Corporate & Foundation Support
Corporate and foundation giving provides a base of support that helps further the partnership between Ohio University's academic community and the corporate and private giving sectors in the region, the state of Ohio, across the nation, and throughout our global village.
Support from corporations and foundations is key to the success of many Ohio University programs and may be in the form of cash, equipment, or other in-kind gifts. The Director of Development for Corporate and Foundation Relations coordinates support from these sectors.
Corporate support comes in two forms, giving and volunteering – giving through major and matching gifts and gifts-in-kind, and volunteering through faculty-executive exchanges and guest lectureships.
For more information, contact:
Eric Burchard, Director
Corporate & Foundation Relations
Ohio University Advancement
The Huntington Plaza Building
37 W. Broad Street, Suite 750
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Telephone: 614-824-5284
Cell phone: 614-223-3965
Or email:
burchard@ohio.edu
Corporate Giving
According to Giving USA, corporations donated an estimated $9.05 billion to charity in 2001 – 1.3 percent of pre-tax profits. With state funds for higher education increasingly scarce, for-profit corporations have an opportunity to give back to the institutions that supply them with talented employees. These funds support scholarships, research, and many of the unique programs that make Ohio University a special place.
Often, alumni can make the critical difference in the University’s ability to receive funding from their employers.
Gifts-in-Kind
Many corporations make “in-kind” gifts – those of products or services – to the University. For example, both CNN and CBS provide essential support for the College of Communication by providing live news feeds at no cost to the College.
In addition, gifts of software and equipment can help the University to stay at the forefront of new technology. CTX Corporation donated its NetWitness™ software, which helps to protect computer networking systems against fraud, theft, and abuse by trusted insiders, to the J. Warren McClure School of Communication Systems Management. Made2Manage Systems donated its Enterprise Resource Planning software to the Russ College of Engineering and Technology’s Department of Industrial Technology.
Matching gifts
Personal gifts to educational institutions made by employees, retirees, and their family members may be matched by businesses and corporations.
The brainchild of Philip Reed, former chair of the GE Board of Directors, matching gifts were designed to encourage employees to contribute to their alma maters. Reed believed the incentive to contribute was greater if the company matched the employee’s gift. The GE “matching gift” program was launched in 1954. Since that time, employers and their employees have contributed more than $2 billion to education thanks to corporate matching gift programs. Today, matching gifts are an important source of funds for educational institutions. They also are an increasingly important way for companies to allow employees to direct a portion of the monies earmarked for charitable contribution.
How to make a matching gift contribution
Gift Matching procedures can vary from company to company. The following example is typical:
· An employee gets a matching gift form from the employer, usually from the human resources department.
· After completing the form, the employee sends it along with the donation to Ohio University.
· The University certifies on the form that it has received the gift and meets the company’s guidelines for receiving a matching gift.
· The University returns the form to the company.
· The company verifies eligibility of the employee and gift recipient and sends a check to Ohio University.
Contact your employer's human resource office for more information, or call 800.592.FUND.
Volunteering
Gifts of time and talent help the University to ensure student exposure to the “real world.” Corporate partners play a key role in these efforts by providing internships, recruiting on campus, and by sending executives to Athens for lectures and round table discussions. In addition, at corporations employing a critical mass of Ohio University alumni, there are opportunities to launch Corporate Alumni Clubs.
Alumni can help coordinate these clubs and become involved with students through recruitment and by serving as mentors while bringing professional and social opportunities to the Bobcats they work with everyday. Corporations already interested in alumni clubs include Columbia Gas, The Limited, Nationwide, and Procter & Gamble.
