endowed scholarships
Now AND Always
Endowed scholarships create a lasting legacy. The money you give for the scholarship fund never gets spent--only the interest from your gift is awarded each year.
So if you give $25,000 (the minimum amount for an endowed scholarship), our expert investers at the University of Illinois Foundation will invest your money. Each year, proceeds from these investments gets awarded to a student who fits the criteria you set up.
Over time, the fund may grow (in times of prosperity, the interest may be more than we give out to students). This excess covers times of financial stress when the interest may not reach the agreed-upon award, but--this is wonderful!--the fund may eventually grow enough to give two awards or an award that is twice as big as originally planned.
But your initial investment never goes away, so your scholarship goes on being given year after year after year.
You Can Name Your Endowed Fund
You can insure your own legacy by giving your own name to the fund, or you can honor a loved one you have lost, a professor you particularly admired, or someone who has meant a great deal in your life.
You Can Decide the Criteria for Selecting the Student
While you can't actually select the student, you can choose the criteria. Would you like it to go to a returning student? someone in political science? someone active in volunteer service? a tennis player? We always like to have you go from specific (your first choice) to a more general description (so we can make sure someone gets the award), but you get to choose those descriptions.
Questions?
We have the perfect person to answer all your questions about endowed scholarships--one of our gift officers. If you use the link at left, Meet our Gift Officer, you'll have a chance to learn about all our officers. And of course if you have questions use the Send Us Your Question Link.
If you'd like to read more about endowments, we invite you to visit the University of Illinois Foundation website section entitled Endowment, which has extended information.
