Colleges Turn to Gift Fees to Cover Fund-Raising Costs

More colleges are mulling gift fees to help pay for development operations as the floundering economy bites into donations, The Chronicle of Higher Education reports.

Administrators and consultants say schools are increasingly likely to deduct the fees, typically 3 to 5 percent of the gift, as the economy worsens and state support and endowments slide.

The levies can be unpopular with donors, deans, and faculty members, who want gifts to go entirely for the intended purpose. But university foundation officials say they are preferable to cutting back on development staff, which could hurt fund-raising more in the long run.

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