Darden is enjoying a marvelous combination of stable leadership and tremendous momentum. The School is on the move. Yet even as Darden advances its metrics and ranking, competition in the field of the top dozen elite schools grows increasingly fierce. In order to occupy a global Top Ten position, we must do many things right, but they can be distilled to three essential needs:

• Set the standard by which all other graduate business schools are compared by attracting the best faculty and the best students.
  
• Expand Darden's influence - nationally and globally - through faculty research and vibrant Centers of Excellence, and by spreading Darden's view of how business should be conducted ethically in the world of practical affairs. 
  
• Encourage our engaged alumni and friends to support the worthwhile goal of capturing the unique opportunity that Darden enjoys.

The Four Campaign Priorities:  

Scholarships 

To ensure Darden's ongoing success, the School must attract the top MBA applicants. "Operation Top Talent" strives to identify and enroll top students who life experiences and special talents distinguish them as future business leaders with the highest potential for success.  

Faculty

Masters of the MBA classroom, Darden faculty members are considered the world's best. Yet many of Darden's beloved faculty leaders are approaching retirement, and the School must replace them with their equals. The Campaign for Darden will provide endowed professorships, fellowships and executive chairs, powerful tools to recruit and retain world-class professors who meet Darden's standards of teaching excellence.

In parallel, Darden must build a robust research engine. The School must accelerate its quest of new knowledge. Increased faculty funds will enable Darden's thought leaders to transform business practices around the globe, and three new Centers of Excellence for research will expand the boundaries of business knowledge. 

Technology 

Technology continues to transform industry and education. To remain one of the world's outstanding graduate business schools throughout the 21st century, Darden must aggressively pursue a digital competitive advantage to expand its reach as a global institution. 

Darden School Funds 

Unrestricted funding, including endowed contributions and gifts to the Darden Annual Fund, has been one of the keys to Darden's rise as one of the world's top business schools. Funds that can be used for multiple purposes preserve and protect Darden's financial health. They are especially important now that Darden no longer relies on the state and the University of Virginia for financial support.