The first time I learned about an endowment is when I was on the receiving end of one! At CAU I was a regular in their financial aid office, getting to know the staff, frequently checking their scholarship bulletin boards, etc. They knew me by face and I began to build an amicable relationship with all who worked there. During my sophomore year, I owed CAU $2,400 and I was exhausted searching for any possible scholarship between my schoolwork and as a part-time barista. I was feeling flustered because I couldn’t get any leads with my plan A, didn’t want to deplete my savings to become financially enrolled, nor had any intentions of taking out a loan as my plan B. I decided to go back to the financial aid office one more time to inquire about any new scholarship postings I missed the 50 other times I visited. Here’s how the next moment went after my ask:
Women at the front desk: “We don’t have any new scholarships posted right now, but what’s your major?”
Me: “I’m a mass communications student.”
Women at the front desk: “hmmm, what’s your gpa?”
Me: “a 3.5”
Women at the front desk: well it is your lucky day, based on your major and gpa you qualify for an endowment. We can only give you $2,000; will you be able to manage the remaining $400?”
Me: “wow thank you so much, yea I’ll be able to manage! By the way, what is an endowment?”
This exchange happened 5 years ago and although I can’t remember that kind woman’s name, I will never forget how much that meant to me.
She explained the endowment I received was from alumni who donated to CAU and specifically asked for their funds to go to a student of X major. Mass communications is one of the largest majors at CAU with a tracklist of notable alumni.
College Raptor defines an endowment as the amount of money a college receives in donations. It is then used for a variety of things including scholarships, upgrading facilities, hiring professors etc.
University/college endowments are a collection of charitable gifts from donors.
Restricted Vs. Unrestricted
Schools that receive unrestricted gifts, can delegate wherever the need is greatest. However, donors often specify where and how they’d like their money to be stewarded. Donors of endowed scholarships can specify recipients to be of a certain major, have a specific gpa, extensive financial need, or even a member of a sorority/fraternity.
Like a regular scholarship, this is money the recipient doesn’t have to pay back. In my experience, the most you might have to do is send a thank you note to the donor. An endowed scholarship is one of the many tactics you can use to graduate debt-free. I’m eternally grateful for the women at Clark Atlanta University’s financial aid office who saw how persistent I was for additional funding. You never know the outcome of building genuine relationships, it just might open a door you’ve been knocking on!
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