Want your name on a campus building? It’s as easy an opening your wallet.
MSU, in an attempt to raise money, has launched a “naming opportunity” to attract private donations. For a set amount of money, individuals can have buildings, classrooms, halls or even equipment named after them.
It isn’t cheap.
For a contribution of $5 million, a donor can have his or her name branded on the College of Health Sciences and Human Services. Classrooms in most buildings run about $25,000. For an endowed chair, however, a donor will have to fork over $750,000.
According to Dr. Howard Farrell, vice president of university development and public affairs, tapping into names is becoming a popular trend among cash-strapped public universities.
“We are trying very, very hard to raise resources,” he said.  “We have been very widespread about this because we want people to know.”
Farrell said only about 20 percent of MSU’s total operating income is supplied by the state. Private donations also make up about 20 percent of the university’s income.
Farrell said naming opportunity efforts began about five years ago. Only recently, a brochure was created and distributed.
Certain buildings on campus, such as the Prothro-Yeager College of the Humanities and Social Sciences and the Dillard College of Business already bear the names of prominent donors. The Dillard, McCoy and Redwine buildings were named as part of this project, Farrell said.
“It’s an opportunity to inform people,” he said. “Whatever campus you go on, you don’t see the ‘Education Building’ or the ‘Psychology Building.’ They all have names. One of the most important things people have are their names – the pride in their names.”
The MSU administration is currently looking into naming a computer lab in the geosciences department after a donor, he pointed out. That donation would provide MSU with $75,000.
In order for anything to be named after a donor, though, a decision has to be agreed upon by faculty in the affected area, the administration and the Board of Regents.
“We want unanimity here. There is a huge spectrum of opportunities,” he said, citing the atrium in the Clark Student Center ($250,000) or the lecture podiums and presentation equipment in Bolin Hall ($45,000).
Farrell said all parties benefit from the name-giving efforts.
“The individual wins,” he said. “They also win tax-wise. And of course, the institution wins. Not only in terms of the money, but in the prestige of having people’s names on certain buildings, programs or scholarships.”
Farrell said he has shared information about the program with people he considers to be in possession of considerable wealth.
“And also, I think we’ve been a little bit strategic,” he said.
The administrators’ strategy: distributing material about naming opportunities to CPAs and others Farrell referred to as “wealth management individuals.”
“We wanted to give the information to them so that when they talk to these people who have the resources, they can say, ‘Have you ever considered Midwestern State University?’ You can have your name in perpetuity.’”
A recent reorganization in the MSU administration has left Farrell’s office with the bulk of the responsibility for fundraising. Formerly the vice president for university advancement and student affairs, Farrell is now the vice president of university advancement and public affairs. The office of Dr. Keith Lamb, which last week became the Office of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, has picked up the slack of looking after students.
“We split that up,” Farrell said.
This move will free Farrell up to raise more funds for the university.
“I need to ramp up whatever we do,” he said. “Whatever we do is not an ‘8 to 5.’ You need to have a passion for this. Quite frankly, I think we have the easiest job on campus. What we’re selling is Midwestern State University, and by God, if you can’t sell a product like that you need to go home.”

$5 million

College of Health Sciences and Human Services
College of Science and
Mathematics
Graduate School
Formerly Christ Academy

$3 million

Sundance Court
Sunwatcher Village

$2 million

Regional Simulation Center

$1 million

Naming of academic department or school (Art, Biology, English, Accounting, etc….)
Radiology floor (Bridwell Hall)

Sikes Lake Center (Entire building)

$ 750,000

Endowed Chairs (minimum endowment)

$ 500,000

Atrium (Dillard College)
Lecture Hall (Dillard College

Student Pavilion (Dillard College)
Atrium (Clark Student Center)
Gymnasium (Wellness Center)

$ 250,000

Greenhouse (Bolin Hall)

$200,000

Titled Professorships (minimum endowment)

$150,000

HPC-MS Instrument for
Laboratory Research (Bolin Hall)

$ 100,000

Community Center (Dillard College)
Lecture Hall (McCoy Hall)
Lecture Halls (Prothro-Yeager Hall)
Lecture Room (Moffett Library)
Galleries  (Museum of Art at MSU)
Media Gallery (Museum of Art at MSU)
Courtyard (Museum of Art at MSU)

Pool (Wellness Center)

$ 50,000

Technology Laboratory (Dillard College)
Arts Seminar Room (Fain Fine Arts Center)
Ceramics Studio (Fain Fine Arts Center)
Fine Arts Lecture Hall
Metalsmithing Studio (Fain Fine Arts Center)
MSU2 Television Studio (Fain Fine Arts Center)
Printmaking Studio (Fain Fine Arts Center)
Sculpture Studio (Fain Fine Arts Center)
Graphic Design Computer Lab (Fain Fine Arts Center)

Wichitan Laboratory (Fain Fine Arts Center)
Keyboard Computer Lab (Fain Fine Arts Center)
Statistics Laboratory (Protho-Yeager Hall)
Writing Lab (Protho-Yeager Hall)
Training Room (D.L. Ligon Coliseum)
Computer Laboratory (Clark Student Center)
Art Lounge (Museum of Art at MSU)

$45,000

Lecture Podiums & Presentation Equipment (Bolin Hall)

$25,000

Instructional Laboratories (Bolin Hall)
Research Laboratories (Bolin Hall)
Classrooms (Dillard College, Fain Fine Arts Center, McCoy Hall and D.L Ligon Coliseum)
Recreation Room (Clark Student Center)
Meeting Room (Clark Student Center)
Study Rooms (Moffett Library)
Faculty Lounge (Prothro-Yeager Hall)

$10,000

Endowed Scholarships (minimum endowment)