As you think about your charitable giving, we hope you will consider the following options:
Unrestricted
Gifts
An unrestricted gift is the most flexible kind of gift because it allows
the College to apply financial resources where they are needed most.
Restricted Gifts
Restricted gifts are earmarked toward one or more specific goals. Donors
may target their contributions in ways that reflect their interests
while also addressing important College needs.
Endowments
Gifts intended to be perpetual whereby the principal is invested and
remains intact, and only a portion of the annual earnings is used for
general or specific purposes. Endowment earnings are available year
after year, regardless of economic fluctuations.
Outright Gifts
Making an outright gift to the Dharmakirti College is often the easiest
for a donor to make, plus provides the most immediate benefit to the
College. These are mostly gifts of cash or publicly traded securities
and, generally, qualify for tax deductions.
Gifts of Cash
Cash gifts are an easy way to give as well as fulfill philanthropic
goals. Cash gifts of any size make an immediate impact on the donor's
designated program of choice.
Pledges
Check or credit card pledges allow donors to make ambitious commitments
over a period of months or years, thereby gaining flexibility in scheduling
payments.
Marketable Securities
Donors can make gifts to the College using marketable securities including
stocks and bonds. These assets are a win-win opportunity for donors
and the College under current tax laws. They provide an immediate benefit
to the College, a current income tax savings for the donor, and are
easily transferred to the College. A gift of marketable securities entitle
the donor to take a charitable deduction for the full fair market value
of the security held longer than one year. Usually, this avoids paying
capital gains tax that would otherwise be due if the donor sold the
securities.
Planned Gifts
Planned giving enables donors to help others during and beyond their
lifetime. By including specific language in a will or trust naming Dharmakirti
College as the recipient of a gift, donors help ensure the future of
the College's services and programs in the community, and can further
their financial goals.
Planned gifts are often structured to provide income to the donor, family
members, or friends for life or a term of years. They take many forms
including charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, life
estate agreements, and property. The choice depends on the donor's particular
situation, financial goals, and philanthropic objectives.
A planned gift is more than a financial investment. It is an investment
that will transform and enrich the lives of those around you. Your planned
gift to the College will have a lasting, positive impact on Dharmakirti
College- and just as importantly, will give you the satisfaction of
having done so.
Donors are encouraged to structure a gift as a perpetual endowment so
that the College can distribute an ongoing portion of the annual earnings
to their specific interest at Dharmakirti College.
Gifts
of Insurance Policies
A gift of a life insurance policy can be a way to combine charitable
objectives with tax advantages for donors.
Donors may receive an income tax deduction by naming Dharmakirti College
as an partial beneficiary or owner of a life insurance policy. If a
donor continues to make premium payments after making the gift, those
payments may also be deductible. The amount of the deduction depends
on the type of policy gifted. An irrevocable gift of life insurance
may be appropriate when the policy becomes unnecessary either from the
growth of the donor's assets or the reduced needs of their dependents.
Because the tax laws regarding gifts of life insurance policies are
complex, please contact your attorney, financial adviser, or tax professional
to determine an option best suited to your individual goals.
Real Estate
Real estate includes homes, commercial buildings, farmland, cabins,
and other property. Gifts of real estate can be very helpful to the
College while providing donors with substantial benefits, as well. Even
if the value of the property is more than a donor wishes to give (or
deduct) in any given year, a portion of it may still be used to make
a gift. The College reviews each potential gift of real estate before
accepting the gift.
Personal Property
Almost anything of value - furniture, tankas, dharma books - can be
used to make a gift to the College. Consult your attorney or financial
advisor about how to use these properties as charitable gifts to the
College.
Corporate Matching Gifts
Many companies match employee contributions to charitable causes. Matching
gifts are an additional contribution over and above a donor's personal
gift or pledge. A dollar-for-dollar match is common, and some companies
donate a two-to-one ratio or more for every dollar an employee contributes.
To learn about your employers policies contact the human resources office
at your workplace.
College Gifts
Colleges created by families, corporations, or organizations can partner
with the Dharmakirti College to bolster their mission and direct resources
to best meet community needs. Supporting Dharmakirti's educational programs
is an effective way to create lasting change by enhancing individual
opportunity through education and improving the quality of life in the
community.
In-Kind
Gifts
Dharmakirti College welcomes gifts of up-to-date electronic equipment,
multimedia equipment, software, computers, building supplies, office
supplies etc., which can be put to good use by the college. Donors should
contact the College to learn whether the proposed non-cash contribution
would be appropriate for the College. Timely acknowledgement will be
made by the College describing the gift. The donor, however, is responsible
for verifying the value of non-cash property.
Naming Opportunities
In honor of gifts of a certain level, Dharmakirti College honors the
donor's generosity with opportunities to name a particular buidling
or program on their behalf. The dedicated name may be the donor's, a
family member's, or another person the donor wishes to honor with a
lasting legacy.
Individual Retirement Plan Assets
There are certain restrictions on distributions from retirement plans
that are not present in distributions from an IRA. All retirement plan
assets may be rolled over into an IRA after a person retires or leaves
employment with a given organization.
When retirement assets are held in an IRA, they are an excellent source
of money for donors to make outright gifts to the College. While the
money withdrawn from an IRA is fully taxable, if that money is gifted
to Dharmakirti College, the donor could receive a tax deduction for
up to the total amount of the gift.
Possible tax consequences of gifting from an IRA can be minimal and
the gratification of seeing a favorite project at the College immediately
funded can compensate for taxes owed.
Dharmakirti College is registered as a nonprofit organization with the Corporation Commission of the State of Arizona and is a tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service Code. Your contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.