Micek to step down as UIF head in December 2012

Jan 09, 2012 10:28 AM

Dr. Sidney S. Micek, president of the University of Illinois Foundation for the last 12 years, announced today (Jan. 9, 2012) that he is stepping down as the fundraising organization’s chief administrator.

Micek, 69, will continue to serve as president and CEO of the U of I Foundation through December 2012. After that, he has agreed to remain with the Foundation part time, working on special fundraising initiatives. The Foundation Board of Directors will conduct a national search for Micek’s successor and it expects a new person to be selected before Micek’s departure at the end of 2012.

“I believe this is the right time for me to step down as head of the Foundation for both professional and personal reasons,” said Micek. “It has been a privilege and honor to lead the Foundation and to serve this great University. I have met and worked with so many outstanding individuals. The Foundation staff and the development community are amongst the finest in the country. Our alumni, donors, volunteers and especially the Foundation’s Board of Directors have a passion for the University that may be unsurpassed. The most gratifying part of this job at Illinois has been to see the ways in which private support has opened doors and made higher education accessible to thousands of students through the years. And as a result of philanthropic efforts, faculty members have had the opportunity to engage in teaching, research, and scholarship at the highest level. Together, we all have made a difference.”

Since he took office on Jan. 3, 2000, Micek has managed the affairs and operations of the U of I Foundation, a not-for-profit membership corporation that is responsible for encouraging and administering private gifts made to the University of Illinois and its campuses at Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Springfield. He has worked closely with the president of the University of Illinois, the chancellors of the three campuses, and other University officials to develop fundraising strategies.

During his tenure, the Foundation has helped raise nearly $3 billion, most of that during the Brilliant Futures Campaign. That fundraising effort eclipsed its $2.25 billion goal in August 2011, four months ahead of schedule. As of Nov. 30, 2011, support for the Brilliant Futures Campaign totaled $2.327 billion. Brilliant Futures is one of the 20 largest fundraising campaigns in higher education history.

“Sid’s extraordinary leadership will yield dividends for generations to come, through the life-changing programs supported by our historic Brilliant Futures Campaign. His passion and tireless worku2015coupled with the generosity of nearly 250,000 donors u2015 have made the U of I a model for the private giving that is now so critical to advance our rich legacy as a world leader in education and innovation,” said University of Illinois President Michael J. Hogan.

“My colleagues on the (U of I) Foundation Board and at the University all owe Sid a debt of gratitude for the leadership that he has provided,” said Jane Phillips Donaldson, chair of the University of Illinois Foundation Board. “He led the successful Brilliant Futures Campaign through a difficult economic period and has helped raise our fundraising efforts to another level as we move forward. We wish Sid the best of luck as he begins the next chapter of his life and we are pleased he has agreed to stay on in a part-time consultative role.”

Micek has helped elevate fundraising at the University of Illinois over the last decade. Topping the list is vital support for students and faculty. More than $341 million has been raised for scholarships, fellowships and other forms of student support through the Brilliant Futures Campaign alone. More than 140 endowed chair and professorship funds have been established during the course of the campaign.

Many new facilities, such as the Siebel Center for Computer Science, the Business Instructional Facility and the Alice Campbell Alumni Center on the Urbana-Champaign campus, have been built in the last decade thanks in large part to private funding.

Micek has also spearheaded several measures within the U of I Foundation that have enhanced the organization and fundraising across the University. He oversaw creation of a business intelligence unit that generates and analyzes fundraising data, in-house training and education programs, the Principal Gifts program that focuses on high-level donor prospects, and he established a key position in the Foundation that is devoted exclusively to the programs and services of the University Medical Center, including hospitals, clinics and the College of Medicine.

As the Brilliant Futures Campaign draws to a close, Micek is now leading the U of I Foundation and the three campuses in another fundraising campaign u2015 Access Illinois Presidential Scholarship Initiative. Access Illinois is a three-year effort to raise at least $100 million expressly for scholarships, fellowships and other forms of student support.

After arriving on the Urbana-Champaign campus 12 years ago, Micek helped guide the final stage of Campaign Illinois, a $1 billion fundraising effort that netted more than $1.5 billion for the University of Illinois. Campaign Illinois was the second university-wide campaign.

Prior to his position with the U of I Foundation, Micek was a faculty member and administrator at Syracuse University, N.Y., including eight years as vice president for development, during which he led the university’s $300 million Commitment to Learning Campaign. Before that, he was a senior research associate and evaluation officer at the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems in Boulder, CO.

A native of Nebraska, Micek earned a bachelor’s degree in history and political science and a master’s degree in educational administration, both in 1965 from the University of Kansas, and a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Washington in 1974.

For additional Information, contact:

Don Kojich
Vice President for Marketing and Communications
University of Illinois Foundation
217-333-0246
dkojich@uif.uillinois.edu