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College Giving that Honors Your Legacy

Ensure your generosity aligns with your values, safeguards your intent, and creates a lasting impact where it matters most.

Build Your Legacy

Don’t Leave Your Legacy to Chance

Strategic giving comes with complex decisions. At the Fund for Academic Renewal, we support alumni, college donors, and their advisors in ensuring their contributions are used as intended, fostering targeted philanthropy that aligns with their values in higher education.

Donate with Purpose

Take Pride in the Legacy You Leave Behind​

Your gift can help college students receive a top-quality education, equipping them for success in their careers and lives.​

Build Your Legacy

Give with Purpose

Define your impact and know what you want to support before you sign the check. ​

Give with Clarity

Distill your purpose into a clear gift agreement, ensuring the university can honor your contribution effectively. ​

Reflect your Values

Pay it forward—help the next generation access the opportunities that shaped you.​

Ways to Give

There are many ways for donors to make a difference on campus. While these four options are among the most common, we go beyond the obvious to help you find the best giving opportunity that aligns with your vision.​

Build Your Legacy

Scholarships​

Open doors for students by helping them afford tuition, attend transformative summer programs, or secure valuable internships.

Discover the Impact

Endowed Chair​

Ensure that future generations of students can learn from top scholars in critical subject areas.

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Academic Centers​

Support on-campus initiatives—such as those in our Oasis of Excellence network—that promote in-depth exploration of the topics that matter most to you.

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Lecture Series​

Bring influential public figures and thought leaders to campus, enriching students’ education with diverse perspectives and meaningful dialogue.

We Understand the Complexities of Higher Education

With 30 years of experience in higher education reform, we understand how many complex and overwhelming decisions are involved in making a gift that aligns with your values and maximizes your impact. At the Fund for Academic Renewal, we have guided philanthropists like you in directing over $255 million in transformative gifts to higher education, ensuring their generosity creates lasting change.​

Build Your Legacy

A Simple Path to Meaningful Giving

Share Your Vision

Tell us about your goals and the impact you want your gift to achieve.​

Get Expert Guidance

We’ll review your gift, ensure it aligns with your values, and maximize its effectiveness.​

Create Lasting Impact

Make a gift that truly matters, protecting your intent and leaving a legacy in higher education.

Real Donors, Real Impact

Be inspired by donors who transformed higher education through innovative and meaningful giving.

Build Your Legacy
“We all have fond memories of our college years. But increasingly, many alumni cannot recognize their alma maters, because the deep immersion in the liberal arts they remember has given way to hyperspecialized research and classes on trendy topics. During my years as a university president and philanthropic leader, I found that the Fund for Academic Renewal was a resource for sound advice and creative ideas to ensure that undergraduates receive a high-quality education that prepares them for career and citizenship. This is a vital initiative for donors who wish to find new ways to support a renewal of academic life in this country.”
The Honorable Hank Brown
Former U.S. Senator, Colorado President Emeritus, University of Colorado Former President and CEO, Daniels Fund
“Friends of academic excellence and academic freedom have something new to be excited about: the Fund for Academic Renewal. The Fund supports and encourages the creation of centers of excellence at colleges and universities around the country. It provides alumni and other supporters with an opportunity to put their generosity to work in ways that are consistent with their values and which reflect their belief in high standards of scholarship and teaching.”
Robert P. George
McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence & Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions, Princeton University
“It has probably never been more difficult to donate prudently to higher education than it is today, when so many basic assumptions about the aims of higher education and the norms of scholarship are in dispute. ACTA’s Fund for Academic Renewal is an invaluable asset to any donor who wishes to make informed decisions.”
Truman Anderson
Former Executive Director, The Stuart Family Foundation
“Reform-minded trustees and college leaders know that many alumni are deeply dissatisfied with tendentious curricula and the limited range of viewpoints found on all too many college campuses. Alumni and college donors are invaluable allies in the fight to insist that colleges meet the highest standards of intellectual rigor, including study of American history and institutions of freedom. Targeted philanthropy is one of the most effective ways to deliver the focus and intellectual integrity higher education so desperately needs. The Fund for Academic Renewal can help donors restore excellence to higher education through thoughtful, selective giving.”
Jane Barrows Tatibouet
President, Hawaii Hotel Consultants Former Trustee, Cornell University Former Regent, University of Hawaii System

Strategic Giving and Impact

Learn how FAR has helped donors overcome the challenges of higher ed giving.

Build Your Legacy

How do I support academic excellence?

FAR helped Robert S. Krupp support academic excellence by connecting him with faculty leading a landmark scholarly project and structuring a gift that advanced Tocqueville studies while securing recognition through Harvard’s 25th Reunion Fund.

Discover the Impact

How do I find a faculty friend?

FAR helped the MacNeils bring their philanthropic vision to life by introducing them to aligned faculty at Furman University and guiding the creation of the Tocqueville Program. Through this partnership, FAR facilitated a transformative academic initiative that continues to grow and inspire students.

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How do I create a new program?

FAR helped Stephen S. Smith turn his vision into a thriving academic center by guiding the strategic development of a new interdisciplinary program and fostering collaboration with faculty to ensure its long-term success. Through FAR’s support, the Smith Center evolved to meet student needs while staying true to the donor’s core mission.

Discover the Impact

How do I safeguard my donor intent?

FAR helped Angelo Pizzagalli safeguard his donor intent by advising on a carefully structured gift agreement—including a clawback provision—that ensured his vision for a free enterprise chair at the University of Vermont would be honored. Their guidance balanced institutional needs with enforceable protections for long-term impact.

Discover the Impact

Make Every Dollar Count

Giving to higher education is an opportunity to create lasting impact. With so many options, how do you ensure your gift aligns with your values and goals?

Download our Intelligent Donor’s Guide to navigate the complexities of college giving with confidence and strategy.