Who manages the Foundation?

The Dakota State University Foundation is governed by a Board of Trustees that elects its officers and appoints its staff. The president of the Foundation reports to this board, which has over 30 elected members, including the DSU President, who serves as an ex officio member. The current chair of the DSU Board of Trustees is Larry Canfield of Sioux Falls, SD.

What does the Foundation do with contributions?

We direct your gifts exactly as you specify. Expenditures of these gift funds are made by DSU administrators, faculty, and staff, according to strict guidelines for the use of the money as specified by the donor. Donors often allow the university to direct their gifts where they're needed most. These are called "unrestricted" or "undesignated" gifts. The university typically uses unrestricted funds to help provide scholarships; recruit outstanding faculty; facilitate student and faculty research; help defray the costs of traveling to national conferences to present research, and to competitions and exhibitions for students; and support important university initiatives for which other funding is not available.

How does the Foundation ensure that donor intent is followed?

At the DSU Foundation, our job is to do everything we can to maximize private support, now and into the future -- which means that earning and keeping our donors' trust is among our very highest priorities.

The majority of contributions received by the DSU Foundation annually are cash gifts made in response to annual mailings and telefund campaigns. In those cases, checks or credit card authorizations usually are accompanied by a contribution card that has been filled out by the donor, indicating to us that the gift is to be directed to a specific account within the Foundation.

When a contributor wishes to make a more complex gift (such as those involving real estate, a variety of non-cash assets, or through a bequest or trust), he or she often contacts the Foundation well in advance -- a critically important step -- so we can work more closely with the donor and his or her financial advisor. In these cases, a "Statement of Gift Intent" is developed to assure that all involved -- the donor and his/her family and advisors, the DSU Foundation, and often the DSU unit(s) that will benefit from the donor's gift -- are in agreement about the nature and designation of the contribution.

How does the Foundation communicate with its donors?

In communicating with our constituents -- including alumni, friends, contributors, DSU faculty and staff, and other interested individuals and organizations throughout Iowa and across the country -- the DSU Foundation seeks to keep our key audiences informed about the following:

• Important UI fund-raising news, such as recent noteworthy gifts, relevant tax law changes, campaign progress, and volunteer assignments
• How private support impacts the lives of DSU students, faculty, and staff; for example, through stories about individual scholarship recipients, newly appointed faculty, or new campus facilities
• Profiles of individual donors and how giving to the DSU enables them to achieve their personal financial and philanthropic goals
• DSU Foundation news, including the latest productivity figures, awards and honors, staffing changes, etc.