Editor's Note: This page provides additional information for one of the entries on the Foundation's Frequently Asked Questions pages.

How does the Foundation ensure that donor intent is followed?

Each year, the UI Foundation voluntarily undergoes an extensive financial audit conducted by a professional accounting firm. How we fulfill donor gift intent is one of many business practices examined.

The Foundation's Board of Directors has adopted a policy regarding donor directions for how a gift is to be used by the Foundation to benefit the UI, and donor directions or restrictions related to the investment or transferability of gifted assets. (Read the complete Donor Intent Policy.)

Most important, if individual donors have questions about how their gifts have been or will be directed, we hope they'll contact us. We annually send reports to many donors, letting them know how their gifts (or the income from the endowments their gifts created) are used. (Read more about how the Foundation communicates with donors.)

The Foundation also sends biweekly gift reports to UI faculty and staff who administer programs that donor gifts are supporting (or are eventually intended to support). By informing these administrators of new gifts, and by acknowledging and reporting to our donors, we maintain an effective system of checks and balances.

In short, several mechanisms are in place to assure our contributors that if we accept their gifts, we will follow their gift intent. But perhaps the best "guarantee" is our people. Each and every one of us is committed, first and foremost, to helping maintain the health and vitality of The University of Iowa by earning and keeping our donors' trust.