Naming and Gift Recognition

Policy 2.45 · Adopted 2006 · Last revised 2019 · Responsible office: Bellweather College Foundation and Office of the President · Next review 2024

This policy governs the naming of College facilities, spaces, scholarships, awards, and fellowships in recognition of a gift or in honor of a person, and the removal of a name. The authority to name a College facility or space rests with the Board of Trustees. The Bellweather College Foundation is a separate legal entity; it names the funds it holds, under fund agreements, within this policy.

1. Minimum gifts

A naming in recognition of a gift requires a gift of not less than the amount below, paid or pledged under a written gift agreement. A pledged gift is payable over not more than five years. Meeting a minimum makes a naming eligible for consideration; it does not entitle the donor to a naming.

Minimums apply to namings approved after adoption of this policy in 2006. Funds and namings established before that date are not affected. An endowed fund is not drawn upon for an award until its balance supports the award stated in the fund agreement.

2. What is not named

• Equipment. Equipment is not named, and the College declines equipment offered on the condition that it be named or displayed. A gift of equipment may be acknowledged in the Foundation’s annual report.
• Academic programs, divisions, and courses. These are not named in recognition of a gift.
• Designations. A space keeps its wing and room designation. A naming is added to the designation and does not replace it in the room numbering, the directory, or wayfinding.

3. Who may be honored

A facility, space, or fund may be named for a donor, for a person the donor wishes to honor, or, without a gift, for a person whose service to the College the Board wishes to recognize. A current employee, a current trustee, a current director of the Foundation, or a holder of elected public office is not eligible until two years after that service ends. A name is not approved where the gift is conditioned on an admission, employment, procurement, or academic decision of the College.

Memorial namings. The College does not establish memorials, plaques, scholarships, or named spaces at the time of a death. A request is received and is considered by the Foundation after one year, as provided in Policy 2.60, Death of a Student or Employee. A memorial gift to an existing fund may be made at any time; see Giving.

A donor may decline naming recognition. A fund established by a donor who declines recognition is designated by number.

4. Approval

1. A proposed naming is submitted in writing to the Executive Director of the Foundation, who reviews the gift agreement and the proposed name.
2. The President reviews the proposal and determines whether it will be recommended.
3. A naming of a facility or space is acted on by the Board of Trustees at a regular meeting, in public session. A naming of a fund is acted on by the Foundation board and reported to the Board of Trustees.

No naming is announced, and no sign, plaque, or publication is prepared, before approval. The form, size, and wording of any sign or plaque are determined by the College.

5. Duration and removal

A naming of a facility or space continues for as long as the space is used for substantially the purpose for which it was named. When a named space is renovated, reassigned, or vacated, the President may recommend that the Board recognize the name in another space or in another form; the College is not obligated to do so.

The Board of Trustees may remove a name on the recommendation of the President where a pledge is not fulfilled; where continued association would, in the Board’s judgment, be inconsistent with the mission or harm the reputation of the College; or at the written request of the donor or the honoree’s family. A fund named by the Foundation may be renamed by the Foundation board on the same grounds. Removal of a name does not of itself require the return of any gift.