TOPEKA – For a second year, Washburn University and Washburn Endowment Association have been honored for overall excellence in fundraising performance by the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Washburn was named a recipient of the prestigious 2009 CASE-WealthEngine Award for Educational Fundraising, a component of the CASE Circle of Excellence program.

The Circle of Excellence Award honors superior fundraising programs across the country, recognizing them as models of best practices in fundraising. This year, 50 of the more than 3,000 institutions from across the nation were recognized for this award.

“We are honored to receive this award for the second year in a row,” said Dr. Jerry Farley, president of Washburn University. “This honor confirms we not only have a tremendous fundraising program, but more importantly, it confirms we have wonderful and generous donors.”

Institutions do not apply for these awards – they are data-driven based on submission of information to CASE’s Voluntary Support of Education (VSE) survey. The winners are selected by two judging panels comprised of senior development professionals and CASE volunteers. During the judging process, each institution is unidentified, with awards given based strictly on fundraising and organization data reported.

“It is a great privilege to be recognized by our peers in fundraising,” said JuliAnn Mazachek, president of Washburn Endowment Association. “It truly takes a team effort to earn this kind of recognition.”

Headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in London and Singapore, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education is the professional organization for advancement professionals at all levels who work in alumni relations, communications, fundraising, marketing and other areas. CASE’s membership includes nearly 3,400 colleges, universities, independent elementary and secondary schools, and educational associates in 60 countries around the world, making CASE one of the largest nonprofit education associations in terms of institutional membership.