VII.2. Development

The University of Wisconsin Foundation is the official fund-raising and gift-receiving agency for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. For over sixty years, the UW Foundation has engaged alumni and friends of the university by providing opportunities to enhance its teaching, research and outreach programs. It also has guaranteed ethical stewardship of the gifts it has received.

In its first year, the foundation received $95,000 in gifts; today, it manages assets of more than $2 billion. Investment income provides funds for scholarships, fellowships, professorships, research, programs and facilities. An independent, non-profit organization, the Foundation has a staff of over 120 employees and an elected board of directors that oversees its assets and activities. Over the past five years, the UW Foundation’s average cost of raising a dollar has been 5.8 percent, well below national averages. The Foundation assists the college and its departments in managing gift funds, maintaining good donor relations, and implementing new strategies to encourage giving. For additional information, go to the Foundation’s Main Areas of Gift Development.

In addition, a small number of funds are housed with the UW System Trust Office (link to Trust Office) rather than the UW Foundation. Gifts that do not specify the “ University of Wisconsin Foundation ” go to the UW Regents and can be distributed to any UW System campus. Gifts and bequests should specify “ University of Wisconsin Foundation ” in their designation. For information regarding funds housed at the UW System trust Office, please contact Mehdi Rezai.

Letters & Science Development Directors The UW Foundation has six development directors assigned to work on various aspects of development for Letters & Science at the college and departmental level; each department and program has been assigned a specific director. The current list of development directors and their assignments can be found on-line at http://www.ls.wisc.edu/giving.htm. A special director has been assigned to help manage stewardship and donor relations across the college. In addition, the college works closely with the UW Foundation’s vice president for planned giving and its regional directors to share information on donor interest and gift opportunities. Letters & Science administration works closely with its departments and with the professional staff of the UW Foundation to develop priorities and to match donor interests to college and departmental needs. A list of current college priorities can be found on-line at http://www.ls.wisc.edu/giving.htm.

Maximize Your Department’s Development Opportunities Before embarking on new fund-raising initiatives, your department must have basic donor relations best practices in place. Just as mismanaging funds is the best way to lose support, effective stewardship of today’s gifts is the best cultivation for continued support. Please refer to the Stewardship section of this chapter for information regarding donor relations best practices.

Boards of Visitors

The College of Letters & Science has one college-level advisory board that is comprised of alumni and friends of the college who have achieved prominence in education, business, and/or government. The board meets two times a year and advises the dean on curricular, political, and fiscal challenges facing the college. The board also assists in planning and implementing college relations and development initiatives. The dean occasionally appoints subcommittees to carry out limited-term initiatives on behalf of the larger board. Individual board members play significant roles in philanthropy toward individual departments and/or the college in general.

The college also has eleven formally-organized boards that are affiliated with professional schools, academic departments, and specific arts and humanities projects. Several members sit on more than one board. With the exception of the Dictionary of American Regional English board, most board members are graduates of the College of Letters & Science. The Letters & Science Board of visitors often has members who also serve on the Wisconsin Alumni Association board. Finally, some units – notably communication arts and history – are developing informal networks and advisory groups to help them achieve their objectives.

Each of the sub-college boards functions a bit differently. Some have a specific focus on development; others are alumni relations or curricular or program advice. All meet two times per year, often in conjunction with the Letters & Science board meeting or other campus events.

Departments that do not currently have boards but wish to form them MUST complete the planning process discussed in the Letters & Science – UW Foundation document, Planning Document Requirements for Departments Requesting to Form Boards of Visitors.

COLLEGE LEVEL BOARD

• Letters & Science Board of Visitors

PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL BOARDS

• School of Music Board of Visitors
• School of Journalism & Mass Communication Board of Visitors
• LaFollette School of Public Affairs – Department of Political Science Board of Visitors

STUDENT SERVICES BOARDS

• Pathways to Excellence Programs and Services Board of Visitors
• Letters & Science Career Services Board of Visitors

ACADEMIC DEPARTMENTS BOARDS

• Department of Astronomy Board of Visitors
• Department of English Board of Visitors
• Department of Geology & Geophysics Board of Visitors
• Mosse-Weinstein Center for Jewish Studies Board of Visitors

ARTS & HUMANITIES BOARDS

• Chazen ( Museum of Art ) Council
• Dictionary of American Regional English Board of Visitors

INFORMAL ADVISORY GROUPS

• Department of Communication Arts Alumni Advisory Council
• Department of History Alumni Advisory Council

Managing Gift Funds

Campus Access Department chairs and administrators may receive current information on their UWF gift accounts on-line through Campus Access (www.uwfoundation.wisc.edu/funds). Campus Access provides comprehensive information on all of your department’s funds. Standard UWF forms (check request, gift deposit) are available through Campus Access, as well as a variety of custom reports. Please review the summary of the features and function of Campus Access. For more information or additional assistance, contact the Director of Donor Relations.

Types of Gift Funds Each gift received at the Foundation is deposited into a specific fund account. The Foundation holds two types of accounts for the University: expendable and endowment. Expendable funds are considered short-term accounts, as all monies in this type of fund are available to be spent for the purpose specified by the donor(s), whereas endowment funds are long-term, invested accounts that earn spendable income each quarter. Full definitions of both types of funds can be found at (Add URL for final handbook address). A sample fund information page from Campus Access for an endowment fund can be found at (Add URL for final handbook address), and a glossary of endowment fund terms can be found at (Add URL for final handbook address).

Sample Endowed Gift Funds

Endowment funds administered by the Foundation are based on an initial gift that provides annual investment income. A $10,000 gift (the minimum to create an endowment) will generate approximately $470 a year. Only the interest income is spent while the principal remains intact and appreciates in value over time. Individual funds and their designated use are determined by the donor(s). Suggested gift endowment levels depend on several factors, including donor capacity and the intended use of the fund, and range from $10,000 for an undergraduate scholarship to over $2 million for a named distinguished chair.

Managing Your Existing Funds for Full Impact Regularly monitor the status of your department’s funds through Campus Access. Pay close attention to the “Income Available” in your endowment funds (this information is updated quarterly). If the “Income Available” significantly exceeds the “Estimated Annual Income,” review the fund description to ensure the fund is being utilized appropriately. As a general rule, an endowment fund should not have a balance of more that three times the “Estimated Annual Income” in the “Income Available” category. You may want to consider transferring some of the excess income back into the account principal, so that the fund earns maximum income. Funds in the “Income Available” category do not earn interest. Explore options for utilizing income available to spend with your development director.

Please review the college’s policies regarding gift deposits and expenditures.

The College places a high priority on showing our appreciation to the donors who support our departments and programs. Effective stewardship of donors includes timely acknowledgment of gifts, managing gifts appropriately and in accordance with the donor’s wishes, communication of use of gifts to donors, and keeping donors connected to the department/program they support. Conscientious stewardship of a donor’s gift is the most effective and lasting form of gratitude that can be shown. It is also our obligation, because donors have a right to know when, where and how their gifts are used. Some stewardship best practices are listed below. The Director of Donor Relations and your development director are available to help you with your stewardship program.

Communicate With Your Alumni, Friends and Emeritus Faculty:

• Newsletters – Keep all of your graduates, friends and emeritus faculty informed of department activities and news via a newsletter or annual letter from the Chair. Consider featuring gifts to the department and how they have impacted the department, students, etc. In an effort to avoid error and the risk of alienation, the Foundation generally advises departments not to list donors in their publications. Furthermore, information pertaining to donors found in Campus Access is not to be used to construct honor rolls. If you have consulted with your Foundation colleagues, and are going to list donors in your publication, such lists must be obtained from the UW Foundation directly. Please contact the Director of Donor Relations for assistance.
  
• Web site – Maintain current information of interest to alumni and friends on your department web site and, if possible, create a designated “For Alumni & Friends” section on the site. Many departments and programs are taking advantage of the opportunity to create on-line giving forms that allow users to designate gifts to the UW Foundation for a specific department or program, using American Express, MasterCard, or Visa. This is a free and convenient way to encourage gifts when people visit your web site. Departments that have implemented on-line giving also are linked to the Letters & Science Giving Opportunities web page.

To set up on-line giving you will need to fill out the Web-based form at http:\\www.uwfoundation.wisc.edu/givingsetup . The University of Wisconsin Foundation requires the Dean to approve each form before it is activated. Please note: The setup form automatically generates a message that provides the relevant information and requests approval. Dean Sandefur has delegated approval authority to the Assistant Dean for Communications and College Relations

 Cultivate and Thank Your Donors:

• Thank You Notes – Ensure that all donors to your department receive a timely, personal thank you note from the Chair. Donor reports are readily available through Campus Access to help you create a merge file to produce thank you letters. Also make sure recipients of named scholarships, fellowships and professorships annually send a thank you note to the fund donors. Please request a copy of all thank you letters students and faculty send to donors, and forward a copy to the Director of Donor Relations. Provide students with this guide to help them write appropriate thank you letters.
• Donor Updates – Let your key donors know how their gifts are used and how they have impacted the department. Chairs should inform donors when a scholarship, fellowship or professorship recipient has been named. Also, keep donors informed of new faculty, publications and lectures in your department that may be of interest to them.
• Events – Invite donors, friends and emeritus faculty to department events, especially those events that their gifts support (i.e. awards/scholarship banquets, a lecture by a professor holding an endowed chair). Also, think about traveling professors and opportunities for donor interaction. Your development director can help you with donor meetings.
• Campus Visits – In coordination with UWF development staff, invite your best donors and/or prospects to campus for visits with your faculty or discussions with students.
• Fund Status – Know the status of your department’s funds. Let donors know when their funds are reaching critical thresholds, such as when a scholarship or fellowship will be awarded for the first time. Make sure all scholarships and fellowships are awarded on a timely basis. The best way to lose donor support is to mismanage funds. They will stop giving and tell their friends about it.

Communicate with UWF :

• Keep your UWF development director well informed of department events, new faculty, new books, news from former students, etc. Be sure your development director is on your mailing list.
• Write a brief layperson’s summary of your department’s priority funding needs for your UWF development director to share with donors and colleagues. Include important background information such as department rankings, traditional strengths, recent activities and accomplishments, etc.
• Think about and identify potential donors to your department.
• Identify faculty members in your department who are interested in development.
• Respond to UWF information requests regarding fund usage and general departmental questions. The Director of Donor Relations will request the names of all current recipients of scholarships, fellowships and professorships every fall. The Foundation sends personal Endowment Reports to donors of endowed scholarships, fellowships, professorships and research & programs funds every spring. These customized reports include a financial statement and information about how the fund was utilized during that academic year. The Foundation collects information from the recipients of these endowed funds for the Endowment Reports, departments need only provide the Foundation with the names of the current recipients of endowed scholarships, fellowships and professorships.

Created 8/16/06 per LJM