e Central Student Government (CSG) is the central student government of the University. With representatives from each of the University's colleges and schools, the CSG represents students and manages student funds on the campus. In recent years CSG has organized airBus, a transportation service between campus and the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, and has led the univers

owing endowment in the nation over the last 21 years.[56] The endowment is primarily used according to the donors' wishes, which include the support of teaching and research. In mid-2000, U-M embarked on a massive fund-raising campaign called "The Michigan Difference," which aimed to raise $2.5 billion, with $800 million designated for the permanent endowment.[57] Slated to run through December 2008, the university announced that the campaign had reached its target 19 months early in May 2007.[58] Ultimately, the campaign raised $3.2 billion over 8 years. Over the course of the capital campaign, 191 additional professorships were endowed, bringing the university total to 471 as of 2009.[59] Like nearly all colleges and universities, U-M suffered significant realized and unrealized losses in its endowment during the second half of 2008. In February 2009, a university spokesperson estimated losses of between 20 and 30 percent.[60]
Student government[edit]
White-colored stone building with columns in the center of the facade

Central Campus: Angell Hall, one of the major buildings of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts
Housed in the Michigan Union, the Central Student Government (CSG) is the central student government of the University. With representatives from each of the University's colleges and schools, the CSG represents students and manages student funds on the campus. In recent years CSG has organized airBus, a transportation service between campus and the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, and has led the university's efforts to register its student population to vote, with its Voice Your Vote Commission (VYV) registering 10,000 students in 2004. VYV also works to improve access to non-partisan voting-related information and increase student voter turnout.[61] CSG has also been successful at reviving Homecoming activities, including a carnival and parade, for students after a roughly eleven-year absence in October 2007.[62]
There are student governance bodies in each college and school. The two largest colleges at the University of Michigan are the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LS&A) and the College of Engineering. Undergraduate students in the LS&A are represented by the LS&A Student Government (LSA SG).[63] The University of Michigan Engineering Council (UMEC) manages undergraduate student government affairs for the College of Engineering. Graduate students enrolled in the Rackham Graduate School are represented by the Rackham Student Government (RSG). In addition, the students that live in the residence halls are represented by the University of Michigan Residence Halls Association (RHA).[64]
A longstanding goal of the student government is to create a student-designated seat on the Board of Regents, the university's governing body.[65] Such a designation would achieve parity with other Big Ten schools that have student regents. In 2000, students Nick Waun and Scott Trudeau ran for the board on the state-wide ballot as third-party nominees. Waun ran for a second time in 2002, along with Matt Petering and Susan Fawcett.[66] Although none of these campaigns has been successful, a poll conducted by the State of Michigan in 1998 concluded that a majority of Michigan voters would approve of such a position if the measure were put before them.[65] A change to the board's makeup would require amending the Michigan Constitution.[67]
Academics[edit]