Policies

Donor Privacy Policy

  1. The Lane Community College Foundation adheres to the highest ethical standards, and donor confidentiality, privacy and security are of the utmost importance to our work.  Should a donor wish to achieve any level of anonymity, or have any privacy concerns related to the policy below, we will work with that donor to meet his/her needs.  The donor should discuss such concerns with the Foundation’s director prior to making a gift, to assure that the level of anonymity desired can be achieved.  Whenever possible, this policy will be shared with donors prior to the gift being made.
  2. The Foundation is a nonprofit entity legally separate from Lane Community College. The following individuals have access to all aspects of donor information in order to conduct the business of the Foundation and to assure appropriate oversight and adherence to gift acceptance policies:
    1. Executive Director and current Foundation Staff
    2. Foundation Trustees
  3. Unless a level of anonymity is requested by the donor, the following information is public information and may be published in any Foundation publication (virtual or online), on the Foundation website, the Foundation’s social media, or provided in response to any information request:
    1. Donor name;
    2. Year of donation;
    3. Fund/purpose supported;
    4. Total approximate cumulative giving level, only as listed in the Foundation Annual Report’s Lifetime Giving Society levels;
    5. Donor membership in the President’s Circle
      Details of realized bequests, including gift amount;
    6. All details of gifts made by corporations, foundations or organizations, including the amount of gift, date of gift, and purpose of gift.
  4. The specific dollar amount of an individual’s gift(s) or any other information regarding a gift (not cited above) will not be disclosed unless the donor permits.
  5. Any information regarding a potential/unrealized gift, including the likelihood of that gift, will not be disclosed.
  6. If a donor notifies the Foundation about a revocable deferred gift (bequest or other), the donor may “opt-in” to the Foundation’s Legacy Society.  If the donor does opt-in, their name(s) may be published (with no other gift details) in a list of Legacy Society members in any Foundation publication or on the Foundation website. If a donor(s) is deceased and the gift is realized by the Foundation, the donor is deemed to have granted permission for their name(s) to be included in such a listing.
  7. The Foundation does not share its mailing list or donor contact information with other organizations. Donor contact information will never be exchanged, rented or sold for marketing or any other use unrelated to Foundation business.
  8. From time to time, Lane Community College employees involved with a specific Foundation fund, or working with the Foundation, may request from the Foundation the names of individuals who have contributed to a specific fund for uses related only to that fund. The Executive Director must approve any use of donor contact information and the communication (email/mailing/solicitation).
  9. Certain Foundation volunteers, including members of committees, Foundation interns, College employees (including College leadership), and other high-level volunteers may work with the Foundation to solicit gifts and provide stewardship to Foundation donors.  Volunteers sign confidentiality agreements with the Foundation if they must work with any confidential information. Volunteers are provided with donor contact information, giving history and potential gift information strictly on a need-to-know basis and only for the use of furthering the work of the Foundation. Foundation staff monitor the use of this information closely.
  10. Any donor or gift details that are required to meet any state, federal or court-ordered legal obligation of the Foundation may be disclosed to the appropriate entity. The Foundation will seek professional legal or financial counsel as needed in these circumstances. Every effort will be made to protect donor privacy within the law.
  11. If a donor wishes to contact the Foundation regarding any aspect of this policy, including a desired level of anonymity, the donor should contact the Executive Director at (541) 463-5804, or write to the Foundation at LCC Foundation, 4000 E 30th Avenue, Eugene, OR, 97405.

Gift Acceptance Policy

This gift acceptance policy and related procedures govern the acceptance of gifts by the Lane Community College Foundation and provide guidance to donors and their advisors when making gifts to the Foundation.

I. Policy Statement

This Policy and its related procedures outline straightforward and objective processes for accepting charitable gifts to the Foundation. The Policy should be interpreted with three overriding principles in mind:

Principle 1:

The Foundation should not accept a gift unless there is a reasonable expectation that acceptance of the gift will benefit the Foundation and/or the College. The Foundation should not accept a gift if such acceptance imposes upon the Foundation and/or the College overly burdensome administrative or other efforts or costs.

Principle 2:

The Foundation should not accept a gift if there is no evident charitable intent on the part of the donor.

Principle 3:

While this document is intended to provide guidance to Foundation personnel regarding acceptance of prospective gifts, donors are ultimately responsible for ensuring that the proposed gift furthers their own charitable, financial and estate planning goals. Therefore, each prospective donor is urged to seek the advice of independent legal and financial counsel in the gift planning process. It is not within the province of either the Foundation or its staff to give legal, accounting, tax or other advice to prospective donors.

Principle 4:

The Foundation follows IRS guidelines, as well as applicable state and federal law, with regard to gift acceptance, reporting, and receipting.

II. Definitions

Gift: A contribution received by the Foundation for the benefit of Lane Community College or Lane Community College Foundation for either unrestricted or restricted use in the furtherance of the College's and/or the Foundation's mission for which the Foundation has made no commitment of resources or services other than committing to use the gift as the donor specifies. If a donor receives benefits in return for a contribution, the amount of the gift recorded and reported is reduced by the fair market value of all benefits given, according to U.S. Internal Revenue Service regulations.

III. Policy Statements

A. Authority for Acceptance

All gifts, both outright and deferred, considered to be low risk may be negotiated and accepted by the Executive Director or his/her designee on behalf of the Foundation and its Board of Trustees.

All gifts considered to be of significant or moderate risk must be approved by the Executive Committee of the Foundation Board before the gifts may be accepted by the Foundation.  Gifts with significant or moderate risk include:

  1. Any gift that may incur costs payable by the Foundation for holding or maintaining the gift;
  2. Non-Publicly traded securities;
  3. Gifts of real estate;
  4. Interests in Business Entities (partnership interests, S-corporations, interests in LLCs, etc.); or
  5. Any other gifts of unusual items or gifts of questionable value.

B. Declining Gifts

The Executive Committee may direct the Executive Director to decline gifts under certain conditions including, but not limited to, the following:

  1. Gifts that are restricted and would require support from other resources that are unavailable, inadequate, or may be needed for other institutional purposes.
  2. Gifts that are restricted and would support purposes or programs peripheral to existing principal purposes of the College, or create or perpetuate programs or obligations which would dissipate resources or deflect energies from other programs or purposes.
  3. Gifts that could injure the reputation or standing of the College or the Foundation, or cause it to enter into activities that are in conflict with its mission.
  4. Gifts that could put at risk the Foundation’s tax-exempt status or trigger negative tax situations, such as unrelated business income tax.
  5. Gifts that are not in alignment with the principles stated in Part I of this document.

IV. Related Procedures

A. Gift Restrictions

Each gift is recorded by the Foundation according to the restriction(s) indicated by the donor. If specific restrictions are indicated and the donor's restrictions cannot be followed, the gift will not be accepted. If the donor has not indicated the intent of the gift or the intent cannot be determined, and the donor is no longer living or does not respond to Foundation communication, the Foundation will deposit the gift into the Foundation unrestricted fund.  If the donor communicates intent orally, staff shall document that intent in writing immediately. Written documentation of oral directives should be confirmed with the donor.

B. Types of Gifts

The Foundation accepts gifts in the form of pledges, outright gifts or deferred commitments.

  1. Pledges - Pledges are commitments to give a specific dollar amount according to a fixed time schedule. Documented pledges are recorded on the Foundation database and included in financial reporting. All pledges must contain the following minimum information:
    1. Total amount of the pledge;
    2. Payment schedule (preferably not to exceed 5 years);
    3. Designation/restrictions for use of the funds;
    4. Donor's printed name and contact information; and
    5. Confirmation of donor expectations regarding pledge payment reminders.
    6. Pledges should be confirmed in writing or by email from the donor when possible. A letter from the Foundation to the donor outlining pledge details based on an oral pledge from the donor is also acceptable.
  2. Outright Gifts
    1. Cash and Cash Equivalents - Cash gifts of any amount are accepted by the Foundation. These gifts can take the form of currency, check or credit card contribution. Cash or checks may be delivered in person, by mail, by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) or by wire transfer.
    2. Securities - Publicly traded securities (stocks, bonds and mutual funds) are accepted by the Foundation. Gifts of publicly traded securities are typically sold immediately but may be retained under rare circumstances.  The investment of any retained securities is subject to the Foundation’s investment policy.
    3. Interests in Business Entities - Gifts of interests in business entities (partnership interests, S corporations, non-publicly traded stock, interests in limited liability companies, etc.) may be accepted by the Foundation with the approval of the Executive Committee.
    4. Real Estate - Real estate can be used for deferred gifts (see below), as well as outright gifts. Real estate includes improved or unimproved land, personal residences, farmland, commercial property, and rental property.
      Upon recommendation, the Executive Committee will review all proposed gifts of real estate and will consider the following:
      1. Donor restrictions. Generally, the Foundation will not accept real estate gifts if the donor places restrictions on the gift limiting the choices of the Foundation or the College with respect to owning, managing or disposing of property.
      2. Market value and marketability. A representative of the Foundation must do a walkthrough of the property if possible, and consult with local real estate professional(s) to determine the fair market value of the property.  Additional inspections needed may include an environmental assessment, appraisal, timber cruise, and/or any other investigations that will enable the Executive Committee to determine the marketability of the property and any risk to the Foundation in accepting the property.  The Donor must allow for any investigations, and the Executive Director will arrange for any applicable investigations prior to acceptance.  The Executive Committee will review the results of any/all investigations, as well as the Executive Director’s recommendation, in determining gift acceptance.
      3. Sale and/or retention of property. Generally, regardless of the value placed on the property by the donor's appraisal, the Foundation will attempt to sell at a reasonable price, as reflected by the current market, as soon as possible after its acquisition. However, gifts of real estate may be considered for retention if the expected return as an investment exceeds what the net sales proceeds might produce if invested in the Foundation’s endowment pool, or if there is a direct use of the property by the Foundation or the College.
      4. Carrying costs. The existence and amount of any carrying costs, such as property owner's association dues, transfer charges, utilities, taxes and insurance, must be disclosed. Under certain situations the Executive Committee of the Foundation may permit expenses to be paid by the Foundation in order to secure the gift or to cover carrying costs. These expenses will be reimbursed to the Foundation prior to distribution of the proceeds to the gift purpose.
      5. Generally, the Foundation will sell the property in “as-is” condition, unless improvements will substantially increase the expected return on the property or are required to bring the property to market.  Any expenses to improve the property will be reimbursed to the Foundation prior to distribution of the proceeds to the gift purpose.
      6. It is the donor's responsibility to obtain a qualified appraisal from an independent qualified appraiser (IRS requirement) and the donor is responsible for all costs associated with that appraisal.
    5. Personal Property or Gifts-in-Kind
      1. The Foundation may consider gifts of tangible personal property (gifts-in- kind) – including but not limited to works of art, manuscripts, literary works, boats, airplanes, motor vehicles, computer hardware and software, and intellectual property – only after a review indicates that the property is either readily marketable or could be used by the Foundation or the College.
      2. Absent a related use for the donated property, if accepted, the Foundation generally will sell or otherwise dispose of such gifts. Because the extent of the donor's allowable charitable deduction depends upon the standard of "related use," the Foundation's intention either to resell the property or to retain it for related use must be clear to the donor at the time of the gift.
      3. All gift-in-kind donations to the Foundation must be reported, regardless of value, so that the Foundation can record each gift.
      4. Receipts issued by the Foundation for gifts-in-kind valued under $5,000 shall describe the property transferred, but shall not state a monetary value.
      5. Gifts with a fair market value of $5,000 or more will be reported at the values placed on them by qualified independent appraisers as required by the IRS for valuing non-cash charitable contributions. In accordance with IRS regulations, it shall be the donor's responsibility to order and pay for the qualified appraisal.
    6. Gifts of Contributed Services
      The IRS does not allow charitable deductions for gifts of services, even if the market value of such services can be readily attained. In addition, counting guidelines from the Council for Institutional Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) do not allow gifts of services to be counted. The Foundation may acknowledge and thank the donor for the services, without specifying a dollar amount. No receipt will be generated.
  3. Deferred Gifts
    The Foundation accepts deferred gifts including charitable bequests, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, pooled income fund gifts, charitable lead trusts, gifts of life insurance, retained life estates, etc.
    1. Realized Charitable Bequests
      A donor can make a charitable bequest to the Foundation in a will and/or trust, or designate the Foundation as a beneficiary on retirement accounts, annuities or other financial vehicles. A bequest of any asset defined herein as being of significant or moderate risk must be approved or declined by the Executive Committee as described above. For a bequest involving real property, the executor, personal representative or trustee may be asked to sell the property within the estate or trust and distribute the net proceeds to the Foundation, if possible. The Foundation may also choose to disclaim the property.  Donors are strongly encouraged to discuss planned gifts or gift intentions with the Foundation during their lifetime(s), and such gifts do not fall under this policy until they are realized by the Foundation.
    2. Charitable Gift Annuities
      A charitable gift annuity is a contract between the Foundation and a donor (not a trust agreement) whereby the donor makes an initial payment of cash or marketable securities to the Foundation and the Foundation agrees to pay the donor an annuity for the rest of his/her lifetime. State registration requirements must be adhered to in those states whose insurance or other laws and regulations so require. The Foundation manages both current and deferred charitable gift annuities.
    3. Charitable Remainder Trusts and Charitable Lead Trusts
      1. Trusts may be funded with cash, stock, real estate or a combination of these assets.  If the Foundation is to serve as trustee, the Foundation must be the irrevocable beneficiary of at least 50% of the trust.  Any exception to this will be at the discretion of the Executive Committee.
      2. If the Foundation is to serve as trustee for a charitable trust funded with real property, all Foundation policies for acceptance of real property must be followed.
      3. The trust contract governs all aspects of the trust.
    4. Life Insurance
      The Foundation can receive two types of life insurance gifts: as beneficiary or as owner and beneficiary. The donor, on the advice of his or her advisers, must decide which arrangement is in the donor's best interests.
      1. If the Foundation is named beneficiary of a life insurance policy (and does not own the policy), review of the gift is not required by the Executive Committee.
      2. If the Foundation receives a gift of insurance for which the Foundation is beneficiary and owner, the gift must be reviewed and approved by the Executive Committee, accounting for any potential costs that may be incurred by the Foundation.

C. Special Circumstances

  1. Matching Gifts
    The Foundation honors each organization's matching gift policies while optimizing matching opportunities as fully as possible. If the Foundation has reason to believe that a donor is not in compliance with a matching entity's policies, staff will contact the donor for clarification.
  2. Gifts for the Benefit of Specific Individuals
    A gift that is made with the condition that the proceeds will be spent by the Foundation for the personal benefit of a named individual or individuals is not deductible as a charitable contribution. The Foundation shall not accept gifts that are restricted for the benefit of particular individuals. The Foundation will also review with caution all scholarship funds that contain unusual restrictions, and proposed gifts for research projects or other scholarly activities undertaken by named individuals. Funds received from an individual or entity who has selected the recipient shall not be accepted by the Foundation, and the individual or entity will be re-directed to Lane Community College or other appropriate entity.

V. Donor Bill of Rights

Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To assure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the not-for-profit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights:

  1. To be informed of the organization's mission, of the way the organization intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.
  2. To be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization's governing board, and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.
  3. To have access to the organization's most recent financial statements.
  4. To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.
  5. To receive appropriate acknowledgment and recognition.
  6. To be assured that information about their donations is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.
  7. To expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature.
  8. To be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of the organization or hired solicitors.
  9. To have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share.
  10. To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers

The text of the Donor Bill of Rights in its entirety was developed by the American Association of Fund-Raising Counsel (AAFRC), Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP), Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), and the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), and adopted in November 1993.