GIFT PLEDGES (non-campaign)

All pledges are recorded in Millennium in accordance with Financial Accounting Standards ("FASB") and CASE guidelines. Pledge commitments must be in writing (Gift & Pledge Disclosure), signed by the donors, and include pledge amount, duration, and payment schedule; and gift designation, purpose, and restrictions, if any.

If a pledge will be paid by a private foundation, the form must record the private foundation as the donor. An individual may not be recorded as the donor. The IRS does not allow a private foundation to satisfy the pledge of an individual. In this case, the IRS would define the individual as a "disqualified person." Disqualified persons include substantial contributors to the foundation, foundation officers/directors and family members, and businesses/trusts substantially owned by disqualified persons.

Gifts from donor-advised funds cannot be obligated by the donor and cannot satisfy pledges nor result in benefits to the individual or the fund. If the pledge will be paid through a donor-advised fund, the form's donor-advised fund section must be completed.

3.a. Pledge Type

1. Signed Agreement

   Only Signed Agreement Pledges are noted in fundraising progress and reported to the Controller's Office at the end of each fiscal year. To qualify as a Signed Agreement Pledge, a pledge must be received on a Gift & Pledge Form or in a Gift Agreement. Letters received from a private foundation (a.k.a., family foundation) with complete pledge details also will be recorded as Signed Agreement Pledges. Written documentation of a donor's gift intent, including dollar amount and payment schedule, may qualify as a Signed Agreement Pledge, at the discretion of the Vice President of Advancement. Any other pledged amount is not included in the fundraising progress reports but is counted as payments are received.

2. Annual Scholarship

   Annual scholarship pledges are not noted in fundraising progress or reported to the Controller's Office but are established to facilitate a donor's future gift intentions that don't qualify as a Signed Agreement Pledge. Typically, these expendable scholarships are received annually and the donor has not committed to a set amount or payment schedule but wants an annual contribution reminder. The annual gifts are deposited to a general scholarship fund that has been determined by the donor and that has already been established. Reminders for annual scholarship pledges are sent in October of each year so donors have time to give and so that departments may plan the next academic year's awards.

3. Annual Fund Phonathon

   Annual Fund Phonathon pledges are not noted in fundraising progress or reported to the Controllers' Office and are referred to as any pledge made through the phonathon.

3.b. Pledge Duration

Pledge duration should be no more than five years. The Gift Acceptance Committee shall review all requests for exception and shall deliver its recommendation to the Vice President of Advancement for final decision.

3.c. Pledge Payment

Pledges may be fulfilled via cash, credit card, EFT, payroll deduction, or marketable securities payments. If real estate or other non-marketable assets are used as payment, the initial value recorded against the pledge shall be the fair market value of the real estate or assets as determined by an independent qualified appraisal. As with gifts of securities, donors shall receive recognition credit equal to the fair market value (normally based on an appraisal within 60 days of the gift date), regardless of the sale price of the asset. If publicly traded securities are used as payment, the amount booked against the pledge shall be valued on the legal date of the gift.

The pledge agreement should reflect the anticipated amount for which the donor is personally responsible. The recorded pledge amount shall not include matching funds from the donor's employer. Matching funds, however, may be deposited into the same fund, if permitted by matching company policy.

3.d. Pledge Reminder

Each signed agreement, non-signed agreement, and grant with a payment schedule will receive a reminder a month before a payment is due. A follow-up reminder will be sent for a pledge that is two months past due. If a pledge is three months past due, a development officer will contact the donor to determine if a new payment schedule is necessary. A pledge that is more than four months past due will initiate Vice President of Advancement involvement. A pledge reminder will not be sent to donors who are paying via payroll deduction or recurring credit card plan. The Vice President of Advancement shall determine any exception to the pledge reminder schedule.

3.e. Pledge Write Off

If a donor is unwilling or unable to fulfill a pledge, the pledge is classified as uncollectible. To write off a pledge, the development officer should make every attempt to obtain validating documentation from the donor. If documentation cannot be obtained, the development officer should detail and forward pledge status to the Office of Advancement Services.

A pledge warrants write off when there is relative certainty that no payments will be received and when every effort has been made to satisfy the pledge. The Vice President of Advancement or assigned designee shall determine whether a pledge warrants write off.
A pledge that is two years beyond its forecast fulfillment date shall be reviewed by the Vice President of Advancement or designee, who may recommend a write-off.

Any phonathon pledges not paid by fiscal year end will be written off.