FOUNDATION

Endowments may be established by individuals, corporations, social groups, estates, charitable organizations, families, friends and other entities. Wherever possible, an endowment must designate an individual as a donor representative with whom the Foundation can communicate gifts, policies and revisions. In the case of the endowment being established to fund a scholarship, a separate Scholarship Agreement will be completed.

Annual scholarships provide a yearly award to students who meet the criteria established by you and the College. Scholarship endowments enable you to create a scholarship in perpetuity. A minimum donation of $25,000.00 is required to establish an endowment within the SJR State Foundation. The principal is invested, and a portion of the return is used each year to support the scholarship.

Governance and oversight of the endowment’s investments are paramount to the College’s mission to advance education, service and discovery. The executive board and finance committees of the SJR State Foundation are vigilant in providing continuous and rigorous oversight of policies, procedures, controls and investment management.

The finance committee performs quarterly reviews of investment performance and annual approvals of endowment administrative policies, investment benchmarks and asset allocations. Endowment expenditures are regularly audited by both the Foundation staff and the College’s annual Audit, with audit reports reviewed and approved by the audit committee.

The endowment is invested by the SJR State Foundation, in partnership with Capital City Trust and governed by a volunteer board of professionals. In order to preserve the purchasing power of both principal and withdrawals made available for spending, the long-term annualized total rate of return objective for the SJR State Foundation is inflation plus 5 percent. A minimum rate of return equal to the rate of inflation is required to preserve the real purchasing power of the Foundation, and the additional 5 percent is required to provide for spending.

The Foundation invests each endowment into an investment-pooled fund. Each endowed fund is administered with specific purposes established by donors in accordance with the policies set forth by the board. Endowed funds are carefully established by gift agreements clearly documenting donor intent.

The SJR State Foundation shall hold, manage, administer and distribute endowments, and shall have the full right of sale, investment and reinvestment. Each endowment is structured with a principal fund and a spendable fund. The principal fund is invested with Capital City Trust in the endowment pool and generates spending transfers that are made available in the spendable fund to drive donor impact. Each year, the Foundation provides donors with detailed endowment reports and letters from students. New endowed gifts are invested quarterly, with the first spendable transfer occurring at the end of its first invested year. Annually, each endowment fund will be reviewed by the SJR State Foundation.

At least every other year, the Foundation will review the criteria and performance of the endowment with the donor and make recommendations for changes in regulatory changes as a result of these reviews.

Governance of the endowment fund will revert to the SJR State Foundation if inactivity of the donor representative or organization has occurred, or if the donor has been deceased for at least one year and no other representative has been designated.

Each endowment generates an annual payout based on the spending rate established by the finance committee and board. The payout rate is currently 5 percent of each endowment’s spending base, which is a policy calculation.

Endowments are the surest way to safeguard SJR State’s endurance to engage, educate and serve communities and families for generations to come. They provide a perpetual source of financial stability that ensures the continuance and growth of vital programs.