Support for UMMC’s mission hits record level in fiscal 2025
Published on Monday, July 14, 2025
By: Danny Barrett Jr., dlbarrett@umc.edu
Fiscal year 2024-25 was the most generous on record for the University of Mississippi Medical Center Office of Development and Alumni Engagement, with more than $76 million in philanthropic giving for UMMC’s three mission areas.
Part of the $76.5 million recorded between July 2024 and June 2025 involved the largest single gift in the history of the Medical Center, multiple seven-figure gifts and thousands of donations of various sizes – all of which prompt a hearty thanks to donors.
“This level of support is overwhelming, and it’s so much more than just the numbers involved,” said Meredith Aldridge, executive director of development. “It represents supporters across the state and nation, showing that our donors believe in our mission and in the future of health care for all Mississippians.”
The office launched the silent phase of the largest capital campaign in UMMC history, one that has secured more than $40 million in less than a year, to build a five-story, 250,000+ square-foot facility that will house the UMMC Cancer Center and Research Institute and will advance world-class cancer patient care and research.
“Thanks to the tireless efforts of our development team and capital campaign committee, we are closer than ever to building a new state-of-the-art, research-driven UMMC Cancer Center and Research Institute,” said Dr. Rodney Rocconi, director of the center. “Purposeful, patient-centered space is essential to delivering the level of care Mississippians deserve. This campaign is not just about a building, it’s about creating lasting change for our patients, advancing cancer research and moving Mississippi toward the transformative goal of NCI (National Cancer Institute) designation.”
In-kind donations from the community also reached record levels, topping $1.5 million. Also on the rise to end the fiscal year were employee giving, alumni engagement and community partnership fundraising. Also, UMMC’s Children’s Miracle Network team was nationally recognized during the past fiscal year for their year-over-year increases in funds raised.
“We are so grateful for the donors who choose to invest in us,” said Dr. LouAnn Woodward, vice chancellor for health affairs and dean of the School of Medicine. “Our mission is the strongest when our donors believe in UMMC.”
About $5 million was added during the year to the campaign to build the new centralized Fred R. Adams, Jr. Memory Impairment and Neurogenerative Dementia (MIND) Center and Geriatrics Clinic. A gift from a longtime supporter launched those efforts and brought the total dedicated to $9.5 million.
“We’re excited about the future,” Aldridge said. “From opening the new clinic for The MIND Center to focusing our priorities on building a new cancer center, we are incredibly grateful for the many, many donors who chose to partner with us in our mission-based work over the last year.”
Three chairs were endowed in fiscal 2025 thanks to school-based and hospital-based fundraising models. Also, more than $6 million in new scholarships came available during the past year for UMMC’s six health science schools.
The record year’s impressive total comes a few years into a restructure of the office’s fundraising staff that has seen more dollars raised with slightly fewer people. Currently, the effort is staffed by about 26 full-time employees, which factors to$2.94 million per team member for the year. The mark exceeds the national and regional average for academic medical centers.
“Our fundraising team has evolved almost completely over the years, and remains relatively small, but mighty. They out-raise much larger teams every day, and for that reason, we are a very good investment for donors,” said Dr. Brian Rutledge, assistant vice chancellor and chief of staff. “The overall story the numbers show is that we have the right people in the right places at the right time.”
To learn about ways to give, contact the Office of Development at 601-984-2300.