Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Private gifts from high net-worth donors to support academic research and development (R&D) are not considered distinct from other sources of philanthropy. This paper utilizes a unique database of 4856 announced gifts from 4,557 donors to 837 degree granting institutions, between 1995 and 2004, to provide evidence of high net-worth donors impacts on distinct areas of academic research. The likelihood and the expected value of a high net-worth donor’s gift to distinct disciplines of academic research was estimated using ordinary least squares regression and limited dependent variable models. Gifts to establish academic research centers were further isolated, because these are major philanthropic gifts that have scientific, social, and economic outcomes. This in-depth analysis indicates clear differences in high net-worth donors’ preferences for medical, biological, physical, and technological sciences. High-tech entrepreneurs’ preferences for supporting academic research are highlighted as these donors’ were an emerging donor group during the time period, the Dot-com era, and this donor group is still highly sought after. This paper points to economic and ethical implications of high net-worth donors’ impacts on academic R&D. These considerations are relevant to modern institutions seeking to leverage high net-worth donors, as major sources of academic R&D funding are threatened.