives.

The 2010 Annual Report is telling of the accomplishments Emory has made over the past five years, as well as of the challenges the University has yet to face, Wagner wrote.

“It is indisputable that the times are having a profound impact,” Wagner wrote. “Nevertheless, we have been true to our vision, and the course we charted five years ago in developing our Strategic Plan continues to serve as a reliable road map toward our destination of being an internationally recognized, inquiry-driven, ethically engaged, diverse and collaborative community.”

— Contact Alice Chen.