2006 DiversityInc.com

August 09, 2006

The "Queen of Daytime" is joining forces with the "First Lady of Higher Education" in a rousing effort to provide a solid financial foundation for Bennett College for Women.

Oprah Winfrey is headlining a benefit gala in support of the Revitalizing Bennett Campaign, announced Bennett President Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole this week.

The effort seeks to raise $50 million in gifts and pledges to support student scholarships, faculty recruitment and development, programmatic development, and physical plant improvements. Under Cole's leadership, with the help of campaign honorary Co-Chairs Maya Angelou and former Sen. Bob Dole, the college has raised more than $30 million to date.

The gala, which will take place on Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. at the Grandover Resort and Conference Center in Greensboro, N.C., has sold out quickly. The Associated Press reports that the first wave of tickets (300), which became available Monday, are already gone. These have brought in an estimated $100,000. Corporate sponsors can still purchase blocks of seats for between $25,000 and $100,000.

Winfrey, who will be meeting with students and speaking during the dinner fundraiser, agreed to participate after being approached by Angelou, who has been on Bennett College's board of trustees for many years, according to Arthur Affleck, vice president, Institutional Advancement.

"We feel blessed to have her," said Affleck. "We hope to offer to connect with her and if possible assist with the school she is opening in South Africa [The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls, near Johannesburg]."

Affleck and Cole are planning on extending their gratitude in the form of assistance for the academy. "In our conversation, we thought, 'What can we do to help her?' People are always asking something of Ms. Winfrey but we want to offer her something. Because our mission here at Bennett and their missions are so similar, we would love to see out girls be big sisters to their students. We would also love for our faculty to assist with the development of their curriculum."

The fundraiser is part of Cole's plan to leave office with the school on firm financial footing. Bennett was running a $2-million budget deficit when Cole, the former president of Atlanta's Spelman College, was lured out of retirement in 2002. She recently announced she will be retiring from her role as president in June 2007. Cole has been busy in her years at Bennett, establishing the Johnnetta B. Cole Global Diversity & Inclusion Institute, among other things. The institute is responsible for a number of groundbreaking initiatives including The Chief Diversity Officers (CDO) Forum, the "Power Girls" Global Summer Leadership Institute, and the O. LaVelle Bond Diversity Scholars Program. Funding for the institution has come from major contributors such as IBM, Wachovia (No. 21 on The 2006 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list), Citigroup (No. 27), Eastman Kodak, McDonalds (two of DiversityInc's 25 Noteworthy Companies), and DiversityInc, which has pledged $500,000 to the school. DiversityInc Partner and Cofounder Luke Visconti is a member of the Bennett College board of trustees.