Gift Processing

The Major Gift Officer for your unit is your main contact for questions about major gift processing. The Major Gift Officer will work with the donor and the Manager of Endowment & Gift Documentation to determine the appropriate next steps in processing the gift.

View our gift processing flow chart online for a visual representation of how gift processing works for the College of Arts & Sciences.

General Do’s and Don’ts for Handling Major Gifts:

Do:

• Contact the Major Gift Officer for your unit.
• Submit a gift transmittal so Gift Services can quickly and accurately process the gift.
• Collect gift documentation to share with Gift Services so that the donor's intent can be thoroughly understood for audit purposes. 
• Send gifts to Gift Services within 5 business day, per PCI compliance.          
  • UW Foundation, Gift Services, Box 359505, 4333 Brooklyn Ave NE, Seattle WA 98195
• Stay connected to Gift Services processes and procedures through the Gift Services Teams Channel.

Don’t:

• Hold on to checks and cash in desks/drawers.
• Hold on to checks and cash for longer than 5 business days.
• Establish gift funds with naming rights and specific restrictions without contacting your Major Gift Officer.

Processing gifts to the UW tend to follow one of three routes:

1. Gifts without a specific allocation or budget,
2. Gift to an already existing/established fund, or
3. Gifts with specific spending restrictions or naming established by the donor.
    

Gifts Without Specific Allocation or Budget

If a donor gives a gift to the UW without specifying allocation and budget details for the gift:

• Contact your Major Gift Officer.
  • The gift will be held in a suspense account and budget (DEVGFT, 63-9907) until the final destination of the gift can be determined.
  • The Major Gift Officer will work with the donor to determine their intentions for the gift.
    • If it turns out that the gift is meant for an existing fund, the Gift Officer will work with the Manager of Endowment and Gift Documentation to send Gift Services a JV request from suspense to the appropriate fund allocation and budget.
    • If the gift requires establishing a new current use fund or endowment, the Major Gift Officer will work with the Manager of Endowment and Gift Documentation to establish a new fund and complete a gift agreement.
    • The Gift Documentation Templates are a helpful resource for documenting a donor's gift intentions.
       

Gift to an Already Existing/Established Fund

If a donor wants to give to an existing fund, the gift may be sent to Gift Services in any of the following ways:

• Cash: Complete Online Gift Transmittal and attach it to an Alert Gift Services submission.
• Check: Please have donors send their checks directly to Gift Services at the following address.
  • UW Foundation, Gift Services, Box 359505, 4333 Brooklyn Ave NE, Seattle WA 98195
  • Checks should include the name or allocation code of the gift fund or funds that the donation will support on the Memo line.
  • If a check is delivered to your office:
    • Complete Online Gift Transmittal and attach it to an Alert Gift Services submission.
    • Print the Gift Transmittal Form
    • Send the check, accompanying documentation, and printed Gift Transmittal Form to Gift Services (Box 359505) via Campus Mail.
• Credit Card: The donor can give online or through a specific department or center’s online donation form, or through the My UW Giving portal.
• Pledge: All donors committing to giving a gift over a period of time will receive pledge payment reminders one month before their payment due date unless otherwise requested. Contact your Major Gift Officer for more information on pledges.
• Securities/Stocks: Complete a Gift of Securities to let Gift Services know to expect the gift, and where to direct it when it arrives. Share the Gift of Stock instructions with your donor if needed.
• Wire Transfer: Complete Wire Transfer Notification Form to let Gift Services know to expect the gift, and where to direct it when it arrives.

The Gift Documentation Templates are a helpful resource for documenting a donor's gift intentions. Completed gift documentation is required by Gift Services for audit purposes.

Special note on Gift Transmittals:
You must have Advance access to submit an Online Gift Transmittal. If you do not have Advance access, you may use the Gift Transmittal Form instead.

Gifts with Specific Spending Restrictions or Naming Established by the Donor

If a donor gives a gift to the UW which has specific restrictions or naming established by the donor:

• Contact your Major Gift Officer.
  • The Major Gift Officer collaborates with the Manager of Endowments and Gift Documentation in aligning the donor’s intent with department and program needs, and UW policies.

Here’s more information on the Gift Agreement process.

Merchandise sales transactions to help support your unit are not considered a charitable contribution, and therefore cannot be processed through a gift fund.

If your unit is considering selling merchandise so that the proceeds can benefit your department, there are a number of considerations to take into account including:

• Administrative burden: Does the volume of potential sales and any net revenue offset the administrative work involved?
• You must coordinate with UW Trademarks & Licensing, which must approve any designs.
• You must purchase from a vendor approved by UW Trademarks & Licensing.
• You may need to register as a wholesaler.
• You are responsible for collecting and tracking sales taxes.
• You must plan internal controls for receiving payments, including connecting with UW Merchant Services to set up an approved method of collecting credit card payments.
• Revenue from merchandise sales is assessed the institutional overhead.
• There are additional considerations including records management & retention, and accounting for inventory.

If your department is still interested in exploring merchandise sales options, please connect with someone in the CAS Finance and Operations to make sure you're aware of and planning for all of the considerations.

If your department’s website includes an embedded online giving module (view an example on the College of Arts & Sciences “support us” page), updates can be made to that list of funds anytime. Gift funds can be re-ordered or moved from the top list of priority funds to the “More Funds” section below, or vice versa. Additionally, new funds can be added to this list, or funds you’re not currently fundraising for can be removed.

To request changes to your online giving module, send an email to casadser@uw.edu. A member of the Advancement Services team will facilitate those changes.

The Office for Planned Giving administers all estate gifts. All correspondence, checks, notices, and receipts regarding gifts from wills, trusts, retirement accounts, life insurance policies, or other gifts coming to the UW following a donor’s death, such as proceeds from a terminated life income plan should be sent to Elizabeth Garner, Manager of Estates, Box 359515. Notify your Major Gift Officer to begin the process of receiving estate gifts and new endowments, and for questions.

A gift assessment fee is applied to select current use gifts upon their receipt, providing essential support to the University of Washington’s advancement efforts and institutional priorities. The assessment of 5.0 percent will be applied upon receipt to current-use contributions over $1,000 and under $5 million to the same fund in a fiscal year. University Advancement has published a Gift Assessment FAQ to help address questions.

Endowed gifts are assessed an annual fee of 0.9 percent of a five-year rolling average, which supports the UW’s advancement efforts and offsets internal investment management costs. Refer to the UW's Consolidated Endowment Fund for additional details.

Please contact the Advancement Services team anytime at CASadser@uw.edu with questions or for more information about processing gifts.