What kinds of gifts are counted?
In both the Class Gift and Reunion Gift, we include all manner of philanthropic gifts. This includes a typical gift such as cash or check, to the less common types such as RMDs and bequest gifts. So long as there is a known value, we include them all!
- Cash
- Check
- Money Order
- Credit Card
- Debit Card
- EBT or Wire Transfer
- Pledges
- Employer-matched gifts through a matching gift program, or gifts made by an alum through their business
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- Value of In-Kind services or donated items
- Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs)
- Stocks & Securities
- Insurance Policy where Saint Mary's is the beneficiary in some way
- Gifts of Real Estate (property value)
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- Planned gifts (if we are made aware ahead of time that Saint Mary's is included in your estate, and you can provide a dollar value that can be counted)
- Estate Gifts
- Tribute and Memorial Gifts
- Donor Advised Funds
- Payroll Deduction of Saint Mary's Employees
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Are there contributions that are not included?
Yes. For both Class and Reunion gifts:
- Ticket Sales, Registration Fees, or other purchases that go to cover a set cost. These are not considered philanthropic gifts, and therefore do not count towards either a class or reunion gift. However, some events, like golf outings, for example, include a benefit value built into the ticket price. A benefit value is considered a donation, and that portion of the payment IS included. Most of Saint Mary's events also include the option for registrants to make a donation on top of their ticket at the time of purchase. Those donation amounts are also included.
Are anonymous gifts counted?
Yes. Anonymous gifts, of course, remain anonymous; but their total value does count in the Class Gift and Reunion Gift totals.
What funds or programs can I give to?
For both Class and Reunion Gifts: all of them. All philanthropic gifts count. Want to give to the area of greatest need, the Saint Mary's Fund? Yes, that counts! Want to give to one of the university's current initiatives? That counts! Want to support your favorite Cardinal Athletics team? That counts! Is there a scholarship you want to support? That counts! Want to make a sizeable donation to put your name on a building, academic program or prestigious position? Of course! Give us a call! And yes, that counts. (You get the idea.)
What is the time frame for these gifts?
The time frame for the Class Gift is cumulative over "all time." So, from the moment you stepped on campus to present.
The time frame for a Reunion Gift is the 5-year period between milestone reunions. Because Reunion is at the end of June, the "year" we count here is July 1 to June 30, for simplicity sake. So, for example, if a class celebrates their 40th Reunion in June of 2022, then their next Reunion Gift is the total tally from July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2027, and funds raised in that time period will be referred to as their "45th Reunion Gift."
Classes can run one long campaing during that time period, or a few shorter campaigns. Traditionally, the 50th anniversary is when classes make their biggest fundraising push for the university, so it is common for those fundraisers to last two years or more, with discussions beginning during their 45th reunion. For other classes, especially recent alumni like 5- and 10-year anniversaries, class fundraisers may be planned and run all within the year leading up to the reunion.
A special note about Pledges. A pledge is when someone promises to make a gift or multiple gifts in the future, and either sets up an automatic deduction or asks the university to invoice them by certain times. Pledges can be made payable for up to five years. In other words, you can make a pledge of $5,000, and divide it into $1,000 payments, made annually over five years. Open pledges also count as part of the tallies. So for a reunion gift, that means that as long as you send in or set up your pledge within the set time frame, the total of the whole pledge counts -- not just the cash that has already been paid. So, following the example above, if you make a pledge of $5,000, but have only paid your first installment of $1,000, by the time of your reunion, so long as we have documentation your whole $5,000 gift will count!
Who gets counted?
Class gift and reunion gift tallies are only done for our college/undergraduate classes. We do not consider masters or doctorate grad years when pulling our data. So, for example, if you graduated in 1987 from the Winona campus with your bachelors, and then received your masters from Saint Mary's in 2007, your philanthropic support would only be included as part of the class of 1987 tally, the year you received your undergraduate degree.
All students who attended Saint Mary's for at least two full semesters are considered alumni; although there are many who may have left the institution early for various reasons (drafted, major not available, etc.), without receiving a degree from Saint Mary's. Many of those individuals do make philanthropic gifts to the university. If they left the institution after two or more semesters, but are still considered as part of your class, they their philanthropic gifts count in your class and/or reunion tally.
When applicable, deceased alumni gifts are included as well. For the class gift, all deceased alums' gifts are included in the tally. For the reunion gift, only those who made a gift within the time frame of the current reunion fundraiser are counted.