91泡芙

FUNDRAISING AND DONATIONS POLICY

1.1    The University Fundraising and Donations Policy is designed to guide the ethical, transparent, and effective management of donations to the university. With this policy the University commits to the following key principles:

1.1.1    Adhere to ethical standards in fundraising practices.

1.1.2    Provide transparent reporting and communication with donors.

1.2    More specifically the University will focus on these additional principles:

1.2.1    Donor Intent and Respect: ensure donations are used in accordance with the donor's wishes and intentions and provide options for donors to specify how their contributions should be used.

1. Recognition and Stewardship: establish a system for recognizing and thanking donors at various levels of giving, and offer opportunities for donors to see the impact of their contributions through reports, events, and updates.

2. Confidentiality and Privacy: protect the privacy and confidentiality of donor information, and adhere to the BC Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and best practices in handling donor data.

3. Inclusivity and Accessibility: promote inclusive fundraising practices that engage a diverse range of donors, and ensure donation opportunities are accessible to all potential supporters.

4. Sustainability and Long-Term Impact: prioritize donations that contribute to the long-term sustainability and impact of the university, and encourage endowments and planned giving options.

5. Transparency and Accountability: regularly audit and review donation processes to ensure compliance with ethical standards.

6. Conflict of Interest: implement measures to identify and manage any potential conflicts of interest in the acceptance of donations, and ensure that donations do not influence academic freedom and integrity or decision-making processes.

7. Legal Compliance: ensure all fundraising activities comply with local, national, and international laws and regulations, and stay updated on changes in legal requirements and adjust policies accordingly.

1.3    By following these principles, the university aims to build lasting relationships with donors, ensure their contributions are used to support its mission and strategic goals, and uphold the highest standards of accountability and transparency. This policy also ensures that the university maintains robust oversight mechanisms to manage and monitor donations responsibly, fostering trust and confidence among its donor community.

2.1    The purpose of a university fundraising and donations policy is multifaceted, aiming to ensure transparency, ethical standards, and alignment with the institution's mission and values. 

2.2    The key points of the purpose in this policy govern the solicitation, acceptance and administration of all types of charitable donations to 91泡芙 from all private sources including individuals, corporations, associations, foundations, and university faculty, staff and students.

3.0    SCOPE AND JURISDICTION

3.1    This policy applies to administering of all types of charitable donations to the University as outlined in the Purpose.

3.1.1     This policy does not apply to the acquisition of in-kind materials and/or records to the University Archives (see instead policy I 10.01 Archives, Records Management, and Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Policy). 

4.0     DEFINITIONS

4.1     Please see Appendix A for the definitions of words used in this policy and its associated procedures. 

5.0     POLICY

5.1     Pre-Approval of Fundraising

5.1.1     Advancement and Alumni Engagement operates under and is current on specific guidelines for assessment and receipting of charitable donations of all types including: annuities, gifts-in-kind of goods and services and library gifts-in-kind, bequests, trusts, cash and cash equivalents (including payroll deductions), life insurance, charitable remainder trusts, real property, cultural property, residual interest arrangements, gift of marketable securities, potentially new types of gifts (e.g., cryptocurrency) as assessed technically viable and possible by Advancement and Alumni Engagement.

5.1.2     All fundraising appeals, campaigns and proposals to the private sector (individuals, corporations, small business, foundations and organizations) require the approval of the Vice-President, Advancement and Alumni Engagement, or their designate in consultation with the President, Vice-Presidents and Deans. This coordination ensures that potential donors are not confronted with conflicting or competing proposals from 91泡芙, or proposals which may not reflect the University's fundraising priorities. 

5.1.3     Working with Advancement and Alumni Engagement, individual faculty and departmental initiatives to secure private donations are encouraged and supported. This policy does not affect proposal writing for government research grants or funded research contracts whereby the funder benefits directly from the sponsored research (see instead Policy R10.01).  Research grant applications for non-contractual research from private sector funders should be made in partnership with Advancement and Alumni Engagement. 

5.1.4     The specific procedures for acceptance of charitable donations and assigned roles are summarized in the operational documentation within the VP Advancement and Alumni Engagement portfolio.

5.2     Acceptance of Charitable Donations

5.2.1     91泡芙 is a registered charity under the auspices of the Income Tax Act, and as such, donations to SFU may be eligible for a charitable donation receipt.

5.2.2     Advancement and Alumni Engagement is authorized to negotiate charitable donations on behalf of the University. The University may accept charitable donations that meet the following criteria below.

1. Consistency with the University's mission, values, and strategic priorities.

2. Compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including those related to charitable giving, tax-exempt status, and donor privacy.

3. No undue restrictions that would limit the University's ability to use the gift effectively or would require the University to incur excessive administrative or financial burdens.

4. No conflicts of interest or other ethical concerns.

5.2.3     Ownership of all charitable donations vests in the University, whether for general or specific purposes. The Vice-President, Advancement and Alumni Engagement will determine, after appropriate consultation with the President, Vice-Presidents, Deans, and other involved individuals, whether a charitable donation should be accepted and what costs are associated with its acquisition, maintenance, and insurance. 

5.2.4     Advancement and Alumni Engagement is authorized to negotiate charitable donations on behalf of the University and will decline any donation that arises in whole or in part from activities that appear to violate federal, provincial or municipal laws or that may cause harm to the University鈥檚 reputation. The decision will be based on such factors as: 

1. Could improperly benefit any individual or organization

2. Is financially unsound

3. Requires an arrangement to conduct business with a specified individual or organization or employment

4. Could expose the University to uncertain or potentially significant liability or unacceptable risk

5. Could compromise SFU鈥檚 public image or reputation

6. May require work to sustain the donation that is disproportional to the size of the donation or expend resources on activities that are not aligned with the academic priorities

7. May have come from illegal activities

8. May require or involve violation of human rights

9. Would allow the donor to designate the recipients of a donation identified as an award, lectureship/professorship/chair or other honorific

5.2.5     Charitable donations may be given for specified activities, or without specific instructions (discretionary or to the area of greatest need) in which case they shall be assigned to support specific funding needs or initiatives at the discretion of the President.

5.2.6     The University does not provide any legal, accounting, tax or financial advice to donors with respect to charitable gifts.

5.2.7     The university will not act as an executor of a donor鈥檚 estate or as a trustee of a living trust.

5.2.8     Full definitions of each type may be found in the Appendix A of this policy.

5.3     Charitable Donations from Faculty and Staff

5.3.1    Charitable donations from faculty and staff will follow general policy guidelines that direct how donations to the University are assessed, received and receipted. 

5.3.2     The provisions of the Income Tax Act do not permit the issuance of a charitable donation receipt for any gift to an account over which the donor has spending authority, nor may the donation be used to confer a benefit of any kind to the donor, to any member of the donor's family or to an individual of the donor's choosing.

5.4     Payroll Deductions

5.4.1     Faculty and staff who wish to make charitable donations to the University through a payroll deduction should contact Advancement and Alumni Engagement to arrange the donation. Advancement and Alumni Engagement will then coordinate authorized payroll deductions with the Payroll Department.

5.4.2     Payroll deductions may be made only to those projects approved as acceptable payroll deduction funds. 

5.4.3     Faculty and staff who decide to stop a regular donation through the payroll system should contact Advancement and Alumni Engagement.

5.4.4     All charitable donations through payroll deduction will be grouped under one heading on the online bi-weekly pay statements. Separate accounting of donations to various funds will be maintained by Advancement and Alumni Engagement.

5.5     Donor Anonymity

5.5.1     The University will maintain the donor鈥檚 anonymity, subject to the following limitations:

1. Advancement and Alumni Engagement maintains donor records as required by the Canada Revenue Act for official donation receipting purposes;

2. The University will comply with legal obligations and requirements to disclose the names of donors, nature and value of their donation as required under the Income Tax Act and other government policies and acts

3. Prospective donors requesting anonymity will be advised by Advancement and Alumni Engagement about the conditions above

5.5.2    Donors can be recognized publicly in instances where the donor has explicitly expressed consent to have their name publicized in association with their philanthropic support of the university.  

5.6     Compliance

5.6.1     This policy complies with all relevant laws and regulations governing charitable giving and is subject to periodic review and update by the University's administration

6.0     ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

6.1     Advancement and Alumni Engagement 

6.1.1     Working within priorities, policies and procedures approved by the Board of Governors, Advancement and Alumni Engagement is responsible for:

1. Establishing and maintaining relationships with potential and current charitable donors;

2. Securely collecting, storing and maintaining charitable donor and alumni data with full authority residing with Advancement and Alumni Engagement; 

3. Securing charitable donations to the University from the private sector;

4. Establishing and leading fundraising strategies for the University;

5. Ensuring overall fundraising effectiveness by coordinating these University fundraising strategies; including the overall management and supervision of fundraising programs, administration of staff and management of cultivation, solicitation and stewardship efforts;

6. Assisting in the preparation of all fundraising proposals including grant applications (other than those for sponsored research), which have the Provost鈥檚 or their delegate鈥檚 approval;

7. Acting as liaison with donors and University officials on all matters that pertain to a charitable donation, its administration and management including the formulation of Terms of Reference for new funds;

8. Ensuring that charitable donations conform to the Income Tax Act, and once received and accepted, are accurately recorded, receipted and reported;

9. Recognizing donors for their philanthropic contributions to the University;

10. Stewarding donors regarding the impact of their charitable donations to the University. 

6.2     Finance

6.2.1     The Vice President Finance and Administration is responsible for 

1. Allocating endowment income to each fund according to Policy GP 20, Endowment Management. 

2. Ensuring all revenue and disbursements relating to charitable donations are accurately recorded in the University鈥檚 financial management system.

3. Providing support to Advancement and Alumni Engagement and respective fund administrators on financial data and reporting for donations. 

6.3     Fund Administrator

6.3.1 The fund administrator is responsible for achieving program and financial results as outlined within the Terms of Reference of gift agreements, within available funding limits and in accordance with Board of Governors policies. 

7.0     REPORTING

7.1     Receipting of Donations

7.1.1     A charitable donation must be a voluntary transfer of property, usually cash, that is made without expectation of benefit to the donor or to anyone designated by the donor. Donations made through the university鈥檚 Advancement and Alumni Engagement Department that are not deemed to qualify as 'gifts' according to the Income Tax Act will be acknowledged with a business or non-charitable donation receipt.

7.1.2     As a registered charity, 91泡芙 authorizes Advancement and Alumni Engagement to be responsible for issuing charitable donation receipts for all charitable donations made to the University. It is the responsibility of AAE to determine whether the donation qualifies for an official donation receipt.

7.1.3     All charitable donation receipts must be issued in compliance with the Income Tax Act, Canada Revenue Agency guidelines and in accordance with the procedures of the University.

7.2    External and Internal Reporting

7.2.1     A report on all charitable donations accepted on behalf of the University for approved endowments, projects and programs must be prepared, upon request, for the Board of Governors by Advancement and Alumni Engagement. The data for this report will be combined as needed with the data provided by the designated Fund Administrator or their delegate as outlined in Section 4.2 and in Policy GP 20, Endowment Management, Sections 6 and 7.

7.2.2     The specific procedures for gift acceptance and assigned roles are summarized in documentation within the VP Advancement and Alumni Engagement portfolio.

8.0     RELATED LEGAL, POLICY AUTHORITIES AND AGREEMENTS

8.1     The legal and other University Policy authorities and agreements that may bear on the administration of this policy and may be consulted as needed include but are not limited to: 

8.1.1    

8.1.2    

8.1.3     B 10.11- Signing Authorizations

8.1.4     GP 20 - Endowment Management Policy

8.1.5     GP 35 - Named Recognition Policy

8.1.6     R 10.01- External Research Funding Agreements Policy

8.1.7     A 10.03 - Endowments for Academic Appointments Policy

8.1.8     I 10.01 - Archives, Recorded Information Management, and Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Policy 

9.0     ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND PROTECTION OF PRIVACY

9.1     The information and records made and received to administer this policy are subject to the access to information and protection of privacy provisions of British Columbia鈥檚 Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the University鈥檚 Information Policy series. 

10.0     RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS

10.1     Information and records made and received to administer this policy are evidence of the University鈥檚 actions to administer charitable donations as described.  Information and records must be retained and disposed of in accordance with a records retention schedule approved by the University Archivist.  

11.0     POLICY REVIEW

11.1     This policy must be reviewed every five years and may always be reviewed as needed.

12.0     POLICY AUTHORITY

12.1 This policy is administered under the authority of the VP Advancement and Alumni Engagement. 

13.0     INTERPRETATION

13.1     Questions of interpretation or application of this policy or its procedures shall be referred to the Vice-President, Advancement and Alumni Engagement whose decision shall be final. 

14.0     PROCEDURES AND OTHER ASSOCIATED DOCUMENTS

14.1     Appendix A contains the definitions applicable to this policy and its associated procedures.