Endowment Giving

An endowed fund is a permanent, self-sustaining source of funding. When you establish an endowed fund, the Potsdam College Foundation invests and manages your fund as part of its total combined endowment. While your original gift is not spent, an annual distribution of income from the gift is made for the purpose you designate. Because the gift principal remains intact, the endowed fund will generate support ad infinitum. Allocated income of an endowed fund not spent in one year may accrue for use in future years. This may be useful, for example, if the department a fund supports wishes to buy an expensive piece of equipment.

The total endowment managed by the Potsdam College Foundation comprises the complete portfolio of donor-supported endowed funds at SUNY Potsdam, as well as those established by the College. Each year, the College spends a portion of the investment earnings of the endowment based upon the current spending policy, which is reviewed annually and approved by the Potsdam College Foundation Board of Trustees. The current spending policy allows earnings equal to 4.5% of the total endowment’s 20-quarter market value average to be made available for current use.

The Foundation measures the market performance of both the combined endowment and individual endowed funds. An endowed fund’s market value reflects the value of all gifts and reinvested earnings to the fund, plus or minus the total investment performance of the endowment.

Endowed funds at SUNY Potsdam support a multitude of student experiences and academic programs, while also increasing the College’s financial stability.

Examples of funds that you can endow at Potsdam include:

Once you decide what programs or services you want to support, we will work with you to match your interests with the opportunities at the College.

An endowed fund at SUNY Potsdam is established with a gift of $25,000 or more. You can establish your endowed fund with an outright gift, a gift through your estate plan or a combination of both.

Outright gift: An endowed fund can be established through a single outright gift or pledged and fulfilled over a period of up to five years, according to a schedule that best works for you. You can give cash, securities or other assets to an endowed fund. We will prepare a written agreement detailing your gift plan, the fund’s purpose and any awarding information. Once the minimum funding level is achieved, the fund will generate spendable income. Each year, you will receive a report on the use and impact of the fund. Scholarship donors will also receive thank you notes from student recipients.

Estate gift: You can establish an endowed fund through an estate gift by including funding provisions in your estate plan. We encourage you to let us know of your intentions for the fund in advance to be sure we can honor them. You can also create a giving plan that combines both outright and estate gifts. To discuss estate gifts to benefit SUNY Potsdam, please contact Jason Ladouceur '94, Senior Director of College Advancement, at 315-267-2123 or giftplan@potsdam.edu.

By endowing a scholarship or program fund during your lifetime, you will have the joy of seeing your legacy in action. In turn, those impacted by your gift will have the benefit of knowing you (if you so choose) and being personally inspired by your generosity.

Donors who establish endowed funds at SUNY Potsdam are also automatically enrolled in the Raymond Legacy Society and invited back to campus each fall for the Legacy Luncheon to meet students who have been impacted by their generosity.

Gifts to endowed funds may be eligible for the same state and federal tax benefits as other gifts to the College. They may also be counted in fundraising campaigns and anniversary reunion fundraising at SUNY Potsdam.

The Potsdam College Foundation offers a variety of naming opportunities in recognition of significant gifts to the College, including endowed funds. You can name an endowed fund for yourself, your family, your friend, your favorite professor, your company—the choice is yours.

You can designate your gift to support any pre-existing endowed fund at SUNY Potsdam, such as the Pay It Forward Scholarship Program. Your gift to the principal account of any fund will be invested for perpetuity, but you will not be granted access to the Raymond Legacy Society or receive updates from the students you support.