NAMING OPPORTUNITIES
Preamble
Gordon College is an institution within the University System of Georgia. As such, it honors, respects, and upholds all stated USG policies and procedures affecting Gordon College. Included among these is the Board of Regents policy regarding the naming of campus facilities and streets as amended in May 2004, Policy 912, as well as the signage practices and standards policies of 908.3 and 917.
As stated in the Board of Regents Policy 912, "The Board of Regents considers the naming of a University System facility or street in honor of a living or deceased individual, corporation, foundation, or organization to be one of the highest distinctions that it can bestow. In light of the importance and magnitude of this honor, the following policy shall apply to the naming of all physical facilities and streets on all property owned or leased by the University System of Georgia, including facilities constructed by affiliated organizations of the institutions. The term "facility" is intended to include buildings of all types, as well as all sports facilities. It is also intended to include all outdoor areas that may not have physical walls but are nonetheless identifiable areas of campus landscape, such as quadrangles, gardens, lakes, recreation fields, etc. The term "facilities" does not include interior spaces, such as rooms, hallways, etc., within buildings and sports facilities. The Board of Regents delegates authority to the institution presidents to name such interior spaces. The Board of Regents will be notified for informational purposes only on any such interior space naming on a timely basis."
Gordon College fully embraces these policies as written as well as their spirit. Naming policies and all other Gordon policies related to the physical structures of Gordon College are maintained in keeping with the overall master plan of the College. The current plan was approved by the Board of Regents in 2003.
Gordon College recognizes and endorses the core statement within the USG policies as stated:
The act of naming a University System facility or street is the conferral of not only a high honor, but also a conspicuous honor. It publicly exhibits the judgment and standards of the University System of Georgia and signifies lasting approval of the actions of the honoree. Given the fact that a name may be on display for decades, the task of naming should not be taken lightly. Rather, each institution should carefully consider each name, seek advice, and use the utmost discretion in ensuring that those upon whom such an honor is bestowed are truly worthy.
In order to allow for the individual being honored to enjoy and take part in the honor when it is bestowed, the Board of Regents will allow facilities and streets to be named after a living individual if the person to be honored has provided outstanding service to the institution, to the nation, or to society, and has served with distinction.
When naming is to honor a living person for outstanding and distinguished service as a public servant, that person must have been disassociated from employment by or service to the University System or from state or federal government employment for at least two years prior to the naming.
The president of Gordon College shall endeavor to ensure that the proposed naming is consistent with the interests of the institution and the University System and that the value of service warrants the action proposed. All proposed namings at Gordon College will be submitted to the Chancellor, or his/her designee, who shall then submit the recommendations to the Board of Regents for approval. The Board of Regents must approve the proposed name of a facility or street, whether to honor an individual, corporation, foundation, or organization or to memorialize a deceased individual.
All namings pursuant to this policy are subject to periodic review to determine that the naming continues to be consistent with the interest of the institution as described in the policy manual of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.
Additionally, Gordon College supports and embraces the University System of Georgia guidelines regarding acceptance of all gifts including those guidelines in USG Policy 1905 for cooperative organizations:
The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, recognizing that public institutions are dependent, in part, on private funding (just as private institutions are partially dependent on public funding) encourages the institutions under its control to seek the support of alumni, friends, corporations, and other private individuals and organizations who might be interested in contributing to the welfare of the institutions, their students, and their faculties.
Funds raised from private donations may be used in support of the mission and objectives of the institution, including funds for student scholarships, salary supplements, construction of physical facilities, and gifts and grants for other purposes as may be designated by the donor. However, institutions are not authorized to commit any state funds for challenge or matching grants or gifts for the construction of facilities or for other purposes without prior approval of the Chancellor.
The Board of Regents shall not consider gifts, contributions, or income from endowments held for the benefit of any University System of Georgia institution in determining the allocation of state funds to that institution. (BR Minutes, 1980-81, p. 241; January 1997, p. 24).
The following guidelines, therefore, are provided to address the circumstances under which a facility, or other program, shall be named in recognition of the above stated gift or commitment. This policy document has, in accordance with USG guidelines, been submitted to the Board of Regents for review as outlined in Board of Regents Minutes dated May, 2004.
Financial Minimums for College Gifts
The following are gift guidelines for "named opportunities" at Gordon College. An endowed gift is one in which the original principal is never invaded. The gift exists in perpetuity. It is anticipated that outright pledges for named endowments will be funded within 5 years of the initial commitment. Income is distributed annually after the first year after the endowment is fully funded. Irrevocable named gifts will not be funded until such time as the college receives the corpus, or annual restricted gifts sufficient to fund the purpose for which the naming is created. Amounts required for annual restricted gifts are listed below each endowed level. It is possible for donors to establish a naming opportunity with an irrevocable estate provision in conjunction with current outright gifts.
There is no minimum limit for donating gifts to already existing endowments. The following schedule lists the suggested minimum requirements for establishing new endowments.
Principal responsibility for soliciting and arranging naming opportunities resides with the Vice President for Advancement, with the knowledge and consent of the President. While such funds should adhere to the funding minimums defined in this guideline in their preliminary negotiations, there may be circumstances that warrant special consideration and that deviate from these guidelines. In such circumstances when the consideration of other funding arrangements will best serve the wishes of the donor and the needs of the College, the final approval of amounts is subject to the acceptance by the Board of Trustees of the Gordon College Foundation upon the recommendation of the President of the College.
The following criteria will be included in the consideration:
Named Facilities and Streets:
The President of Gordon College is responsible for ensuring that all naming opportunities are consistent with the interests of both the College and the USG, whether that naming is due to an honorary recognition or monetary gift.
The naming of facilities and streets for a person is done to appropriately recognize outstanding service and/or generosity of the honoree.
For living persons the honoree must have provided truly outstanding service to the institution, the nation, or society in general. For public servants the person must have been disassociated from employment by or service to the USG, or from state or federal government employment for a minimum of two years prior to the naming.
For a deceased person, the same standard as that of a living person, but the two-year waiting minimum is waived upon the death of the individual.
For monetary donations buildings will be named for an individual who provides the College at least 50% of the value of construction costs of the facility. This will require an irrevocable agreement with the College assuring that the funds will be received in a reasonable period of time relative to the construction of the building. At no time will construction be authorized until 50% of all necessary funds are received with the remainder due legally binding.
In establishing and naming opportunities for space within buildings or centers, discretion will apply within each component of the College recognizing that care should be given in establishing equity with similar projects in other parts of the College.
The removal of a name from a facility is a serious consideration, but it may become necessary in circumstances when the donor fails to follow through on a commitment, maintain the high standards of the institution or the USG for which the original honor was based upon, or for other reasons deemed appropriate by the President and Gordon College Foundation trustees. At no time will a donor be given an assurance that the naming will remain beyond the useful life of the building. Should a named building be demolished, there will be another opportunity for naming.
Named Academic Divisions -- $24,000,000 to $31,500,000
Associating an individual, corporation, or foundation name with an academic division (Business & Social Science; Humanities; Mathematics and Natural Sciences; Nursing & Health Sciences) indicates great commitment on the part of the donor, acknowledging the highest level of partnership between the College and the donor. A donor may establish a named academic division with a transformational outright gift whose net present value equals or exceeds at least ¾ of the anticipated cost of operating the academic division. In addition to a fully endowed chair, the funds generated by the endowment will provide resources for student scholarships within the discipline (following scholarship guidelines as outlined in the Endowed Scholarship Manual), an annual symposium, research, library resources and equipment. Named endowed lectureships, faculty development funds, scholarships and lecture series may be named by additional donors within each academic division.
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of the determined total required endowment
Named Endowed Chair -- $1,000,000
A donor may establish a fully endowed chair with an outright or irrevocable gift whose net present value equals or exceeds $1 million. In addition to the salary provided for the incumbents, these funds provide additional support for the following (non-inclusive):
- Teaching and research
- Equipment, laboratory resources and computer resources
- Library resources
- Research assistants' stipends
- Conference attendance and travel
- Course development
- Relocation expenses
- Publishing, patent application or artistic creation
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $1,000,000
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $1,000,000
Named Endowed Professorship -- $500,000
With a gift of $500,000 a donor may endow and name a distinguished professorship. These funds may provide a supplement to the available salary for an existing faculty member, or provide honoraria and expense for visiting faculty or extended residences of up to one academic year.
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $500,000
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $500,000
Named Faculty Development Funds -- $500,000
With a gift of $500,000 a donor may establish an endowed fund to support faculty development. Income is used to support work of faculty members as they develop courses, strengthen teaching, and engage in other professional activities.
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $500,000
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $500,000
Named Lectureship or Lecture Series -- $250,000
With a gift of $250,000 a donor may endow and name a visiting lecture fund to bring distinguished speakers to campus.
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $250,000
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $250,000
Named Scholarships -- $25,000
These annual awards to a student are generally based on a combination of financial need and academic performance. Donor may state preference under college guidelines. The Gordon College Endowed Scholarship Manual further explains the process for the establishment of named scholarships.
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $25,000
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $25,000
Named Programs -- $100,000 to $500,000
A variety of programs within the college and its divisions may be named and supported by an endowment.
The College's endowment is invested for long-term gain and to provide a hedge against inflation; thus, endowment payout follows College endowment guidelines and is determined annually. The balance of the interest earned is returned to the corpus for continued growth of the endowment.
Naming Opportunities at Gordon College
Among the naming opportunities on campus are the following buildings and the amount required to name the building.
- Academic Building (construction cost - $1,832,000)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $916,000
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $916,000
- Fine Arts Building (construction cost - $3,766,000)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $1,888,000
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $1,888,000
- Instructional Complex (construction cost - $12,016,407)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $6,008,203
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $6,008,203
- Aquatic Center (construction cost - $704,250)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $352,125
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $352,125
- Student Center (construction cost - $2,620,860)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $1,310,430
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $1,310,430
- Gordon Commons: Building #1, Building #2, Building #3
(construction cost of each - $4,484,568)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $2,242,284
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $2,242,284
- Alumni House/Welcome Center (purchase cost - $115,667)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $57,833
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $57,833
- Spencer House I (purchase cost - $22,113)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $11,056
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $11,056
- Spencer House II (purchase cost - $21,758)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $10,374
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $10,374
- Georgia House (purchase cost - $43,291)
- Minimum Endowment Gift: $21,645
- Minimum Annual Gift: 5% of $21,645
Outdoor Naming Opportunities -- $10,000 to $175,000
- Fields
- Outdoor Courts
- 3 Basketball
- 9 Tennis
- 4 Racquetball
- 1 Sand Volleyball
- Ropes Course
- Amphitheatre
- Quad Area between Melton, Connell and Watson
- Cannon Plaza with Flagpole
- Pavilion at Sports Complex
- Plaza between Russell Hall and Georgia House
- Planned Pedestrian Walk along Gordon Road Roadbed
Interior Naming Opportunities -- $7,500 to $20,000
- 59 Classrooms
- 11 Science/Nursing Labs
- 12 Other Labs (writing, math, computer, art studios)
- 4 Lecture Halls
- 8 Specialized Rooms for Music and Theater
- 1 Large Auditorium
- 1 Small Auditorium
- 2 Conference rooms
- 1 Fitness Room
- 1 Weight Room
- 1 Recreation Room
- 3 Gallery/Lobby Areas
- 1 Cafeteria/Atrium
- 1 Student Lounge
- 1 Alumni Room
- Study Rooms in Library
Recognition Ceremonies
Recognition Ceremonies at the occasion of a naming shall be held after consultation with the College, the donor, and the Board of Regents. The Chancellor and the Board of Regents will be notified as soon as possible of the date and time of such an event.