On behalf of Salisbury University and the Salisbury University Foundation, we extend our heartfelt thanks for the support you have shown throughout the past year. This annual report is an indication of the magnitude of your generosity and we simply cannot thank you enough!

Throughout the pages that follow you will be able to see what your contributions have made possible. The lives you have touched, changed and enhanced are simply not quantifiable. Through scholarship dollars, capital gifts, program support and more, you continue to help solidify our position and reputation as A Maryland University of National Distinction.

We take a moment to thank and salute the work and leadership of our immediate past chair, Ed Thomas. One noteworthy aspect of Ed’s leadership was his ability to mobilize the Foundation Board and others to respond to the rising scholarship needs the University faced in recent years. With intensified focus on access, recruitment and retention, scholarship dollars have become more important than ever to our mission and our future. Thanks to Ed and those he inspired, we have already seen significant growth in our scholarship endowment.

The Foundation continues to help the University grow in scope as well as stature. The partnership has made it possible for the actual footprint of SU to change and expand in response to our mounting need for space. With much of the campus being constructed for a student body of 3,000, our current student body of 7,800 has different needs and different expectations. We are able to respond together and applaud your generosity to that end.

Thank you once again for your friendship and financial support this past year. We know you will continue your support in the future as we do our best to ensure that we are indeed Taking Excellence to New Heights.

Gratefully Yours,



Janet Dudley-Eshbach President Salisbury University	Richard A. Givens, II '75 Chairman Salisbury University Foundation, Inc.

Campaign News

SU Foundation Approves Acquisition of Dresser Property
Friday, December 5, 2008

SALISBURY, MD---The Salisbury University Foundation has announced approval of its largest acquisition of land in the last quarter century: 19 acres at the corner of East College Avenue and South Division Street, known locally as the Dresser property.

“The University has been interested in the Dresser property for some time,” said SU President Janet Dudley-Eshbach. “If you look at maps charting campus expansion over the past few years, Dresser is a logical next step. The land offers exciting possibilities for future campus development which, in the years ahead, will benefit our students and the community at large. This truly is a historic moment for the University.” ...more [−]

With this addition, SU expands to 173 acres on both sides of Route 13. The public university, which has a student body of over 7,800 and more than 1,700 faculty and staff, has been designated a growth institution by the University System of Maryland.

“Based on SU’s designation as a growth institution, this is precisely the type of support the SU Foundation can and should offer as we move forward together,” said Dr. Rosemary Thomas, executive director of the SU Foundation.

The $5.5 million acquisition was authorized by the SU Foundation and was negotiated by its affiliated Real Estate Foundation.

The property borders another University purchase: 9.5 acres on South Division Street Extended, previously occupied by Shoreland Freezers. Possible future uses of the two sites may include any number of academic, cultural, athletic and support facilities such as a fine and performing arts center or a new fieldhouse. The University regularly updates its Facilities Master Plan and those decisions will be made in the future.

One real use of the property now is parking. For the last two years, SU has been leasing 645 parking spaces at Dresser. The University will continue to utilize those lots.

In a process similar to the Shoreland purchase, ownership of the land is expected to be transferred after Dresser R.E., the current owner, razes the buildings, which have been unoccupied for several years.

The University has been undergoing a rapid expansion in recent years. In September, SU held the grand opening for its new $65 million Teacher Education and Technology Center. At 165,000 square feet, it’s the largest building on campus. This semester SU started construction of its first parking garage at the corner of Bateman and Wayne streets. In fall 2009, it breaks ground on a new $45 million home for the Perdue School of Business on Route 13 near Henson Science Hall and a new residence hall at the site of the current Allenwood shopping center.

“The Salisbury University of the future will offer even more opportunities to our region, the state and the nation,” said Dudley-Eshbach. “To fulfill such potential, however, we need the physical space to grow. The acquisition of Dresser has great significance. For the University, it’s our Louisiana Purchase. I want to express my heartfelt appreciation to all who made this possible, particularly Paul Parks, president of the SU Real Estate Foundation, and Kim Nechay, assistant director of the SU Foundation. Their impact on the future of this institution is immeasurable.”

For more information, visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu or call 410-543-6030

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SU Foundation, Inc. Approves Purchase of Merritt Club
Thursday, April 24, 2008

SALISBURY, MD---For the first time in 30 years, Salisbury University students will have access to new campus recreational facilities. Today the Salisbury University Foundation announced that it has approved the purchase of the Merritt Racquetball and Fitness Club on Milford St., on the periphery of campus.

A transition period for Merritt’s employees and loyal club members has been enacted by the current owner and founder, Ronald F. Jones. The longtime health club will become available for student use this fall. ...more [−]

“Merritt has been a part of the community for 30 years,” said Jones. “I am happy to see that it will continue its life serving young athletes and becoming part of a University with vigorous health and recreational programs.”

In 2005 SU was voted one of the top 15 healthiest campuses in the U.S. by Men’s Fitness magazine.

The health club has an ideal location for SU students and its athletics program. The two-story, 15,919 square-foot metal building, a full service facility with racquetball courts, nautilus circuit training, cardio-training and weight rooms, aerobic studio and men’ s and women’s locker rooms, is located at the corner of Wayne and Milford streets, adjacent to the University’s Indoor Tennis Center. (The Tennis Center was purchased by SU in 1990 but does not offer the breadth of services of its next door neighbor.) Merritt’s back yard abuts SU’s soccer fields. Merritt is also just a few yards away from University Park, a major residential complex housing SU students.

“We’ve been looking for an opportunity to expand the campus fitness space,” said Ed Thomas, SU Foundation chairman. “I can’t think of a better site for such a facility serving students.”

The last comprehensive recreational building dedicated to student use was Maggs Physical Activities Center, which opened in 1977. At that time SU’s student population was 4,300 (compared to nearly 7,600 today).

Besides Maggs, students in 1977 also had access to Tawes Gym on campus. Tawes, however, was torn down during the construction of Fulton Hall, which opened in 1992, leaving students with only Maggs.

In a Housing and Campus Life Survey this year, students listed adequate and accessible exercise, recreational and athletic training facilities as one of their largest needs.

SU is home to Healthy U, Learn With SU (a program offering short courses, including those in health and recreation, to people over 50) and the Eastern Shore Senior Games. Merritt may provide opportunities for these and for other SU programs serving the community to expand.

For more information call 410-543-6030

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