Endowments
By establishing an endowment, you provide a permanent resource the university can use to compete for the most sought-after scholars and professors. At the same time, you are making an intelligent financial decision that offers a naming opportunity to establish a meaningful legacy in your name or in recognition of any individual you wish to honor.
Unlike other types of gifts, an endowment is established to continue generating income. The principal you provide to initiate the endowment is never spent. Instead, the endowed fund is invested and professionally managed to produce additional income. As the principal grows, so does the income available to the award.
The endowment is awarded once the principal reaches the minimum required funding level. If you or others continue to add to the fund, additional awards are possible.
Endowed Student Scholarships
New student scholarships will attract an increasing number of students from a diversity of backgrounds, improve the overall quality of classroom experiences and student achievements, and continue to advance CMU's reputation as a learner-centered institution.
Increased scholarships will give CMU a competitive edge.
In order to compete for the best and the brightest, CMU must also be able to provide scholarships that reward achievement and support future success. Most CMU students require financial assistance. New scholarships will provide needed financial assistance, which is of paramount importance to the majority of CMU students.
Scholarships are investments in the future.
CMU graduates are the workforce of Michigan and beyond. Ninety-three percent of our graduates find jobs or are accepted into graduate or professional schools, and 88 percent stay in the state. That number is even higher among some individual colleges.
Endowed Scholarships Reward Academic Achievement and Provide Financial Assistance.
When establishing a scholarship endowment or giving to an already established scholarship program, there are several options to consider. You may want to provide a scholarship to students based on their academic achievement or their need for financial assistance, or both.
Endowed Faculty Positions
A university's faculty is its most valuable resource. CMU's reputation rests primarily with professors who share a commitment to teaching and engaging in applied research and creative activity that enhances students' learning experiences.
Income from faculty endowment funds is used to:
- Enhance faculty teaching skills
- Supplement faculty salaries
- Support research activities
- Provide faculty members with release time to create new courses and write textbooks
- Expand programs that bring visiting scholars and professionals to campus to benefit all students
There are three types of Faculty Endowments:
Endowed Faculty Awards
The interest from these funds provides annual awards to outstanding faculty usually for their own professional development. The minimum level of endowment needed for naming: $250,000.
Endowed Lectureship Series/Artist in Residence
Interest from this endowment can be used to either provide honoraria and expenses for visiting faculty lectures or performances or for extended residencies for up to a year in length. The minimum level of endowment needed for naming: $500,000
Endowed Professorships and Chairs
Interest from these funds provides direct support to faculty. Professorship typically is awarded to an outstanding junior-level faculty member, whereas, the endowed Chair is the most prestigious faculty award and usually goes to a full professor. Most Professorships and Chairs have term limits, usually five years.
Endowments for Buildings, Equipment and Programs
Endowments provide essential support to construct new campus facilities or to maintain current facilities. Equipment endowments ensure that students at CMU will be exposed to the newest technologies required by employers in their fields. Programs that enhance students' educational experience in and out of the classroom can become a permanent part of the CMU experience when they are endowed. For example, a program that requires private funding support, such as a music series that brings national and world-renown talent to campus, will exist to benefit future classes of students. Naming a physical campus structure, a classroom, a lab, or a program of interest, leaves a lasting legacy of support.
Unrestricted Endowment Funds
There are two types of endowments: restricted and unrestricted. Endowments set up for specific purposes, such as scholarships or professorships, are called restricted because they are allocated for a specific need. You may also establish an endowment using unrestricted funds. Unrestricted funds provide an annual income that CMU can use toward areas of greatest need. These funds enable CMU to acquire advanced equipment and technology for niche programs, creative activities, research, and scholarship. These endowed funds allow CMU the flexibility and financial stability to be less dependent on unpredictable funding sources, such as government aid.