Types of Gifts

Charitable gifts are vital to the future of Dakota State University. Funds are needed to attract and retain the brightest and best students and faculty, expand and improve facilities and provide much needed financial assistance to students. These giving options offer a variety of methods to help meet your interests and financial needs. For more information about how you can give to DSU please contact Chris Giles.

Annual Gifts

Many of our alumni have made contributions to Dakota State a part of their giving tradition. These gifts are used by the university for scholarships, technology updates, facilities, and other areas where need is greatest.

Bequests

These deferred gifts provide support for DSU beyond your lifetime through your will. Bequests can provide support for general use or for a specific purpose by creating a named endowment. DSU can be named a direct beneficiary in your will several ways:

• Designate a specific amount set out in dollars
• Designate a specific property to DSU
• Designate a percentage of the estate to DSU
• Designate a residual bequest which allows you to provide a gift to DSU with what is left from the estate after providing for loved ones

Cash

These are immediate gifts of cash or long term assets such as securities, real estate, or personal property. Cash represents one of the most vital sources of support to DSU.

Life Estate Gifts

Life estate gifts allow you to donate your primary home, vacation home, farm or ranch to DSU and reserve the right to use the property during your lifetime. You are granting to DSU, at the time of your death, the remaining interest in your property.

Life Income Gifts

These gifts provide a variety of trust and investment arrangements that provide a lifetime income for you or someone you designate and leave the remainder to DSU. The most common forms of lifetime income gifts include charitable gift annuities and charitable remainder trusts.

Life Insurance Gifts

Life insurance is primarily intended to secure inheritance for your heirs during the building of your personal estate. If that estate grows to a size where you no longer need the additional security, you can use your insurance policies as a source of charitable gifts.

Matching Gifts

Many employers have matching gift programs and we encourage you to check with your company to see if this is the case at your place of employment. This is a great way to increase the value of your contribution.

Qualified Retirement Plans

If your estate had grown to the extent that will provide adequate retirement income through other investments, your retirement funds may become a tax liability whether you use them yourselves or leave them to heirs. An alternative is making DSU a sole beneficiary of the balance of your retirement account at your death.

Real Estate or Personal Property

Real estate gifts entitle the donor to the same tax benefits as gifts of cash or securities provided the real estate has been owned more than one year and there are no debts payable on the property.

Personal property may be anything of value that you own that is not secured to real estate such as artwork, jewelry, rare books, and collections.