As director of institute relations for The Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, David L. Mitchell is closely involved in the second year of a $100 million fund-raising campaign scheduled to close by the end of 2005.

It is the largest campaign undertaken by the institute, which conducts research into the human brain. It presents a formidable challenge for Mitchell, who has spent the better part of his professional career in the business of raising money for nonprofit organizations.

But while the work is challenging, it is very satisfying, says Mitchell, 52, who joined the institute in late 1999 after 12 years as president of The Scripps Foundation. “I’m working with organizations that, by definition, do good, as opposed to those that exist just to make money,” Mitchell says. “Part of my job is to work with people who donate money for charitable causes. They tend to be much more interesting than those who do not give to charity.”

One difficulty The Neurosciences Institute faces in its quest for research and endowment funds is competition from larger, more established institutions. Mitchell accepts that as a fact of life. “While people who give money derive enormous satisfaction from giving, it’s extremely difficult for smaller, newer, less-visible organizations (such as the institute) to become noticed by contributors,” Mitchell says. “There is a natural gravitational pull of the larger, more established and, frankly, more affluent nonprofits. In our business, we like to say the rich get richer. That’s not bad; it’s just a challenge.”

This past year the institute attracted close to $6 million in contributions compared to less than $2 million the year before. Most of the money the institute has raised comes from New York, its previous headquarters, and from other parts of the country. But Mitchell expects local contributions to increase substantially now that the 17 members of the board of trustees, added since his tenure, are from San Diego County. San Diegans now represent more than 50 percent of the board’s makeup.

Mitchell holds a bachelor’s degree in government from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis., and has held development positions at The Cambridge School in Boston, Northwestern University, the University of California Medical Center in San Francisco and Stanford University Medical Center.

— Manny Cruz