NIU Foundation reports historic giving, $40 million lead gift and public campaign launch set for June 14

Catherine Squires, vice president for advancement and president and CEO of the NIU Foundation, told the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees that philanthropy totals have reached about $57.4 million and that the foundation stands near 96% of a $60 million fiscal-year goal following a major lead gift.

“As of yesterday, we hit 57,400,000.0. ... We now proudly stand at 96% of our $60,000,000 university goal,” Squires said, telling trustees the quarter’s results were driven largely by a roughly $40 million gift from the Bostock family.

Squires said the foundation raised its fundraising goal after receiving the large gift and described a campaign pipeline of roughly $12 million in probable or possible gifts that could close this fiscal year. She said the foundation plans a public launch for the campaign, called Forward, on June 14 at the Convocation Center and expects several hundred attendees.

Trustees asked questions about the composition of gifts. Ray Earl Jackson, who oversees fundraising operations, told trustees the foundation’s revenue remains more restricted than unrestricted. “Ballpark restricted. I would just say it’s more restricted than it’s not,” Jackson said. Squires added that the foundation has been encouraging donors to include an unrestricted component with gifts and described endowment growth as a campaign priority.

Squires also reviewed recent alumni and donor events, advocacy day participation in Springfield and a new Husky Frontier Team intended to broaden industry and corporate engagement with faculty research. She highlighted Trek Talks, an on‑campus pitch event that distributed $65,000 in grants to faculty projects and funded a graduate assistantship for AI‑related autism research.

Why it matters: The gift levels and campaign readiness reported to trustees affect the university’s ability to fund scholarships, strategic priorities and research support; the foundation’s mix of restricted versus unrestricted gifts will shape how funds may be used.

During question-and-answer trustees pressed for context on whether the year‑to‑date totals exclude the lead gift; Squires and Jackson clarified the $40 million is included in the year‑to‑date total and that, without it, the foundation would be roughly at 50% of a prior goal of $30 million.