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  • 1.  No designation in will/trust

    Posted 04-04-2024 12:26 PM
    Hello,

    I have two scenarios I'd like to ask about.

    1)  We have received notification from a donor's son that we are a beneficiary on his parent's IRA totalling over $25K.  We have no record of this planned gift nor the donor's intent and they have recently passed.  If there was no designation from the donor, is it acceptable for the family member(s) to decide the designation?  The donor's past giving is all over the board.

    2)  We have received an undesignated estate gift over $100K that we were unaware of.  The donor has a long history of over 20 years of $5K+ annual giving in support of scholarships via the Annual Fund. There are no family members to contact.  There are very strong feelings that it should go towards the Annual Fund or an endowed scholarship as the donor's priority for scholarships was well known amongst our gift officers. However, policy states it should go towards the quasi. Can decisions be made by staff regarding designation based on knowledge of the donor's passion?

    Thanks for all your wisdom.

    Karen Dreessen
    Director for Donor Services
    Morningside University



  • 2.  RE: No designation in will/trust

    Posted 04-04-2024 01:21 PM
    Your Undesignated Bequest Policy should guide you. But often family members can influence your decision. The Gift Acceptance Committe can offer guidance, too.

    If your policy requires distribution to your quasi, then that is where the gift must go. However, the Board can be subsequently petitioned to release funds, with good cause, to another program.

    John

    John H. Taylor 
    919.816.5903 (Cell/Text)

    Big Ideas; Small Keyboard



    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: No designation in will/trust

    Posted 04-04-2024 01:51 PM
    I should have added that the family member should be the Executor or Trustee of the estate. Otherwise, if there is more than one child, you could find yourself in the middle of a family battle!

    John

    John H. Taylor, Principal
    John H. Taylor Consulting, LLC
    2604 Sevier Street
    Durham, NC     27705

    919.816.5903 (cell/text)

    Serving the Advancement Community Since 1987





    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: No designation in will/trust

    Posted 04-04-2024 02:04 PM
    Thank you, John.  A Gift Acceptance Committee would be a great thing to have. ��  




    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: No designation in will/trust

    Posted 04-04-2024 05:26 PM
    Hi Karen,

    The default rule for undesignated funds is that they are spent according to the business judgement of the professional staff, which receives its authority from the chief executive, who receives the authority from the board. Policies that call for the board to designate those gifts are reserving authority to the board that would otherwise flow to staff. But regardless of who is making the decisions, there is nothing wrong with the authorized decision-makers considering the input of family members, or to consider past giving history.    Policies that name specific designations for certain types of gifts have to be followed as written, though typically there is an appeal, override, or redesignation process built into these too. 


    Thank you,
    Isaac Shalev
    Data Strategy Expert
    Sage70, Inc.
    (917) 859-0151
    isaac@sage70.com

    Schedule a 30-minute consultation now:





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  • 6.  RE: No designation in will/trust

    Posted 04-05-2024 10:21 AM
    Thank you so much, Isaac.  We may need to add to our policies to be clear on procedures. 
    Have a great weekend,
    Karen




    Original Message


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