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Endowment FAQ

The Foundation’s Board of Trustees has set different minimum funding levels for different
types of endowments. Presently, $25,000 – which can be donated over a five-year period
– is the minimum dollar amount to establish an endowment.
An endowment agreement. This agreement between the donor and the university permanently
defines the purpose of the fund. The agreement also outlines the Clayton State University
Foundation’s standard procedures for managing endowment funds.
You can name an endowment for yourself, your family, your friend, your favorite professor,
your company – the choice is yours. Your endowment will be recorded as “The [Name
of Your Choice] Endowment Fund.”
No. You can make a gift of any size to an existing endowment fund without signing
an endowment agreement. There may be an existing endowment that reflects your interests
and to which you can add your support.
From an investment perspective, the endowment's funds are pooled, or commingled, together
in a manner similar to a mutual fund. The pooled investment fund is managed by professional
investment managers and overseen by the Foundation's Investment Group. The Clayton
State University Foundation utilizes unitized investment accounting, which permits
individual endowment funds to retain their identity, while sharing proportionately
in the earnings of the commingled investment fund. As a result of this pooling of
funds, the endowment's investment portfolio is broadly diversified across many asset
classes, thereby reducing volatility while maximizing performance. Diversification
is the key driver behind the successful long-term growth of the endowment through
market cycles.
Each year, a portion of the endowment’s earnings - a rule-of-thumb is 4% of the principal
(or corpus) – are paid out. Any remaining funds earned throughout the year are placed
back into the principal so the endowment grows at a real – inflation adjusted – rate.
Once an endowment reaches the minimum funding level and starts generating spendable
income, the Clayton State University Foundation will begin sending you annual reports
detailing the value and use of your endowment fund. When you establish an endowment
at Clayton State, you begin a new relationship with the University, and the Foundation
will write to you -- and later to your family -- every year with an update on what
your gift is making possible.
Clayton State University’s endowment assets are managed by the Foundation’s Investment
Committee which is charged with the responsibility of overseeing and monitoring the
investment of all assets under its stewardship. Committee members adhere to UPMIFA
and other such laws and regulations that apply now or in the future to the prudent
investment of assets and the application of an appropriate spending policy.