Brescia University Objectives of an Endowment Fund

1. To support the purposes of the University and its mission in perpetuity
2. To spend a pre-determined portion of the earnings each year in order to provide support for the donor specified purpose
3. To achieve a total rate of return equal to inflation plus 5.2%
4. To maintain and preserve the purchasing power of the initial contribution, protecting it from erosion through inflation

Policies for establishing an Endowment

1. To enact the contract for an endowed fund, a minimum down payment of $1,000 must be submitted along with the signed contract.
2. Endowments may be established for scholarships, academic chairs, academic and program support, capital support, or annual use as determined by the University’s priorities.
3. Donor has 3 to 5 years to pay out the principal.
4. During the time the donor is paying on the principal, earnings will be used at the discretion of Brescia University.
5. Once the principal is reached by the donor, Brescia will make the first distribution the following calendar year. From that point, Brescia will distribute earnings as stated in the Management Statement.
6. Endowments may be established by an individual, a family, a business, church or foundation in accordance with the above policies.
7. Only the board of trustees may approve the establishment of an endowment that places Brescia as the entity responsible for the principal. Otherwise, every endowment must have someone who agrees to be responsible for assuring that the entire principal will be paid within the stated amount of time.
8. Endowments may be named in honor or memory of an individual, a family, a group, a business or a program.
9. For endowed scholarships, unless specified by the donor, the commitment will be for four years to the recipient, assuming the criteria established continue to be met by the recipient.
10. Endowed scholarships are awarded primarily for tuition assistance but can include room and board assistance as well.
11. Once the donor has met the principal, gifts of any size may be added at any time, by any individual, to grow the principal.

Annual Earnings Awarded

The annual payout of earnings on endowments is determined each January for the following year by the Board of Trustees Finance Committee. Generally, a payout no greater than 5% of earnings is awarded from each endowed fund.

An Endowment’s Impact

For a Principal of:	5% annual earnings:
$25,000	$1,250
$50,000	$2,500
$100,000	$5,000
$500,000	$25,000
$1,000,000	$50,000

 

In the Fall of 2007, Brescia provided an average of $7,000 institutional assistance per student. Ninety-nine percent of Brescia students receive some type of institutional financial assistance.