University of São Paulo: University officially launches the USP Patrimonial Fund
On November 23, the University officially launched the USP Patrimonial Fund. On the occasion, partnership instruments were also signed between the Rectory and three Teaching and Research Units that already have heritage funds: Polytechnic School (Poli), Faculty of Economics, Administration and Accounting (FEA) and Faculty of Medicine (FM).
At the ceremony, held in the University Council room and broadcast online, the dean of USP, Vahan Agopyan, stated that the Amigos da Poli project, created about ten years ago and that, this year, reached the mark of R$ 40 million, is the oldest at the University and served as a model for the creation of the USP fund. “With the success of Amigos da Poli, which already has a very substantial value, it became clear that the University needed to have a general fund for the entire USP,” he said. The FEA Endowment Fund has existed since 2014 and the Faculty of Medicine’s was created in 2016.
Endowment funds comprise a set of private active resources, whose income is used to develop programs, projects and other actions of public interest and serve as a permanent and stable source of resources. Until the end of this year, individuals and companies will be able to make donations for general actions at the University or for specific purposes, such as student reception and permanence programs and complementary academic activities.
According to him, more than collecting financial resources, the Patrimonial Fund’s proposal is to strengthen the University’s relationship with society. The experience of the USP Vida program, which receives donations from individuals and companies for research and USP actions to combat covid-19, showed people’s willingness to donate to invest in University projects. “The idea is broader than just money. In the 21st century, interaction with society, the so-called third mission, has become very important, research universities need to interact more, society has to understand what the University does”, he highlighted.
“Equity fund does not replace public transfers. We are planting the seeds so that our successors can bear fruit in the future”, he emphasized. “There will be no competition between the existing funds at USP, but an exchange of ideas and management expertise ”, he continued.
The State Secretary for Economic Development, Patrícia Ellen da Silva, highlighted that this was an important year for science and spoke about the investments made by the State Government in the area. “For 2022, we will have a record budget of R$ 17 billion for USP, Unesp, Unicamp and FAPESP, the largest amount in history ever reserved for institutions across the state,” he said. For her, the creation of the USP Patrimonial Fund represents an “important step to complement these resources, with an innovative management model”.