Unrestricted Gifts
When a donor chooses not to specify the way his/her gift may be used, this gift is called "unrestricted."
Unrestricted funds are a powerful form of private support because they allow the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences or the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station to use them as it sees fit, where current (and often time sensitive) needs are greatest.
Unrestricted funds may be used for many kinds of assistance, including:
- Student support
- Faculty support
- Public engagement and community outreach
Unrestricted funds are used by the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences or the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station to handle costs that other funding may not cover. Unrestricted funds provide a pool of available resources that can easily be directed to where they are needed most.
Designated Gifts
Funds given by a donor for a specific purpose or to support a particular department are called designated gifts.
The best way to make a designated donation is to discuss your wishes with a development staff member. Please contact us to discuss your wishes.
Examples of designated funds include:
- Scholarships
- Building or renovation projects
- Faculty research
Memorials and Tributes
Commemorative gifts are a thoughtful way to honor or memorialize a loved one while supporting a cause in which you believe. Your memorial gift can establish an endowment, renew a scholarship, or help fund other projects.
There are several ways to establish a memorial gift, including:
- Making an outright gift to fund at any time;
- Making a bequest in your will to provide funding after your lifetime;
- Setting up an endowment to fund a special program or project in perpetuity.
Please contact us to discuss your intentions.
Endowments
Many Rutgers donors are choosing to endow programs they support with cash gifts today through a planned gift. Planned gifts are especially appealing to individuals who would like to see their support of Rutgers endure beyond their lifetime.
An endowment creates a lasting legacy at Rutgers. It also honors the person for whom the gift is named in perpetuity. Endowments ensure that opportunities are available for students and faculty year after year, generation after generation.
Cash gifts and pledges are only two ways to create an endowment. An endowment may also be established:
- through a bequest in a will or living trust;
- by naming Rutgers as a beneficiary of all or a portion of your retirement plan or life insurance policy;
- through a charitable gift annuity; or
- via a charitable remainder trust.
All of these methods yield tax savings; some offer lifetime payments while providing for Rutgers. These gifts continue to generate funding year after year, providing the university with a stable source of capital for generations.
To discuss endowments, gifts that endure, please contact us.
Gift Planning
For many alumni and friends of the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, the easiest way to make a gift is in the form of a bequest. A bequest gift, which is designated in a will or other estate planning document, is often the largest donation an individual can make to an institution. It is by far the most commonly used type of planned gift arrangement.
Giving by bequest costs nothing now, yet it may give you a great deal of satisfaction to know that your future gift will live on. You can create your own legacy by leaving a specific asset, a specific amount, or a percentage of the remainder of your estate, after taking care of any family obligations. The lasting impact of bequests ‐ both large and small ‐ has played a very large role in helping to shape Rutgers today.
If you have already designated Rutgers as a beneficiary of your estate, please let us know so that we can welcome you as a member of the Colonel Henry Rutgers Society.
To discuss your gift planning options, including bequests, please contact Bryan Nemeth, Rutgers University Foundation Director of Planned Giving, at bnemeth@ruf.rutgers.edu or 848-932-2231.
NOTE: Tax and other financial information provided is not intended as tax or legal advice. We would be pleased to discuss, in confidence and without obligation, ways in which you may support the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and/or the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station and the potential financial outcomes of such support. We also suggest you consult your own tax and legal advisors regarding the applicability to your particular situation of the tax and legal concepts presented.