Support

The Foundation was established in 1968 as a 501 (c) (3) corporation to support the University of South Alabama.  From 1990 the Foundation has contributed more than $109 Million to the University of South Alabama.  More than $9.7 Million in contributions were made to the University of South Alabama during this fiscal year.  The Foundation’s net assets were $298,991,000 at March 31, 2008.

As an independent not-for-profit foundation, the assets of the Foundation can be safeguarded from third party intervention and ensure support for the University in perpetuity. The Foundation is proud to support the University of South Alabama as it provides an excellent educational opportunity to people of the great state of Alabama.

Philosophy of Endowment Foundations

The central philosophy of endowment foundations is to assure the purchasing power over the long run of the endowment assets, while supporting the current operating needs of an institution. As David F. Swensen, Chief Investment Officer, Yale University, in Pioneering Portfolio Management states:

“Successfully managed endowments retain forever the ability to provide a particular level of institutional support, justifying the classification of endowment funds as permanent assets. Pursuit of long-term asset preservation requires seeking high returns, accepting the accompanying fundamental risk and associated market volatility.”

An endowment foundation balances these two divergent requirements. Over the years, the Board of Directors of the Foundation has evaluated these two forces of driving endowment accumulation while providing an incremental source of funds that will allow the University to be a truly superior one, and has acted in a prudent manner to meet both objectives.