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Giving

Restricted Gifts

Restricted Gifts and Endowment Gifts have a profound impact on our students and faculty for years to come. We welcome an opportunity to learn about your passions and areas of greatest interest so that we can develop a gift or pledge plan that aligns your philanthropic passions with Sanford’s needs.

Gifts to specific fundraising projects are administered as either an Endowed Fund or a Spend-Down Fund.

Our active fundraising initiatives for gifts other than the Sanford Fund are:
  • The Exceptionally Sanford Campaign, raising funds to build a two-story addition to the Lower School and a greenspace next to the Middle School.
  • The Endowment, including the following restricted endowed funds:
    • The Exceptionally Sanford Campaign Endowed Fund for Operating Support
    • The Jackie Pitts '55 Sanford Champion Endowed Award Fund
    • The Mark J. Anderson Endowed Fund for Operating Support
    • The Endowed Fund for Financial Aid
    • The Endowed Fund for Upper School Professional Growth

ENDOWED FUNDS

The Sanford Endowment is a collection of endowed funds that are invested in order to generate interest and dividends which grow the funds over time. Endowed funds are designed to keep the principal gifts (corpus) intact so they can remain a permanent source of funding. Gifts to the Sanford Endowment provide stable, perennial financial support for the school’s ongoing operations, programs, and people. A percent of the average endowment value from the last 12 quarters is drawn each year in support of operations or for the purpose in which the endowed fund was created (i.e. faculty award, salaries, or financial aid). In some years, approximately 3 to 5% of the school’s annual operating budget is funded by a draw from the Sanford Endowment investment account, making it one of three primary sources of operating revenue, along with tuition and annual gifts to the Sanford Fund.

If you are interested in giving a gift to an endowed fund, designate it in one of 3 ways:
  1. The Exceptionally Sanford Campaign Endowed Fund for Operating Support consists of gifts that aren't restricted to being used for a specific purpose. It allows school leadership the flexibility to use the annual draw where it is most needed each year. Give Now. 

  2. In collaboration with school leadership, establish a brand-new endowed fund restricted to a specific program or use. There is a minimum gift size of $50,000 required to start a new endowed fund. This minimum can be accomplished over multiple years of giving. Please contact the Development Office if you are interested in this option.

  3. Give a gift of any amount to an existing endowed fund. These funds are included in the Sanford Endowment assets but the income they generate is restricted for the specific purpose listed below. 

SPEND-DOWN FUNDS

Sanford also fundraises for specific one-time projects that lie outside the annual operating budget, such as adding irrigation to an athletic field, building a pole barn for the athletic vans, campus paving, or renovations and upgrades to existing buildings on campus. Each of these projects are set up as restricted spend-down funds, meaning the gift principal is entirely spent to support the specific project or program, as intended.

Over the years, we have made many improvements to the campus using these types of funds. For example, Geipel Center for Performing Arts was renovated in 2015-16, the Struthers Family Sports Center in 2019, and the Michael and Nancy Pia Center for Creativity at Hebb Hall in 2021-22. 
 
We are actively fundraising for the Exceptionally Sanford Campaign which includes capital projects in all three divisions. Click here to learn more. 

WAYS TO GIVE

 


List of 3 items.

  • Credit Card

    Donate securely online by credit card. Make a one-time gift or set up a recurring gift plan. With a recurring gift, choose the amount and the frequency that you'd like to donate to Sanford; just "set it and forget it." Should you ever need to change your recurring plan, contact Jody Cross in the Development Office.

  • Corporate Matching Gift

    Check with your employer or HR department to see if they have a corporate matching gift program that will match your donation. If so, apply for a matching grant following your company's rules. Let us know you've applied for a matching grant so that we can approve requests and thank you.
     
     
     
     
     

  • IRA Gifts (QCD)

    Donate via your Individual Retirement Account (IRA). Those who are 70 1/2 or older can request a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) directly from your IRA to Sanford School (an IRS-recognized tax-exempt entity). With a QCD, the amount donated is exclued from your taxable income rather than taken as an itemized deduction. A QCD also helps satisfy your annual Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) without increasing your Adjusted Gross Income, helping to optimize your tax bracket. In this way, Qualified Charitable Distributions can offer greater tax savings. Note, the IRS currently limits QCDs to $111,000 per person, per year. Contact your retirement account administrator about making a qualified charitable distribution. Sanford’s EIN is 51-0064331.

List of 3 items.

  • Check

    Send a check payable to Sanford School with the specific project you would like to support listed in the memo line.
    Attn: Development Office, Sanford School, 6900 Lancaster Pike, Hockessin, DE 19707.
     

  • Stock Gifts

    A tax-smart way to support Sanford is through a gift of appreciated securites that you have held for more than one year. This allows you to both bypass capital gains tax on the growth and receive an income tax deduction for the stock's fair market value (FMV). In order to determine the FMV, we will use the mean sale price (per IRS guidelines) on the day it comes into our possesion. Contact Jody Cross in the Development Office for Sanford's Charles Schwab account info and to alert us of the transfer.
     

  • Charitable Lead Trust

    Talk to your attorney or financial advisor about the advantages of setting up a charitable lead trust with Sanford School as the beneficiary. Charitable Lead Trust refers to an irrevocable trust designed to provide financial support to one or more charities, such as Sanford, for a set period of time, with the remaining assets eventually going to family members or other non-charitable beneficiaries.

List of 3 items.

  • Pledge

    Fill out this Pledge Form or contact Jody Cross in the Development Office to set up a pledge and payment schedule. A pledge allows you to commit a larger specific donation amount with the flexibility to pay it out over multiple years and at payment times of your choosing, whether that be monthly, quarterly, or annually.

  • Donor Advised Fund

    A Donor Advised Fund, or DAF, is a giving vehicle established at a public charity like Fidelity Charitable. Giving in this way allows donors to receive a tax deduction directly from the public charity where their DAF resides. Then at times of their choosing, donors recommend grants to qualified non-profits. When processing a grant request through your charitable giving account, search for Sanford School by tax ID (51-0064331). Include your name (unless you wish to be anonymous) and a gift designation (i.e. Sanford Fund, Capital Campaign, or Sanford Endowment).

  • Charitable Remainder Trust

    Talk to your attorney or financial advisor about the advantages of setting up a charitable remainder trust with Sanford School as the beneficiary. Charitable Remainder Trust refers to an irrevocable trust that generates a potential income stream for the donor, their family members, or other beneficiaries, with the remainder going to your favorite charity or charities. At the end of the specified term of the trust, the remaining trust assets are distributed to one or more charitable beneficiaries, such as Sanford.

SANFORD ALUMNI & DEVELOPMENT OFFICE

Sanford School
6900 Lancaster Pike
Hockessin, DE 19707

Phone: 302.235.6500
Email: development@sanfordschool.org
 
Sanford's Tax ID: 51-0064331

Sanford School

6900 Lancaster Pike, Hockessin, DE 19707
Phone: 302.235.6500
Email: admission@sanfordschool.org

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