Major impact gifts can be structured for immediate impact or be invested for ongoing impact.
Immediate Impact (Outright Gift)
Gifts that are structured for immediate impact are aligned with a specific near-term purpose. These include efforts that require immediate investment for immediate impact. The size of these gifts can vary, but typically go to make significant impact aligned with making higher education affordable and attainable.
Gifts of this type vary in size and term of commitment, but $10,000 is the minimum recommended amount. Donors also have the flexibility to complete a pledge over five years. Donors may specify the name and purpose of the gift. Sometimes donors elect to combine an immediate impact gift with a gift for ongoing impact.
Ongoing Impact (Endowment)
Gifts that are structured for ongoing impact are called endowments. An endowment is a philanthropic investment in the future. Donors create a legacy by specifying the name and purpose of an endowment.
Gifts of this type also create certainty and stability that students will continue to benefit from the support from donors.
Endowed funds can be used for scholarships, faculty support or professional development, program enhancements or other institutional priorities. The corpus of an endowed fund remains untouched. The gift is invested with two goals:
- 1. Making the principal grow faster than inflation
- 2. Providing expendable income toward the donor’s specified purpose
A minimum of $25,000 is required to fund an endowment, and donors have the flexibility to complete an endowment pledge over five years. Distributions are not made from endowment earnings until the fund is fully vested. Typically, a donor will make an endowed gift payment along with an annual gift. The annual gift helps make an impact immediately.
Funds are managed by the KCTCS Foundation with an annual payout to the donor-specified program averaging up to 4%. The remaining earnings are reinvested into the principal of the endowment to help build the corpus. An annual report is sent to all endowed fund donors explaining fund earnings and distributions.
Planned and estate gifts accommodate the personal, financial, and philanthropic goals of donors. With careful planning, donors may increase their philanthropic impact while also reducing their tax burden.
Legacy gifts can take several forms depending on the charitable and estate planning goals of donors. The most common types of planned legacy gifts include gifts by will, gifts that pay you an income, gifts that protect your assets, gifts from retirement plans, and irrevocable gifts by estate note.
Some donors elect to make major impact gifts using a planned giving vehicle to donate appreciated assets (such as stocks or real estate). Giving in this way can provide donor significant tax savings.
Want to make an impact on ECTC today? Gifts of cash, appreciated securities (shares of stock or mutual funds), or other property provide immediate financial assistance and are greatly appreciated.
Do you want to make a donation to ECTC, but need to spread it out over time? A pledge is your formal Declaration of Intent to make a gift to the ECTC Foundation. You can follow it by making an immediate gift, or choose to make regular payments over a period of time to complete the pledge.
If you are looking for an opportunity to honor your friends, family or colleagues, try memorial or celebratory gifts. These gifts can be a meaningful way to remember a loved one or to celebrate a personal milestone while also helping ECTC build better lives.
An endowment is a sound investment in a better future for ECTC students and programs. With an endowed gift, you provide permanent support for lasting impact. Your gift is invested, never spent, and each year a distribution, like dividends on mutual fund accounts, is made to your chosen college or program. Investment earnings above the dividend rate help the endowment value grow over time, to keep pace with inflation and maintain your endowment's spending power.
For most people, cash is the most convenient form of giving. These gifts are tax-deductible, and you can tell us if you have a specific college, program or scholarship that you would like to support.
You can make a gift online via credit card, or mail payment to:
ECTC Foundation
Attn: Megan Stith
600 College Street Road
Elizabethtown, KY 42701
If sending a check, please make payable to "ECTC Foundation"
A gift of long-term appreciated securities has two major advantages:
- It provides you with a tax deduction
- It eliminates capital gains taxes
Please notify the ECTC Foundation if you plan on making a transfer, and provide your broker with the following information when you transfer securities:
Name: KCTCS Foundation, Inc.
Federal Tax ID Number: 61-1351918
By making a gift of closely-held stock, you can receive a tax deduction for the fair market value of the stock and eliminate capital gains taxes on the appreciated value.
You can donate a residence, land, building, or other real property as an outright gift or with the right to occupy the property for life. A gift of a remainder interest on a personal property provides the donor with a tax deduction for the present value of the remainder interest and also lets you eliminate capital gains taxes on the appreciation.
As with gifts of highly appreciated securities or real estate, a gift of tangible personal property can be tax deductible. The allowable deduction for this type of gift is dependent upon an appraisal. Tangible personal property gifts include artwork, rare books and/or antiques.
The gift of a life insurance policy will provide you with a charitable contribution for the present cash value; contributions made for premiums paid after the transfer is also tax-deductible.
A provision in a will allows for a substantial contribution without diminishing assets during one's lifetime. Since bequests to the system, colleges, or foundations are deductible form the estate, significant tax savings are possible.
A Charitable Gift Annuity is a simple way for alumni and friends to plan for retirement while supporting ECTC. It involves a contract between you and a college foundation, where you'll transfer cash or property in exchange for a partial tax deduction and a lifetime stream of annual income. When you pass away, the ECTC Foundation keeps your gift. The amount of income stream is determined by many factors including your age and the policy of the foundation.
Another method of giving for a term of years or for the life of an individual is through a Charitable Lead Trust. Income is paid to the foundation each year during the life of the trust. When the trust terminates, the assets revert to you or another beneficiary.
An irrevocable trust may be used to provide you or loved one with a fixed annual income or an income, which varies with the value of the trust. A portion of the trust qualifies for a tax deduction. At the passing of the last income beneficiary, the assets in the trust are distributed to the foundation to be used as the donor has designated.
If you are 70 ½ years or older, you can take advantage of a simple way to support our students while reducing your taxable income. You can give up to $100,000 from your IRA directly to a qualified charity without having to pay income taxes on the funds.
