Africa University e-Newsletter: Update on developments on campus and advancement news.

1. Issue: 03 Vol: 21 May - June 2016
Please Remember Africa University in Your Will Give Now
Mississippi Conference Exceeds
Goal on AU Campaign
Africa University Development Office | P O Box 340007 | Nashville, TN 37203
Tel. (615) 340-7438 | Fax. (615) 340-7290 | Email: audevoffice@gbhem.org
Bishop James E. Swanson, Sr.
and Mrs. Delphine Swanson
were elated and deeply moved
by the announcement that the
conference has named a scholar-
ship in their honor.
800+ Graduates for
2016
Degree certificates were awarded to
843 students at Africa University’s
22nd commencement, which
took place in Mutare, Zimbabwe
on Saturday, June 11. There were
23 African countries represented
among the graduates. The graduat-
ing class of 2016 also included the
first nine graduates to be awarded
themaster’sdegreeinHumanRights,
Peace and Development from the
Institute of Peace, Leadership and
Governance at Africa University.
The Illinois Great Rivers Conference expects to complete
the “Making Dreams Possible” scholarship endowment
campaign for Africa University within a month.
The campaign honors and cel-
ebrates the 40+ years of min-
istry and leadership by Bishop
Jonathan D. Keaton and Mrs.
Beverly Keaton, who are retiring
in August.
A total of $970,883.95 has
been given to the campaign to
date, leaving it just $29,117.05
short of the goal of $1 million.
“The people of this conference are wonderfully gener-
ous,” said Rev. Beverly Wilkes-Null, chair of the IGRC’s
Africa University Committee. “We have a great team and
they just keep on telling the Africa University story, and
that makes all the difference in the world.”
Through this campaign, the conference aims to endow
seven and a half scholarships at AU, named in honor of
Bishop Keaton and Mrs. Keaton. One of the endowed schol-
arships will assist students from the Fairfield Children’s
Home at the Old Mutare UMC Mission to enroll at AU.
IGRC Nears its $1M Goal
BWC Presents Gift for Sports Complex
The gift was raised as a “Love Offering” in honor of the Bishop
Marcus Matthews and his four decades of ministry and leadership.
led by Bishop Matthews, who is currently
the interim chair of the Africa University
Board of Directors. Bishop Matthews
also chairs the Africa University Board
and Advisory Development Committees.
The gift coincides with Bishop Matthews’
retirement and is designated to help fund
the construction of a sports complex on
the Africa University campus. It recog-
nizes his four decades of leadership con-
tributions and lifelong passion for health
and fitness.
The BWC delegation joined students
and staff for an official groundbreaking
ceremony for the complex.
The university’s vice chancellor, Prof.
Munashe Furusa, expressed deep grati-
tude to the conference for the gift, noting
that the sports complex would greatly
enhance student life.
The facility is also expected to help
Africa University to strengthen its competi-
tiveness in the African higher education
market.
The Baltimore
W a s h i n g t o n
Conference present-
ed a gift of $300,000,
raised in honor
of Bishop Marcus
Matthews, to Africa
University on June
10th. The presentation
was made by a six-
person delegation
Bishop Jonathan D. Keaton
The Mississippi Conference’s
$1.3M campaign to endow schol-
arships for Africa University stu-
dents has gone over the top, with
total receipts of $1,354,769.00.
Mississippi United Methodists
celebrated the generous invest-
ment of local churches and indi-
vidual members, leading to the
successful completion of the
campaign, as they wrapped up
the 2016 annual conference on
June 11.
“We found that local church-
es and individuals had a keen
awareness and deep commit-
ment to AU,” said Rev. Jimmy Carr, who co-led the cam-
paign with Mrs. Martha Scarborough. “That foundation and
commitment are the reasons we were able to succeed.”
Plans are underway for a delegation, led by Bishop
Swanson, to visit the Africa University campus from March
20-28, 2017, for the offical handover of the gift and the
university’s 25th anniversary celebrations.

2. Matching gifts programs are exten-
sions of corporate philanthropy and are
designed to be the means by which
companies support employees’ charitable
giving.
FortheJonesfamilyofSeattle,WA,sup-
port of AU is a family affair. Christopher’s
parents, William and Patricia Jones of
Surprise, AZ, are former members of the
Pacific Northwest Conference Jubilate!
Choir. The Jones family traveled with the
Jubilate! Choir to AU for the 20th anniver-
sary celebrations in 2012.
Christopher’s substantial gift, which the
family designated for the PNW Jubilate!
Choir Chair in Music, was matched
Matching Gifts: Combining the Power of Individuals with Companies!
dollar-for dollar by his employer, Microsoft,
thereby doubling the impact of the family’s
GeneralBoardofHigherEducationandMinistry
TheUnitedMethodistChurch
POBox340007
Nashville,Tennessee37203-0007
NonprofitOrg.
U.S.Postage
PAID
Nashville,Tenn.
PermitNo.11
transformational gift. The Jones family
believes strongly in AU’s mission and its
role in building community across the con-
tinent of Africa.
Join the growing number of donors—
like the Jones family—who are maxi-
mizing the impact of their gifts to Africa
University. For more information about
matching gifts, please call or write to
our Director of Planned Giving, Elaine
Jenkins, Africa University Development
Office, P. O. Box 340007, Nashville, TN,
37203-0007, 615/340-7428 (telephone),
615/340-7290 (fax), ejenkins@gbhem.org;
or visit the planned giving website at http://
www.africau.plannedgiving.org/.
(L to R): Christopher, Mackenzie, Sydney, and Jeanine
Alumni and friends gathered to share sto-
ries and give thanks for Africa University’s
growth and impact on May 15th in
Portland. The presence of more than 100AU graduates and students at the General
Conference was cause for celebration.
“The Africa University story is a beau-
tiful story,” said Rev. Kalaba Chali, a
Zambian graduate of the school of the-
ology. Kalaba urged his fellow alumni,
and the many friends and stakeholders
who attended the reception, “not to get
stuck on money.” He urged them to tell
the university’s story to garner support
and keep the institution moving forward.
Giving Back at GC2016AUF Apportionment Approved for 2017-2020
The2016General
Conference of The
United Methodist
Church approved
the continuation of
the Africa University
Fund (AUF) appor-
tionment as part of
the general church
budget for the 2017-
2020 quadrennium.
Delegates voted
overwhelmingly
in support of re-
approval of the
AUF. Their action set the AUF apportion-
ment at $9,368,872 in total over the four
years—reflecting a further reduction of
$187,691 from the fund level initially pro-
posed by the GCFA.
On May 16, the Africa University Report
to the 2016 General Conference brought
delegates to their feet, dancing and cel-
ebrating as the institution’s student choir
sang.
The report high-
lighted the university’s
growth and the impact
of its graduates. The
Vice Chancellor, Prof.
Munashe Furusa
thanked the denomina-
tion for its faithful sup-
port.
He assured the del-
egates that Africa
University will continue
to be a good steward of
all the resources entrust-
ed to it. “Thank you for your shared
dedication and overwhelming generosity,”
Furusa said. “Together with you, Africa
University is shaping the values, outlook
and talents of a generation—equipping
women and men to heal, feed, inspire
hope, and build peace and abundance in
all the places and situations to which God
has called them.”.
Prof. Munashe Furusa, vice chancellor of
Africa University, addressing the delegates..