Accepting Gifts to South
The Need. There is a great need for instructional equipment to help the college’s programs grow and stay up to date. South’s technical and science programs are particularly equipment-intensive and have great, unmet requirements for current technologies that will help our students achieve their educational goals.
Gifts Help. Gifts of new or used equipment and supplies from industry partners are important ways that community colleges are able to keep their instructional equipment up-to-date. Deans, administrators and faculty members are encouraged to work with their TAC committee members and other contacts to build the business relationships that lead to this support.
Gift Acceptance. South has a gift acceptance procedure that applies to the college as well as a gift acceptance policy that governs the District as a whole. In-kind gifts (gifts of equipment and supplies) may be solicited and received by administrators and faculty members of the college. Once approved as appropriate for use, all contributed items are accepted by the South Seattle Community College Foundation, and the charitable Foundation provides the donor with a tax acknowledgement. In most cases, the contributed items are then tendered by the Foundation to the Seattle Community College District, and after a vote of acceptance by the Trustees, become property of the State of Washington and part of the official inventory of the college.
Gifts of Cash. All gifts of money (cash or checks) must be accepted by the development office and are tendered to the Foundation. College staff must have the approval of the development office before soliciting such gifts.
The Gift Acceptance Form. Staff and faculty members should use the Foundation’s “Gift Acceptance Form” to initiate the in-kind gift procedure; the form should be self-explanatory. Copies of the current form are available in the Outlook public folders at Public Folders/All Public Folders/South Campus/Development-Foundation.
Please make it a point to report all in-kind gifts using this acceptance form. It's important that we know who is giving to the college and what is being received. This is true for many reasons, not the least of which is that by knowing about our donors, we have the opportunity to do the cultivation that might lead to more support in the future. The procedure also allows the college the opportunity to review proposed gifts to make sure that they are appropriate to the organization’s needs.
In the case of gifts valued at $5,000 or more, the donor must have the item appraised, and both the donor and college administrator complete IRS Form 8283. This form and instructions for its use are also available in the Outlook public folders.
Be Careful and Thoughtful. Note that the IRS and Congress are focusing increased scrutiny on perceived abuses associated with charitable in-kind giving. For this reason, please be careful in what you promise donors, and when in doubt, give the Development Office a call.
Be aware that college only accepts useful items; accepting junk or outdated items leads to costs and administrative headaches. In some cases, gifts of inappropriate items can saddle the college with hazardous materials problems or other liabilities. Gifts of used office equipment, such as computers, monitors, printers and copiers, are rarely if ever useful. Check with Computer Services and the Business Office before soliciting or accepting these.
Gift Acknowledgements. Acknowledgement letters for in-kind gifts now come directly from the Development Office rather than from the various deans or department heads. The tax rules have become so complex that it is just better practice to centralize this function.
The Development Office Can Help. College staff members should feel free to contact the Development Office for help with in-kind donations. Consult with Development before contemplating a significant request for in-kind support from any business, individual or foundation ($5,000 or more). All other fundraising activities including requests for cash contributions of any size should be approved ahead of time by the Development Office. Call 206/764-5809 or email .