Donors can support any area that they are passionate about at the University of Alaska through a philanthropic gift.  Our universities have notable libraries, dynamic STEM outreach programs for K-12 students, fine arts, public broadcasting, museums, athletics, and much more.

All areas can benefit from donor support.  Your support is a vote of confidence in the University and we encourage donors to consider giving to the area that means the most to you. 

For questions about a specific area that you would like to support at UA, please contact Megan Riebe, VP of Development, at 907-786-7746.

Endowed

You can support the University of Alaska forever with a gift to an endowment.

An endowment fund works like a permanent savings account. Unless other arrangements are made, the principal is invested and never spent. The earnings are spent and used for the specific purpose of the endowment. 

When you make an endowed gift, your contribution is invested and becomes part of a pooled endowment fund. An annual distribution is made to support the purpose of your choice. 

An endowment may be established to support a chair, fellowship, scholarship, professorship or any other defined use at the university. 

Endowments are managed by the UA Foundation in accordance with its endowment management guidelines.

For questions about establishing these perpetual funds, please contact Megan Riebe at 907-786-7746.

Current Use Fund

You can also support the University by creating a current use fund. 

A fund can be created to support a specific purpose at the University, and funds are made available to be used at any time. No portion of the fund is invested for future use, and all portions of the fund are applied to the purpose. 

Donors specify the purpose for how their donations are spent, whether for scholarships, or specific departments or programs, etc. With hundreds of individual funds already established, chances are your purpose can be met with one of those. 

For questions about establishing a new fund or making a gift to an existing fund, please contact Megan Riebe at 907-786-7746.

Unrestricted Funds 

When you make an unrestricted gift to the University of Alaska, you provide a vital source of flexible funds that allow the President or Chancellor to seize opportunities, enhance programs or meet urgent needs.

Chancellors at each university rely annually on unrestricted funds to address the areas of greatest opportunity.  Gifts of any amount can be made to existing unrestricted funds at UAA, UAF, or UAS. If you would like to create a named fund in honor or memory of a loved one, a new fund (either endowed or current use) can be created.

Simply write “unrestricted” along with the campus designation if desired on the memo line of your check or on the online gift form.

Chairs

A chair provides support for a faculty member's salary and related expenses, including research, course development and professional conferences. Chairs may be awarded for the entire length of a professor's tenure. However, most professorships and chairs have term limits, usually five years. 

For questions about existing chairs or to establish a new chair, please contact Megan Riebe at 907-786-7746.

Professorships

Professorships provide support for outstanding faculty members for travel, training, equipment, and other support. Professorships can also provide income for a visiting professor to come to a campus of the University of Alaska or for a University of Alaska professor to teach at another university. These professorships allow the university to benefit from talent that would otherwise be unavailable or to share the expertise of our faculty with another university. 

For questions about existing professorships or to establish a new professorship, please contact Megan Riebe at 907-786-7746.

Research

The University of Alaska is a leader in Arctic research and each of the three separately accredited universities offers a variety of opportunities for philanthropic support. Support for research can be in the form of an endowed or a non-endowed fund, and can support things like direct research expenditures, equipment, travel, graduate student salaries, and much more. 

For questions about existing research funds or to establish a new fund please contact Megan Riebe at 907-786-7746.

Private gifts can help support brick and mortar construction and expansion on any of the UA campuses.  With declining state revenue, future building projects will rely on alternative sources of revenue and creative partnerships.

As the leading University in Arctic research, up to date buildings and equipment are critical for preparing students for real-world jobs and for recruiting and retaining the best faculty.  

Capital projects include the construction of new facilities and renovation, repair or expansion of existing facilities. They also include equipment, instruments, and software which are important for these projects to be succesful.

Donors can support capital projects through gifts to non-endowed funds.  For questions about supporting capital projects at UA, please contact Megan Riebe at 907-786-7746.

The UA Foundation is home to nearly 1,000 scholarship funds that benefit students at UAA, UAF and UAS. Scholarships change lives and enrich the student body. When you fund a scholarship, you provide a meaningful opportunity to make a profound difference for individual students and for the lives those students touch as graduates of the University of Alaska.  A contribution of any size will help bring more talented scholars to UA and develop students into the leaders of tomorrow. 

Thanks to many generous donors, more than 1,800 scholarships were awarded to students at UAA, UAF, and UAS last academic year.

Create a Scholarship

There are a number of ways to set up a scholarship. An outright gift may be made via check or credit card. There may be significant tax benefits if the gift is made using appreciated securities, by establishing a charitable trust, or by giving real property. Will bequests can also be used to create opportunities for students.

There are two different types of scholarships that donors can establish:

Endowed Scholarships create a permanent fund.  Contributions are prudently invested to ensure the scholarship retains its value in perpetuity, and the scholarships created by the endowment are funded through the income generated by the endowment.

Annual Scholarships reflect a donor’s commitment to support a scholarship for a specific number of semesters or years.  Contributions are usually made and expended in the same fiscal year.

A donor may name a scholarship when the amount given meets the minimum funding requirements for an annual or endowed scholarship. Many of our donors have used this opportunity to honor a parent, professor or loved one. 

A donor may also choose to give to existing scholarship funds in the department or school of their choice. Donors are not involved in student selection, which is conducted by the appropriate academic department.

Scholarship Naming Opportunities

Endowed Scholarship	UAA, UAF and UAS
Minimum Required	$25,000
Interest Distributed for Aid
Annual Scholarship	UAA, UAF, and UAS
Minimum Required	$5,000
Alaska Resident Tuition  per Academic Year*	UAA	UAF	UAS
Full-time, undergraduate living off campus	$27,287**	$26,510***	$23,700

 

 *Tuition costs are higher for non-resident and foreign students, as well as for graduate level students. 

**College of Business and Public Policy accesses a tuition surcharge for upper-division and graduate coursework.

***College of Engineering and Mines and School of Management accesses tuition surcharges their course work.

For questions about existing scholarships or to establish a new scholarship, please contact Dory Straight, Scholarship Officer,  at 907-786-7746.

 

The University of Alaska Foundation offers more than  1,000 scholarship funds that benefit students at UAA, UAF and UAS. You can make a gift and support any one of these scholarships. Scholarships change the lives of our students every year. 

Give to a specific scholarship by specifying the scholarship in the comments box of our online giving form. 

 You may also make a gift to establish a new scholarship or fund at the university.

 If you would like to learn more about establishing a new scholarship, please contact Dory Straight, Scholarship Officer, at 907-450-8033. 

 

What is the difference between an endowed scholarship and an annual scholarship? 

Endowed Scholarships create a permanent fund. Contributions are prudently invested to ensure the scholarship retains its value in perpetuity, and the scholarships created by the endowment are funded through the income generated by the endowment.

Annual Scholarships reflect a donor's commitment to support a scholarship for a specific number of years. 

May I name a scholarship? 

A donor may name the scholarship when the amount given meets the minimum funding requirements for an annual or endowed scholarship. Scholarships are often named after the donor, company, organization or to honor parents, professors or other important people in one's life. Alternatively, donors may choose to give to existing scholarship funds in the department or school of their choice. Per IRS guidelines, donors should not be involved in the selection or recommendation of student recipients. 

May I have input into the selection of a recipient? 

Scholarship donors may specify base criteria to be used when selecting the recipient. University representatives from the appropriate academic department use those criteria when choosing student recipients.

Will I meet my scholarship recipients? 

The UA Foundation strives to create opportunities for donors and scholarship recipients to meet. Many donors feel profound personal satisfaction when they meet the students whose education they made possible, and students are often eager to thank and meet their benefactor.

What is the best way to make my gift?

There are several ways to set up a new fund: an outright gift may be made via check or credit card online or via mail. Using appreciated securities or property may yield tax benefits. Many of our donors enjoy planning for gifts in their wills or trusts.  The UA Foundation is here to assist you with any of these options. Please contact Harry Need at 907-786-4840 for more information. 

How will the University of Alaska carry out my wishes? 

UA Foundation staff will work with you to create a customized written gift agreement. The agreement reflects the purpose of the scholarship and recipient criteria as determined by you. The agreement outlines the responsibilities of the UA Foundation and the University of Alaska in awarding the scholarship. 

What services does UA Foundation provide to scholarship donors? 

Annual report from the Scholarship Development Office notifying you of the recipient(s) of your scholarship each academic year.

All recipients are encouraged to send a letter of thanks which are forwarded by UA Foundation to their donor(s).

Invitation to the respective campus and/or college annual scholarship reception where donors and recipients will have the opportunity to meet and form a meaningful relationship.

For endowed funds, all donors receive an annual endowment report on the financial status of their fund. In addition, there is peace of mind that the fund will provide perpetual support for students according to the intended purpose.

All scholarships are advertised on the UA Foundation website and by the respective university campus or college.

Opportunities to engage with University and UA Foundation leadership, faculty, and staff through various campus, college, and foundation activities and events.

All scholarship gifts are tax deductible.

There is no greater gift than the opportunity for a student to pursue their dreams through higher education.