Your gifts to Worcester State University make a measurable difference in the lives of our students. Donors support student scholarships, underwrite student and faculty research and presentations at professional conferences, purchase state-of-the-art laboratory equipment, enhance curriculum development, and more.
There are many vehicles for giving, and your gift can be tailored to meet your financial and philanthropic objectives. Gifts are administered through the Worcester State Foundation, an IRS-approved 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization.
Please contact 508-929-8141 to learn more about how you can create a lasting legacy at Worcester State.
Restricted and unrestricted gifts made by cash, check, or credit card are the most common and simplest for donors and Worcester State. Generally tax-deductible in the year in which it is made, your cash gift can be put to work immediately. You can mail your check to:
Worcester State University University Advancement Division 486 Chandler Street Worcester, MA 01602
If you have any questions, please call 508-929-8141 or advancement@worcester.edu.
Charitable contributions of stocks, bonds, and other appreciated securities may provide you a maximum tax benefit. Typically deductible at the market value on the date gifted, your contribution of securities allows you to avoid capital gains tax on any appreciation.
Gifts of property made without restriction as to resale are generally accepted by Worcester State. Under tax laws, gifts of real and tangible property (including jewelry, art, antiques, gold, historical documents, and equipment) deemed acceptable by the University and the Worcester State Foundation receive fair market value. The donor is responsible for securing a qualified appraisal for all gifts of real estate and tangible personal property. State, federal, and IRS regulations apply.
Many public and private companies match their employees’ contributions to higher education. You might double or even triple the value of your gift to Worcester State. To release these funds, you must initiate a process with your or your spouse’s employer.
Planned, deferred, and combination gifts offer donors excellent options to make major gifts while retaining some income from assets. Most of the previously mentioned ways of giving can also fund a charitable trust that retains income for a period of time (usually lifetime), after which the Worcester State Foundation may receive the assets. In some cases, a gift may be a combination of an outright gift and a trust to return income to the donor for a period of time. For more information about your planned giving options, please visit our planned giving website or contact Vice President of University Advancement Tom McNamara at tmcnamara@worcester.edu or 508-929-8033.
This trust arrangement has become a popular generation-skipping trust, and uses the tax status of the Worcester State Foundation to accomplish an important objective. A donor may place assets into a trust for 10 years or more with the income immediately benefiting the University. At the end of the set period of time, the assets are passed on to the donor’s designated heir (or heirs), avoiding further estate taxes. Depending upon the asset used to create the trust, the trust may well have increased in value, which is taxed again at its transfer.
Often funded with cash or stock, a life income or deferred gift can supplement a current gift, enabling a donor to make a more significant contribution to Worcester State than might be possible through a simple, outright gift. In general, these gifts will provide a donor and/or spouse with income for life; then the gift principal reverts to Worcester State. The donor receives an immediate income tax charitable deduction, while helping to secure Worcester State’s future. Two popular vehicles for income producing charitable gifts are Charitable Gift Annuities and Charitable Remainder Trusts.
This can be a vacation home or a principal residence. You may continue to live in the property after giving it to the University and still claim an income tax deduction equal to the present value of the interest given away.
In addition to being the most common form of planned giving, a bequest to Worcester State helps to insure the future of the University without affecting your current personal finances. Donors have many options in determining how to leave a bequest to provide for maximum estate tax charitable deductions and benefit to the University.
Your retirement assets, accumulated over many years and invested in tax-deferred accounts, could ultimately be a large portion of your estate. You may wish to explore the benefit of designating the Worcester State Foundation as a primary or secondary (after your spouse) beneficiary on your retirement plans.
Life insurance is a distinctive vehicle to use in making a planned gift. Naming Worcester State Foundation as a beneficiary assures the donor that an intended amount (or percentage) of money will go to the University. As long as the premium is paid up, the face amount will be paid. Note the difference between term insurance and whole life (universal life is another matter). Insurance can be beneficial to donors with large estates (and trusts) who wish to protect their assets for family and charity.
Any contribution may be made in honor or memory of a family member, teacher, or friend. Such a tribute is a generous way to recognize another individual’s achievements or role in your life.
Pledge payment schedules may be tailored and adjusted to conform to income expectations. You may give higher portions of the total pledge at the beginning of the period or at the end. Worcester State benefits by having the intentions in writing—to plan ahead, to develop accounting support, and to encourage other donors—even if the pledge must be delayed in total fulfillment.
