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Ways You Can Give to CAU

About

At Clark Atlanta University, your support helps create opportunities for our students to expand their personal and professional horizons, or it allows CAU to build and strengthen programming to achieve that aim.

Your charitable contribution will:

  • Influence student success and institutional excellence far into the future
  • Equip students and faculty to discover, create, serve and ultimately transform the world
  • Your legacy will become part of the CAU philanthropic tradition

The President’s top fundraising priorities are:

  • Student Scholarships – We are deeply committed to our students’ success. We want to ensure that students can complete their degree program without financial stress and with the least amount of student loan debt. Scholarship support is the University’s top fundraising priority and has the most significant impact.
  • Faculty Development – Funding would provide opportunities for faculty to access professional education programs as well as foster excellence in teaching and learning through sharing ideas, collaboration, and building a strong community of engaged teachers and learners.
  • Unrestricted Gifts – Unrestricted gifts play a crucial role in supporting institutions like Clark Atlanta University by providing flexibility in allocating funds where they are needed the most. These gifts are not designated for a specific purpose or program, allowing the university to use them for a variety of needs and seize opportunities as they arise.
  • Flexibility: Unrestricted gifts provide the university with the flexibility to address immediate and emerging needs. Whether it’s supporting financial aid, investing in teaching innovations, advancing research, acquiring equipment, or maintaining facilities, these funds can be directed toward the areas that require the most attention.
  • Meeting Urgent Needs: The unrestricted nature of these gifts allows CAU to respond quickly to unforeseen challenges or opportunities. For example, they can be used to bridge funding gaps, respond to emergencies, or take advantage of time-sensitive initiatives that align with the university’s mission.
  • Financial Aid Support: Unrestricted gifts can significantly contribute to supporting financial aid programs, helping ensure that students have access to the resources they need to pursue their education. This can include scholarships, grants, and other forms of financial assistance.
  • Promoting Teaching Innovations: The funds can be utilized to invest in new teaching methodologies, technologies, and educational programs that enhance the overall learning experience for students. This may include professional development for faculty, curriculum enhancements, and the adoption of innovative teaching tools.
  • Advancing Research and Equipment: Unrestricted gifts provide the means to support research initiatives and acquire state-of-the-art equipment. This can foster an environment of academic excellence, enabling faculty and students to engage in cutting-edge research across various disciplines.
  • Maintaining and Enhancing Facilities: Universities constantly face the challenge of maintaining and upgrading their facilities. Unrestricted gifts can be used for infrastructure improvements, renovations, and other projects that contribute to creating a conducive and modern learning environment.
  • Donor Confidence: Some donors prefer to make unrestricted gifts as they trust the university’s leadership to allocate the funds where they are most needed. This demonstrates a high level of confidence in the institution’s ability to make strategic decisions for the benefit of the entire academic community.

In summary, unrestricted gifts provide the financial flexibility that enables Clark Atlanta University to adapt to changing circumstances, support various aspects of its mission, and seize opportunities for growth and innovation.

These gifts empower the university to excel across multiple dimensions, making a lasting impact on the education and experiences of its students and faculty.

Annual Giving

Invest in Clark Atlanta University. Invest in our Students. Give Every Year.

Annual Giving is an important component of the school’s annual operating budget and provides direct funding for the University’s day-to-day expenses that tuition alone simply does not cover.

The unrestricted fund gives the University the flexibility to undertake new initiatives and provide scholarship funding for those students who have the greatest need. Donors may choose to designate their funds or support University programs and initiatives that are meaningful to them by giving to the following areas:

  • Athletics
  • Atlanta University Center-wide Symphony Orchestra (AUCSO)
  • Clark Atlanta University Art Museum
  • General Scholarship Fund
  • Mighty Marching Panther Band Scholarships
  • Marching Band
  • President’s Scholarship Fund
  • School of Arts and Sciences
  • School of Business
  • School of Education
  • School of Social Work
  • The Philharmonic Society (Travel and Scholarship)
  • William E. Shack Closing the Gap Scholarship Fund

Clark Atlanta University’s Giving Societies

Clark Atlanta University’s giving societies recognize the committed alumni and friends who contribute $500 or more each year to the University.  These giving societies encompass a special community of investors who serve as the foundation for growth at Clark Atlanta University. We welcome your involvement at any of a number of levels:

  • Friends of CAU: $500 – $999
  • CAU Red, Black, & Grey: $1,000 – $4,999
  • CAU Sustainer Club: $5,000 – $9,999
  • CAU Heritage Club: $10,000 – $24,999
  • CAU President’s Society: $25,000 – $49,999
  • CAU James P. Brawley Society: $50,000 – $99,999
  • CAU W.E.B. DuBois Society: $100,000 – $499,999
  • CAU Legacy Society: $500,000 and above

It takes each of us to make a difference for all of us. Clark Atlanta has a strong foundation because of you!

Invest in CAU today!

Should you require any assistance or information regarding any of the campaigns and or major gifting, please do not hesitate to contact the Office of Institutional Advancement at (404) 880-8000 or rlucas@cau.edu. We welcome all inquiries.

Endowments & Securities

Honorary/Memorial gifts made to establish endowments are held in perpetuity.  The interest earned is withdrawn annually and added to the University’s revenues for scholarship and professorial awards. 

Endowment Investment Policy

CAU will gladly work with you to process gifts made by securities transfer.

If you have stock or bond certificates that you would like to transfer to CAU and receive tax credit for your gift, please call 404-880-6186 for instructions and assistance.

Matching Gifts

Matching gift programs can double or even triple the impact of your donation.

More than 16,000 companies offer matching gift programs as a benefit to their employees by matching their charitable contributions. Policies and eligibility vary by each company. Some options include:

  • Matching gifts made by spouses or retirees 
  • Offering 1 to 1, 2 to 1 or even as high as 3 to 1 matches!

If you initiate a matching gift claim, that match will mirror your gift in both amount and the fund that you indicate. For example, if you make a gift of $100 to your major area of study, a matching gift would also benefit that same program!

How do I get my gift matched?

Each company has its own guidelines for employees, spouses, retirees, and widows/widowers. Most corporate procedures are very simple:

  1. Request a Matching Form from your company.
  2. Complete and submit the form to Clark Atlanta University along with your gift.
  3. Clark Atlanta University will verify the completed form and return it to the company.
  4. The company issues a matching gift contribution to Clark Atlanta University.

Should you require any assistance or information regarding any of the campaigns and or major gifting, please do not hesitate to contact the Office of Institutional Advancement.

Planned Gifts

A planned gift is a unique opportunity to create a lasting legacy at Clark Atlanta University.

There are various types of planned gifts at CAU including: A) bequests; B) life insurance; and C) real estate, tangible property and securities.

Planned giving helps the donor and the financial advisor to develop a gift that meets an individual’s philanthropic goals. A properly planned gift makes it possible to reduce or eliminate gift, estate and capital gains taxes. Planned gifts also allow the donor to utilize estate and tax planning techniques to provide for charity and other heirs in ways that maximize the gift and/or minimize its impact on the donor’s estate.

Through planned giving, you can:

  • Leave a legacy for CAU;
  • Realize gift or estate tax deductions 

You may make a bequest or gift through your estate by including a provision in your will or living trust, or by naming CAU as a beneficiary of a retirement plan or life insurance policy. The amount left to the university can be expressed as a dollar amount or as a percentage of the assets to be given.

Publicly traded securities can be used to make an outright charitable gift. If you give appreciated securities that you have held longer than one year, you are entitled to a charitable deduction on your income tax for that full fair market value of the securities. You also may be able to defer or completely avoid capital gains tax on the securities, depending on the type of gift. Publicly traded securities can also be given to Clark Atlanta University through one’s estate or transferred electronically from a brokerage account to CAU.

Donating appreciated real estate, such as a home, vacation property, undeveloped land, farmland, ranch or commercial property can make a great gift to our organization.

A retirement plan can be a very tax-efficient and simple way of including the University in your estate plans. The best method is to name Clark Atlanta University as a primary or secondary beneficiary on your plan’s beneficiary designation form. The tax advantage stems from the fact that most retirement plans (other than Roth IRA’s) are subject to income taxes – and possibly estate taxes – if left to an individual beneficiary; however, a charity that is named as the beneficiary does not pay income or estate taxes on the distribution. Thus, the full value of what is distributed can be used by CAU as a gift from your estate, supporting the purpose you designate.

You can make Clark Atlanta University the beneficiary of a life insurance policy, and your estate will receive a charitable deduction from estate taxes for that gift. You may also, under certain circumstances during your lifetime, make CAU the owner of a life insurance policy on your life, and receive an income tax charitable deduction for a portion of the face value of that policy.

Office of Advancement

Phone: (404)-880-6040
Email: advancement@cau.edu
205 Harkness Hall
223 James P. Brawley Dr., SW Atlanta, GA 30314