The income from the SMU endowment represents a powerful and stable source of support for the University and helps ensure SMU’s long-term success. Unlike tuition, fees and annual gifts, the endowment provides a protected source of income not subject to variations in student enrollment and is cushioned against market fluctuations. Through prudent management of the endowment, SMU has continued to move ahead on our goals despite the economic downturn, improving student quality, supporting faculty and academic achievement and enhancing the campus experience.
Established in 1914 with a gift of $111,540 from the General Education Board of The Methodist Church, SMU’s endowment now represents more than $1 billion in assets invested in a diversified portfolio designed to ensure current support as well as growth for the future. The portfolio includes traditional and nontraditional investments, an asset allocation mix developed to meet the long-term investment return goal of 9 percent, in order to provide stable income and strong growth. The SMU endowment comprises hundreds of funds that fall into two main categories: those restricted to specific areas and needs, such as scholarships, professorships, academic programs and campus life; and unrestricted endowments that primarily support operating expenses.
A strong working endowment is fundamental to the advancement and success of an institution of higher education. It enables SMU to accomplish its greatest priorities, namely to:
• Recruit and challenge outstanding students
• Attract and retain prominent, well-respected faculty
• Support significant research and creative endeavors
• Provide operational funds for new and innovative curriculum and academic programs
The endowment enables SMU to offset the rising cost of higher education by providing a dependable source of income for student and faculty investment and minimizing the demand for continued tuition increases. Continuing to build the endowment will increase SMU’s ability to provide an exceptional educational experience for its students.
Giving to the SMU endowment provides the opportunity to change the lives of students and scholars and to create a permanent legacy honoring or memorializing the life and work of an individual or organization. Within the SMU endowment are hundreds of named endowment funds that are “pooled” together for investment purposes but administered individually to ensure that the purposes defined by the donor are accomplished in perpetuity. The SMU Board of Trustees has determined minimum giving levels for certain types of endowment purposes to enhance the students’ educational experience, and at these levels the donor will have the opportunity to name the endowment fund.
The funding minimums for new named endowments as established by the Board are as follows:
Student Scholarship and Support |
|
| President’s Scholarship (undergraduate) | $500,000 minimum |
| Leadership Scholarship (undergraduate) | $500,000 minimum |
| Graduate Fellowship | $500,000 minimum |
| Centennial Scholarship | $300,000 minimum |
| Provost’s Scholarship (undergraduate or graduate) | $250,000 minimum |
| University Scholarship (undergraduate or graduate) | $100,000 minimum |
| Endowed Scholarship Fund (no naming opportunity) | Any amount |
Faculty Position and Support |
|
Faculty Positions |
|
| Endowed Deanship | $3,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Centennial Distinguished Chair | $3,500,000 minimum |
| Endowed Distinguished Chair | $2,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Centennial Chair | $2,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Chair | $1,500,000 minimum |
| Endowed Centennial Professorship | $1,250,000 minimum |
| Endowed Professorship | $1,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Visiting Professorship | $750,000 minimum |
Faculty Support |
|
| Endowed Departmental Research Fund | $1,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Graduate Assistant Fund | $500,000 minimum |
| Endowed Research Equipment Fund | $500,000 minimum |
| Endowed Faculty Research Fund | $200,000 minimum |
| Endowed Faculty Teaching Fund | $200,000 minimum |
Non-Academic Leadership Positions |
|
| Executive Director or Director of Institute | $2,000,000 |
| Athletics Coach or Director | $2,000,000 |
| Executive Director or Director of Center or Program | $1,000,000 |
| Librarian or Archivist | $1,000,000 |
Academic Programs |
|
| Endowed School | $20,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Department | $10,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Institute | $5,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Center | $2,500,000 minimum |
| Endowed Program | $1,000,000 minimum |
| Endowed Lecture Series | $500,000 minimum |
| Endowed Academic Program Excellence Fund | $100,000 minimum |
| Endowed Library Acquisition Fund | $100,000 minimum |
| Endowed Academic Program Support Fund (no naming opportunity) | Any amount |
| Endowed Library Acquisition Fund (no naming opportunity) | Any amount |
Many gifts to endowments are made in support of athletics, leadership programs, building and residence hall maintenance and other areas related to the quality of SMU’s campus experience. Minimums for these gifts will be equivalent to those listed above.
Be a part of defining the next 100 years of unbridled achievement at SMU. To make your impact on SMU’s second century, call
214-768-4745 or e-mail endowment@smu.edu.
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