Mission & History

History

The Medical Foundation of North Carolina, Inc. was chartered in 1949 as a 501(c)(3) charitable not-for-profit organization. Today, The Medical Foundation is responsible for encouraging private gift support of programs throughout the School of Medicine and the UNC Hospitals. The Foundation is the only organization approved for fundraising with the School and Hospitals and is responsible for coordination and clearance of private gift activities.

The dedication of physicians to their patients drives medical science to discover better means of preventing and treating disease. However, with the state supplying only 12 percent of the UNC Medical Center’s annual budget, the Center must rely on the support of its friends and alumni. The Medical Foundation presently is raising approximately $17 to $20 million each year in new gift support to benefit the School and Hospitals. Many other private gifts, in support of the School and Hospitals, flow directly into University accounts and other departmental trust funds. It is estimated that total private gift support of all programs approaches $50 million annually.

The programs of The Medical Foundation are many and varied. Nearly 1,100 individual accounts are managed both for endowment and current operations purposes. Although the majority of funds are for restricted purposes (scholarships, professorships, lectureships, research support), there is also a growing unrestricted quasi-endowment. Over the years, assets have accumulated and now total approximately $234 million.