MSU President's Newspaper Column
July 15, 2023
North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Grant Fund ignites philanthropic spirit while enhancing academic excellence
The 68th North Dakota Legislative Assembly renewed an amazing program to spur philanthropic giving to North Dakota state universities and enhance academic excellence. The North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Fund is providing a 50% match for contributions given to academic scholarships through the Mayville State University Foundation between July 1, 2023 and December 31, 2024. A total of $1.1 million will be available in matching funds. Not only did the legislators renew the funding for this biennium, but they also increased the amount that is allotted to Mayville State by $400,000 over the last biennium.
The North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Grant Fund program was established during the 2013-2015 legislative session. It is intended to ignite a philanthropic spirit to support North Dakota University System colleges and universities. Mayville State University has benefitted greatly from this funding in the past, and we are extremely grateful for this opportunity that directly impacts students in pursuit of their educational goals and dreams.
We are extremely grateful for our kind and generous alumni and friends who have helped us to meet the full match funding amount allotted in most of the biennia since the establishment of the North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Grant Fund program during the 2013-2015 legislative session. To have the financial support needed to exhaust all the matching funds available to Mayville State is truly a blessing that has helped us to have a significant positive impact for students.
Through the program, matching is available for outright cash gifts as well as estate and planned gifts. Gifts made in a will or estate plan, including gifts through a life insurance policy or retirement plan like a 401k, where Mayville State is named a beneficiary, are eligible.
Also allowed is a 50% match on the current value of charitable life income plans that the MSU Foundation can offer to seniors. These plans can provide guaranteed income rates of return based on the donor’s age, as well as excellent federal and state tax deductions and credits. Many of these tools also provide tax-free payouts on portions of the annual return.
The match program opens especially exciting opportunities for donors who may wish to establish named endowments at Mayville State. The MSU Foundation’s minimum amount needed to set up a named endowment is $15,000. With the match program, a donor’s gift of $10,000 will receive a 50% match, thus bringing the endowment to a fully funded level. There may also be some tax benefits for the donor.
If interested in these opportunities, you are encouraged to contact Dr. Lon Jorgensen, Executive Director of the MSU Foundation. He will be happy to work with donors and their accountants and financial advisors to determine gifting options that provide benefits for not only Mayville State University, but also the donor. Lon can be reached at 701-788-4787 or lonny.jorgensen@mayvillestate.edu.
North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Grant Fund program has already helped to take Mayville State’s academic excellence to an entirely new level through the increased support that has been received over the last several years. We ask everyone to consider Mayville State in a special way and help us take advantage of these matching funds available through December of 2024.
We have the amazing opportunity to boost the bang for the buck by an additional $1.1 million this biennium if we’re able to secure the $2.2 million in private giving needed to exhaust Mayville State’s Challenge Grant Fund allotment. All totaled, we can make a $3.3 million difference for Mayville State University and its students. This could be life-changing not only for the individuals who receive scholarship funding, but for the university as a whole as well.
The North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Fund provides a golden opportunity for Mayville State supporters to increase the impact of their giving by 50%. Please consider a gift today and contact Dr. Jorgensen at 701-788-4787 or lonny.jorgensen@mayvillestate.edu for more information.