Policies & Procedures
ESTABLISHING A NEW ACCOUNT:
Any donor, group of donors, corporation, foundation, or official component of theTexas State University-San Marcos may establish an account with the Foundation, provided that gifts, grants and other income to the account are made payable to Texas State University-San Marcos Development Foundation or to an existing named account within the Foundation, and that the basic requirements as to minimum gift amount, intended purpose, and compliance with the Mission of the University are met.
New accounts may established by obtaining the necessary new account set-up form. Throughout this document, “Gift” shall be defined as all contributions made by donors to the principal of an account, and – if so specified in the Memorandum of Understanding – any interest and dividends added to the principal prior to reaching the appropriate minimum endowed level. Market appreciation and depreciation is not used to determine the “gift” amount of an endowed account.
Every new Permanent Endowment established in the Foundation must have a Memorandum of Understanding or a Pledge Memorandum of Understanding, which is to be created prior to or at the time the new account is initiated. The Memorandum of Understanding permanently guides the use and management of the gifts contributed, and the distributions made to account holders. The Memorandum may only be changed with the written compliance of the original donor signatories, The President of the University, and the Chair of the Foundation. New accounts are established with the Foundation to establish an endowment either with an outright gift or a twenty (20) percent down payment of the total gift. Within sixty (60) days of the gift’s acceptance a Memorandum of Understanding should be signed and on file. The Executive Director of the Foundation works closely with University Advancement staff on all gifts.
The Executive Director of the Foundation works closely with Office of Development staff on all special gifts such as securities, tangible personal property, Trusts, and real estate. Donors and Development staff should contact the Executive Director for assistance in handling anything other than gifts by cash or check.
Endowments in the Foundation may also be created by adequately funded planned or deferred gifts. All planned or deferred gifts to the Foundation should be identified by a specific reference in the donor’s will, trust, or other legal document. A copy of the appropriate document(s) referencing the gift, or a reasonable substitute, should be supplied to the Foundation.
All gifts establishing a specific endowed fund with the Foundation must meet the minimum level required for that type of fund within five (5) years of the completed signing of a Memorandum of Understanding governing the fund. If an insufficient amount of gifts, contributions, and reinvested net income has accumulated by the end of this five (5) year period to completely endow the account, all funds received may be transferred to the Texas State University-San Marcos Foundation Presidential Scholarship Fund or another fund specified by the Board of Directors of the Foundation, and the specific endowed fund created by the donor(s) shall cease to exist.
Exceptions to this policy may be discussed on a case-by-case basis with the Executive Director prior to the end of the funding period.
Permanent Endowment Accounts
- The primary type of account established under Foundation management
- Established when the donor has stipulated that only a portion of the proceeds from the gift may be spent (See Distribution Policy section)
- These accounts are established through execution of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which is signed by the donor(s), the Vice President of University Advancement, and an approved representative Foundation; the MOU binds the Foundation and the University to certain actions and specified uses of the gift(s)
- Gifts are invested for total return in one of the portfolios selected by the donor (See Investment Policy section)
- A management fee is charged monthly against the account based on the market value of the account at the end of each month. (See Fees Charged to Accounts section)
- A minimum of $10,000 in gifts must be received by any Permanent Endowment account before distributions will be made, usually within no more than a five (5) consecutive year period
- The Texas State University-San Marcos Board of Regents has established minimum gift levels for various types of endowments, which are utilized by the Foundation (see Minimums for Endowment schedule) before distributions are allowed
- Gifts to Permanent Endowment funds are maintained in perpetuity, and are not invaded for any reason without the previous written permission of the donor(s) and the Chair of the Board of the Foundation, as specified in the MOU.
Minimums for Endowment Funds
| Minimum Gift Requirements set by the Texas State Board of Regents | |
|---|---|
| Category | Minimum Funding Level |
| Chair | $ 1,500,000 |
| A faculty position; a significant teacher, research leader and/or new resource; related salary, laboratory and equipment, travel, graduate student, support, research support, supplies. The minimum may be as high as $2,000,000 in certain Colleges. | |
| Professorship A faculty position; to recognize a significant teacher, research leader and/or existing resource; related salary support, travel, research support, supplies and materials. The minimum may be as high as $600,000 in certain Colleges. |
$ 500,000 |
| Faculty Fellowship Support for a faculty member; research and teaching expenses |
$ 200,000 |
| Graduate Fellowship Support for a graduate student; research and teaching expenses; stipend |
$ 100,000 |
| Endowed Presidential Scholarship A special category of Scholarship designed to support undergraduate students for 2 years in their sophomore year or higher with a minimum 3.25 GPA. |
$ 50,000 |
| Undergraduate Scholarship A special category of Scholarship designed to expand the University’s base of general, unrestricted scholarship funds for undergraduate students. |
$25,000 |
Account Holders
Every Account established in the Foundation shall have one individual “account holder” assigned to it. In the absence of an assigned Account Holder, the Dean of the academic unit or the President of the University (if a non-academic unit) is authorized to serve as the Account Holder until such time as a regular Account Holder may be identified.
Account Holders must be full-time faculty or full-time staff currently employed at the University, such as: Vice Presidents, Deans, Department Chairs, Directors of Institutes or Departments, full-time faculty, and on-campus holders of Chairs or Professorships.
Account Holders and Signature Proxies (staff assigned by the Account Holder to assist with the management of their account) are the only persons authorized to request supplemental distributions from any specific account managed by the Foundation (see Withdrawals from Accounts sections), or to direct funds to be transferred to any University account or individual. Account Holders and Signature Proxies will have access to all statements and correspondence from the Foundation regarding their specific account(s). Account Holders are responsible for all management and record keeping for funds disbursed to them by the Foundation once they receive those disbursements.
It is understood that the intent of the donors, the Foundation Board of Directors, and the University’s Board of Regents, that all gifts entrusted to the Foundation for the benefit of the University are to be properly managed. To this end, senior University staff in charge of operating units (President, Provost, Vice Presidents, Deans, Directors, and Department Chairs) are responsible for the proper and efficient management of activities within their units. These senior staff may, upon written notification to the Executive Director of the Foundation, designate certain alternate individual members of their staff to serve as Account Holder for specific accounts. This would be in response to retirements, reassignments, deaths, or other mitigating circumstances.
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