Giving to Berklee

This year, remarkable contributions were made to the college, which helped us achieve important milestones. More important is what the gifts will allow us to accomplish. As in past issues, we have selected stories that show how some of our benefactors chose to support the life of Berklee. Collectively, supporters this year gave more than $3 million for the first time in the college’s history. The foundation of that support has always been the annual donor.

We are particularly grateful to the donors who choose to annually support Berklee’s work to prepare students for careers in music. Annual support is the equivalent of adding a sizeable amount of money to the endowment. In a sense, annual donors form a kind of living endowment. For example, if the amount contributed this year were given annually, it would be as if we added $60 million to the endowment. Special thanks for those who continue to support Berklee. If this is your first year making a gift, we hope you will continue your generosity.

The milestone gifts received this year include our first endowed chair, our first charitable remainder lead trust, and our first U.S. Department of Education grant. This year, a foundation grant permitted us to double the number of full scholarships awarded to Berklee City Music students—and these are just a few of the gifts.

What is an endowed chair? Several times this year I have answered this question. There is a two-part answer. The endowed part is a kind of a savings account. The college uses a portion of the income to support a member of the faculty, the chair part. These faculty appointments are leaders in their field and are truly worthy of the honor.

Why are endowed chairs given? Donors who make these generous gifts typically have a couple of goals in mind. They want to ensure the ongoing excellence of a program. It is also to honor at least two people. The first honoree is the person for whom the donor names the chair, in this case, Gary Burton. It is also an honor for the holder of the chair. The first Gary Burton Professor in Jazz Performance is Joe Lovano. J. Scott Benson, the donor, has honored with one gift two leading jazz figures and given the students an opportunity to learn from a master musician.

Another question this year was, “What is a charitable remainder lead unitrust?” Despite its moniker, the concept is simple, albeit not a gift for everyone. Commonly, trusts are created to provide income to someone until the trust ends, typically when the beneficiary dies. The principal is then given to a nonprofit organization. In a lead trust the income will benefit Berklee. Dorothy Flynn created a trust to provide an income to the college for the next 15 years, which will provide extremely generous support for scholarships. At the end of that time, the principal will go to designated family members.

The Berklee City Music Program is designed to involve inner-city high school students in a collegiate experience that provides the training they will need to pursue higher education. The dedicated Berklee student and faculty volunteers use their musical talent to establish a foundation upon which urban youths can build their skills. In prior years, the Encore Gala has supported four students who graduated from the Berklee City Music Program to attend Berklee as full-time students on full-tuition scholarships. The Theodore R. & Vivian M. Johnson Foundation this year made it possible for four more students to come to Berklee, for a total of eight.

This year the Berklee City Music Program again benefited from the generosity of gifts, time, and talent devoted to the annual New Trustees. Trustees and others worked harder than ever to make the most of this event. We were very pleased to raise $382,000, surpassing last year’s fabulous event. The college is grateful to lead sponsor Schwab Capital Markets, other sponsors, table holders, and program book sponsors for their continued generosity.

After a rigorous competition, Berklee received a federal grant for instructing teachers in the use of technology. It is the first time we have received a U.S. Department of Education grant, and we were the only music college selected among the finalists. Therefore, we are the only one selected to create programs for the use of technology in teaching music. This is an important statement about the importance of technology in the classroom and the future direction of music.

This fiscal year we surpassed our fundraising goal by 89 percent. The purposes for giving include scholarships, faculty development, visiting artists, technology, and facilities. We are truly grateful to the 1,551 donors who supported Berklee’s Annual Fund.

On behalf of the students who benefit directly from these gifts, I would like to personally thank the many donors who chose to show their support in many generous ways. I would also like to express my gratitude to the trustees and other volunteers who helped introduce the college to some of our newest donors.

The college is grateful to all the individuals and organizations that chose to support Berklee. Many gave because they received a letter, a telephone call, or a personal visit. This support would not have been achievable without the countless hours spent by volunteers and students who work to bring people closer to the college. I also would like to show appreciation for the dedication and enthusiasm that the staff in the Alumni Affairs, Development, and Public Information Departments (a.k.a. Institutional Advancement) have for the college’s mission and its talented students.

To those who are considering how to make a gift to Berklee, please read about the many ways you can support the college in the section entitled “Creative Ways to Make Charitable Gifts.” For convenience, donors are now giving online by visiting our web site (www.berklee.edu/giving) and looking over our contribution pages.

Please enjoy Giving to Berklee. For those of you who know the college, we hope it will offer you a closer look. For those of you getting to know Berklee, we hope this publication will give you a deeper understanding of an amazing institution, unique in all the world.

Sincerely,

David M. McKay
Vice President for Institutional Advancement