HOW DO WE ENSURE FIDELITY TO DONOR INTENT?
CASE STUDY
Arthur N. Rupe Foundation
Foundations have an obligation to fulfill their founding donors' intentions as best they can. If your donor has passed away, you may need to know what his or her founding intentions were. Are you still following them? How do you fulfill your donor's intentions in light of today's changed circumstances? How do you restore donor intent once it has been compromised?
If you are a donor who has established a foundation, how you choose your trustees and staff, structure your giving entity, craft your mission statement, and make your mission operational during your lifetime have important consequences for the preservation of your intentions over time.
ARTHUR N. RUPE FOUNDATION:
"To shine the light of truth on critical and controversial issues" is the core mission of the Arthur N. Rupe Foundation. Its founder, Arthur N. Rupe, was a successful high school debater who believes that the promotion of genuine debate is essential to the preservation of a free and democratic society.
As a result, the Rupe Foundation has taken an active role in funding the nation's leading high school debate organization, the National Forensic League, and is the principal sponsor of major collegiate debate competitions like the Madison Cup at James Madison University. In coming years, the foundation will also sponsor civic-debate initiatives in cities throughout the country.
How to ensure that future leaders of the foundation adhere to the donor's intention of promoting free and open debate is a recurring issue for the foundation's current leadership. American Philanthropic is working with the Arthur N. Rupe Foundation to establish an operational framework that will help to ensure the founder's intentions are carried out over time.
RELATED SERVICES:
- Strategic planning—including clarifying goals, identifying and setting up the correct giving vehicle, donor-intent preservation, and impact assessment.
- Strategic goal setting.
- Donor intent planning.
