Endowments
An endowment is an investment in the future of the Honors College. It provides financial stability, and it supports the students, faculty, programs and activities that make the South Carolina Honors College the best honors college in the nation. Endowment is critically important to the future of our college in every way.
What is an endowment?
It is a designated fund that you can name and establish the purpose if desired. The fund may be created through the donation of cash, marketable securities or other liquid assets. Endowed funds are typically intended to be held in perpetuity, with the investment earnings from those funds made available (at least in part) to spend in support of the donor's purpose. Endowments may be funded over a period of time not to exceed five years.
What does it cost to create an endowment?
An endowment requires a minimum gift of $25,000. Named endowments may support partial scholarships or fellowships for a specific academic discipline or program, academic and research programs and more.
A minimum gift of $100,000 is required to establish an endowed scholarship fund designated for a specific academic discipline or program with restrictions or preferences.
This premier in-state scholarship requires an endowment requires a minimum gift of $400,000.
How do endowments work?
Endowment funds are managed to provide a permanent source of income to support the educational mission of the University. The endowment, a set of pooled assets, is generally comprised of many individual funds and is invested in a purposeful and accountable manner in order to generate income that:
- honors the donors’ intended purposes for their gift
- supports the operating budget of the institution
- is reinvested to protect the value of the endowment against inflation
Deferred Gifts
Invest in the Honors College with a strategy that meets your priorities and fund initiatives that are most important to you. Some of these vehicles include life insurance, charitable annuities and remainder trusts. These plans provide a return to you and your family for a specific duration of time with either the principle or interest given to the Honors College. Our development officers are available to work with you or your financial adviser to find the right plan for you.
Join the Carolina Guardian Society
The Carolina Guardian Society recognizes donors of deferred gifts. To qualify for membership, donors must make a commitment, confirmed in writing and subject to certain restrictions, that includes one of the following:
- A bequest in a will or revocable trust.
- A life income gift that names the University of South Carolina, the Honors College or one of its affiliated foundations as a remainder beneficiary, such as a charitable remainder trust or a charitable gift annuity.
- A charitable lead trust that provides income to the University of South Carolina, the Honors College or one of its affiliated foundations for your lifetime or a term of years.
- A gift or assignment of qualified retirement plan assets, such as a an IRA, 401(k) or 403(b).
- A gift of life insurance.
For more information on the Carolina Guardian Society or to explore any of these options further, visit the Gift Planning website.