Queen’s is hoping to receive $1 million in donations per week following the launch of the Initiative Campaign on Saturday — the largest fundraising campaign in the University’s history.

The campaign opened in 2006 and through alumni donations raised nearly $300 million of their $500 million goal before publicly launching the campaign last week.

The donations will be going into a number of areas, ranging from infrastructure renewal to the hiring of more teaching staff.

“Students are at the centre of this campaign,” Vice Principal (Advancement), Tom Harris, said. “We’re investing in students, and that’s why we are going to profile and highlight students.” The committee aims to raise the rest of the $500 million by 2016, plus an additional $100 million in future estate gifts.

“2003 was the last campaign and this one is twice as big,” Harris said.

It was an eight-year campaign that ended in 2003 with a financial goal of $200 million but the campaign exceeded its expectations. 

The AMS has been asked to propose projects that they consider as campaign priorities while keeping up with the movement of the campaign, Harris said.

According to the Campaign’s website, 56 per cent of donations will go towards faculties or schools, 6.4 per cent going towards Athletics and Recreation and 4 per cent towards campus-wide student assistance.

The infrastructure plans include Isabel Bader Center of the Performing Arts and The Centre of Infrastructure in Global Engineering — a 70,000 square ft. teaching and research facility, towards which $45 million will go.

Harris said Queen’s needs these funds to secure resources and embark on projects they would not be able to do otherwise.

The campaign began with an on-campus rally on Thursday in Grant Hall with about 200 students in attendance. Saturday’s official launch included the unveiling of Stauffer library’s new benefactor wall and an Oil Thigh flash mob.

Alumni were welcomed into Grant Hall with name tags, tricoloured scarfs, champagne and scones. They sat through speeches designed to outline the ways in which Queen’s is unique, in hopes of inspiring them to get involved. Saturday’s launch also coincided with the grand reopening of Nixon Field, formerly known as Kingston Field.

The campaign planning committee worked on the planning for Saturday’s events for a year, Harris said. He added that a marketing team has been hired alongside the planning committee specifically for this campaign.

“[We’re] having the launch here tonight and then we take that to Calgary next week, and then both Toronto and Ottawa,” Harris said.

He added that these locations were chosen due to their high concentration of alumni, but that they are “seeking support wherever Queen’s grads live.”

“The Principal, deans and advancement staff travel worldwide to seek financial support and to promote Queen’s.”