University Advancement plans to ask the Board of Trustees today to raise a campaign goal by $20 million and extend its deadline.

The department wants to extend the campaign “Our Time, Our Future” until 2008 in order to reach the desired goal, said Bronson Davis, TCU vice chancellor for university advancement.

“Nothing had gone to plan. We postponed the public kickoff twice, it was a very awkward time to solicit large gifts,” he said. “We had Sept. 11, a bad drop in the stock market, a very difficult recession and two wars which diverted people's attention.”

The campaign has collected $108 million toward the current goal of $230 million since it began in June 2000, Davis said. If the Board of Trustees approves the raise, the campaign goal will be $250 million.

The money collected will be used to help pay the $161 million construction debt of several existing buildings and future projects such as the School of Education Complex and a Music Performing Arts Center, Davis said.

The country’s changing economy and a new chancellor should help the campaign achieve its higher goals, Davis said.

Former Chancellor Michael Ferrari retired two years earlier than planned, which affected the campaign because the chancellor was the primary leader for the campaign, Davis said.

“Any (fund-raising) campaign is dependent on the chancellor because he is the key speaker for the campaign,” he said.

Chancellor Victor Boschini had to get acquainted with all the donors and the campaign’s plans before they could proceed with collecting donations, Davis said.

Boschini said he has spent the past seven months getting acquainted with students, faculty and staff, and different organizations that support TCU to get a better perspective of the school and to develop his fund-raising agenda.

“This is definitely one of my top goals for my administration,” Boschini said.

The university has to spend money in order to ensure that TCU students get the proper learning environment, Boschini said. But raising money to pay for the school’s debt is at the top of his list, he said.