Drake University has surpassed its $200 million fundraising goal — the largest in school history — well before the scheduled end of the campaign on June 30, the school announced today.

The distinctlyDrake campaign, which began in October 2010,  will continue through June, even after hitting the original target. The private school on University Avenue in western Des Moines still hopes to raise another $20 million to create a tech campus at Drake, and it has other needs, President David Maxwell said in an interview with the Business Record.

The campaign is as much about creating momentum to reach the goals set in the university’s strategic plan as it is to raise cash, Maxwell added.

Like many universities, Drake decided to set a lofty goal that was a bit of a stretch, tens of millions of dollars beyond what consultants suggested, Maxwell said.

“Having  begun this in the midst of a global financial meltdown, we could have felt abject terror,” Maxwell said. “Over the past year and a half, as we saw momentum build, we found we have a diverse and broad range of supporters and friends who stepped forward.”

The campaign has raised $110 million for the school’s endowment. The various cash donations, pledges and planned giving arrangements will help pay for scholarships, endowed chairs and centers, and part of the planned $65 million tech campus. Called  STEM@DRAKE, it will be a mixture of new buildings and renovations. The school also will add new degree programs designed to attract students wanting to prepare for jobs in data analytics and other technical fields that are in high demand.

The money from the campaign will help support The Harkin Institute for Public Policy and Citizen Engagement, The Principal Financial Group Center for Global Citizenship and the new Robert D. and Billie Ray Center. The school also has added eight endowed professorships and 175 new scholarship funds, Maxwell said.

The Drake campaign, which began in October 2010, drew support from more than 22,000 donors, with 60 gifts of more than $1 million. Contributions include $46 million in scholarship support; $36 million for endowed faculty positions and faculty development funds; and more than $45 million to support new construction and renovations on campus. Read more