Faculty Appointment Stewardship

Stewardship of Donors for Endowed and Term Faculty Appointments

Many donors to the College of Arts & Sciences have chosen to support the university by making a gift to fund our extraordinary faculty. Whether through an endowment or a current use gift, these donors recognize that talented, engaged faculty members advance knowledge through their research and inspire students through their innovative teaching. Donors who give in the form of faculty support provide us the means to recruit and retain talented faculty to ensure that the College remains a teaching and research powerhouse.

Each winter we take time to let these donors know the impact they’ve had on our departments, programs and centers. The Advancement Services team works closely with the Dean’s office to collect letters from faculty appointment holders to share with the donors and stewardees who have supported their appointment.

The Advancement Services team coordinates an annual Faculty Stewardship Letter Process in order to ensure our donors understand the impact of their support.

Each December, the Advancement Services team works with Dean Stacey to reach out to appointment holders with a reminder to provide a stewardship report to the donors whose gifts support their work. The donors and stewardees of these funds care deeply about the work being accomplished and enjoy hearing how the additional funding has enhanced the appointment holder’s work.

Appointment holders are sent the names and addresses of the appropriate donors and stewardees and are asked to mail their reports by January 15. Copies of the stewardship letters should be shared with the Advancement Services team at CASadser@uw.edu or sent through campus mail to Becky McIntire at Box 354882.

Those appointment holders who are new to their appointments at the time of the annual letter process are encouraged to send a brief note to their donors/stewardees introducing themselves and sending their gratitude for the support. For those appointment holders who fall into this category, sample notecard language can be provided. 

If you are an appointment holder and don’t receive a reminder (and you’re not sure why), please contact us. It could be that Advancement Services is not aware of any living donors, next of kin, or other stewardees related to your appointment. If you happen to be aware of surviving family members, honorees, living spouses of honorees, etc., please let us know at CASadser@uw.edu so that we can update our records.

Because our ability to communicate the impact donors have on the College is so important to developing long-term relationships, Dean Stacey has asked us to aim for 100% participation in the Faculty Stewardship Letters Process each year. The past few years have seen some changes in our process in order to facilitate the highest participation rate possible, and our metrics reflect our success. During the 2016-2017 fiscal year, 63% of appointment holders sent a letter to the donor and stewardees of their faculty support funds. In the 2017-2018 fiscal year, that number jumped to 93%. This year, we aim for 100% participation!

The Advancement Services team is here to:

• Provide reminders to faculty appointment holders to write an annual report to donors supporting their work.
• Share the names and contact information of the donors and stewardees associated with faculty support funds.
• Provide examples of past faculty stewardship letters.
• Answer questions about official appointment titles or spending restrictions for these funds.

We realize that faculty often have relationships with donors and/or stewardees that extend beyond this annual letter, and this is encouraged. Faculty often have the closest and most meaningful relationships with these donors and their families. If you have a conversation with a donor or stewardee at an event, send them an article/card/CD/video/copy of your new book, or interact with them in some other meaningful way, please let your department’s fundraiser or the Advancement Services team know so that we can accurately track our donors’ engagement and relationships with the College.

Please contact the Advancement Services team anytime at CASadser@uw.edu with questions or for more information about how we can help your department steward your donors. Additionally, you are welcome to reach out to one of our team members directly:

Lindsay Bailey, Associate Director of Advancement Services

ljbailey@uw.edu | 206.685.7160

For general questions about donor relations and stewardship activities/resources.

Becky McIntire, Donor Relations Specialist

rmcint@uw.edu | 206.685.2606

For questions specific to the Faculty Stewardship Letters Process.

Theresa Mejia, Manager, Endowment & Gift Documentation

tmejia@uw.edu | 206.616.5373

For questions about official appointment titles or spending restrictions of faculty appointment funds.