Schmidt

It’s been said that people give to universities for two reasons: to say thanks or to support programs they believe in. In the last issue of Connections, I talked about donors who look for giving opportunities that match their interests or promote an activity they enjoyed or benefited from when they were students.

Sometimes donors look for ways to get the most out of their gift for Purdue, for themselves or for both.

Purdue donors often take advantage of the matching gift programs offered by employers who want to promote civic engagement. Many companies will match a certain amount, often doubling the amount of the original gift. The university gets a valued gift, the employee feels better about the larger gift, and the company gets a happier employee.

A challenge gift allows a donor to dramatically boost a specific endeavor and attract other supporters. A challenge gift usually means that a donor will match certain gifts for a specific purpose. Bill Bindley, an Indianapolis businessman, launched a challenge program a few years ago that would match endowed chairs in scientific fields. This has worked well for Purdue Agriculture, which has four matching chairs. These positions will help improve research and outreach in soybean production and markets, food science, urban entomology and agribusiness.

There’s a similar program for student

scholarships in the life sciences, which includes any undergraduate or graduate major in Purdue Agriculture. The Bindley Scholarship Challenge provides $11.25 million to promote life sciences studies. Any new endowed scholarship will earn a matching Bindley scholarship in the same area, in effect doubling the impact of the original gift.

Gifts to scholarships, faculty, facilities or the dean’s discretionary fund are always needed and appreciated. There also could be tax benefits associated with the donation of appreciated assets, such as stocks or real estate. Sometimes it’s in your best interest to take the long view and use estate planning to include Purdue Agriculture through a will provision, trust agreement or life insurance.

Eric Putman, BS ’94, Jorge Mantica, BS ’89, Courtney Schmidt and I are always available to help you think through how your generosity can best benefit both your vision and Purdue Agriculture. You also should know that 100 percent of your gift goes directly to the purpose and programs you designate.

Before joining Purdue in 1999, she was an admissions counselor for Western Kentucky University and also worked in the private sector as a customer service specialist for Micro Motion Inc. She credits experience at Celestial Seasonings for her interest in public relations.

Courtney is originally from Jasper, Ind., and graduated from Indiana University in 1994. She is excited about her new role as stewardship coordinator and looks forward to meeting and working with the alumni and friends of Purdue Agriculture. She can be reached at (765) 494-8672 or by e-mail at caschmidt@purdue.edu.

Contact Irvin at mirvin1@purdue.edu