Blackbaud Newsroom
Overall Charitable Giving to Nonprofits Increased in April
The Blackbaud Index debuts new specialty index focused on higher education charitable giving trends
Charleston, S.C. (June 5, 2014) – Providing the most up-to-date information on charitable giving, Blackbaud, Inc. (NASDAQ: BLKB) today updated The Blackbaud Index with charitable giving trends through April 2014 as well as announced the launch of a new higher education specialty index that tracks fundraising revenue for colleges and universities.
Based on data from 4,138 organizations that raised more than $13 billion in the prior 12 months, The Blackbaud Index reported that overall charitable giving grew 1.3 percent for the three months ending April 2014, as compared to the same period in 2013.
Among 3,281 charities that raised $1.8 billion online in the prior 12 months, online giving grew 7.9 percent in the same three-month period, as compared to the same period in 2013.
Charitable giving grows for higher education institutions
Overall charitable giving for 558 colleges and universities in the U.S. that represent $1.5 billion in annual revenue grew 0.8 percent in the three months ending April 2014, as compared to the same period in 2013. Online giving for 416 colleges and universities that raised nearly $140 million over 12 months grew 20.5 percent during the same period.
“Higher Education is a very important sector in philanthropy in the U.S., and while most groups that track giving to higher education report results on an annual or semiannual basis, this new index will provide nonprofits with charitable giving trends on a monthly basis,” said Chuck Longfield, creator of the Index and chief scientist at Blackbaud. “Helping to fuel that growth, particularly at schools with capital campaigns, was a healthy stock market so that bodes well for their capital giving.”
Blackbaud also released a report today focused on the charitable giving trends to higher education institutions which features insight from John Lippincott, president of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), about key sector trends, and A Closer Look: Prospect Development at the University of Virginia.
“A rebounding economy and long-term investment in major gift donors paid off for colleges and universities in 2013,” said Lippincott. “Schools that have shown fundraising success also are doing a good job in their stewardship of donors, including younger donors, by engaging them in their institutions in ongoing ways.”
The new higher education index brings the number of specialty indices up to 10, which are: Arts & Culture, Environment & Animal Welfare, Healthcare, Human Services, International Affairs, K-12 Education, Medical Research, Public & Society Benefit, Faith-based, and now, Higher Education.
The Blackbaud Index provides the most up-to-date information on charitable giving today. Tracking more than $13 billion in US-based charitable giving, the Index is updated on the first of each month (or the next business day) and is based on a three-month moving average of year-over-year percent change. Featuring overall and online giving, the Index can be viewed by size and subsets of the nonprofit industry via an interactive online chart. The Index now features a fundraising benchmark calculator that allows users to easily chart their own results against the Index and historical data to provide a fuller view of charitable giving.
Visit www.blackbaud.com/blackbaudindex for more information on The Blackbaud Index and additional industry subsets, for monthly updates on the first (or next business day) or to subscribe to email or text alerts, and to download the latest report.
About Blackbaud
Serving the nonprofit and education sectors for 30 years, Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB) combines technology and expertise to help organizations achieve their missions. Blackbaud works with more than 30,000 customers in over 60 countries that support higher education, healthcare, human services, arts and culture, faith, the environment, independent K-12 education, animal welfare and other charitable causes. The company offers a full spectrum of cloud-based and on-premise software solutions and related services for organizations of all sizes including: fundraising, eMarketing, advocacy, constituent relationship management (CRM), financial management, payment services, analytics and vertical-specific solutions. Using Blackbaud technology, these organizations raise more than $100 billion each year. Recognized as a top company by Forbes, InformationWeek, and Software Magazine and honored by Best Places to Work, Blackbaud is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina and has operations in the United States, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.blackbaud.com.
Media Contact
Andy Prince
Blackbaud, Inc.
512-289-4728
media@blackbaud.com
Forward-looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Although Blackbaud attempts to be accurate in making these forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based. In addition, other important factors that could cause results to differ materially include the following: general economic risks; uncertainty regarding increased business and renewals from existing customers; continued success in sales growth; management of integration of acquired companies and other risks associated with acquisitions; risks associated with successful implementation of multiple integrated software products; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; risks related to our dividend policy and share repurchase program, including potential limitations on our ability to grow and the possibility that we might discontinue payment of dividends; risks relating to restrictions imposed by the credit facility; risks associated with management of growth; lengthy sales and implementation cycles, particularly in larger organization; technological changes that make our products and services less competitive; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in the SEC filings for Blackbaud, copies of which are available free of charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or upon request from Blackbaud’s investor relations department. All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc.