Frequently Asked Questions
Checks or other gifts sent by U.S. Mail should be addressed to:
UT Foundation
Constituent Management
Advancement Services
1525 University Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37921
If your question is not answered below, please contact us at cmr@utfi.org or 865-974-0381.
General Advancement Questions
If UT has your email address on file, you should have already received your 2025 giving summary via email on Friday January 30, 2026. Please check all household emails we might have on file as well as your junk/spam folders. If you do not find it, don’t worry. We will send you a replacement.
How to submit a request for a 2025 giving summary:
- Call Constituent Management: (865) 974-0381 during business hours (8-5 EST) or leave a message with the information referenced below.
- Email: CMR@utfi.org providing the information requested below.
Please provide the following information:
- First and last name
- Grad year (if applicable)
- Your preferred delivery method (either email or snail mail via US Postal Service)
- Your email address
- Your preferred mailing address
Requests are typically completed within 3 business days from receipt of your request.
Foundation Tax ID #: 62-1844686
DTC Number: 0443
Foundation Tax ID #: 62-1844686
Gifts of publicly traded stock or other securities are received electronically by the UT Foundation through our broker, BNY Mellon. Your broker initiates the transfer from your account to the UT Foundation BNY Mellon account. Stocks are liquidated by BNY Mellon, and gifts are credited to your account when the stock proceeds are received. A receipt will be issued by the UT Foundation Constituent Management when the gift is posted.
More InformationThe University of Tennessee strives to follow the below rights for donors as developed by the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP), Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), Giving Institute: Leading Consultants to Non-Profits.
Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To assure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the not-for-profit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights:
I. To be informed of the organization’s mission, of the way the organization intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.
II. To be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization’s governing board,
and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.
III. To have access to the organization’s most recent financial statements.
IV. To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.
V. To receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition.
VI. To be assured that information about their donations is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.
VII. To expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature.
VIII. To be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of the organization or hired solicitors.
IX. To have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share.
X. To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful, and forthright answers.
Adopted in 1993 · Copyright AFP, AHP, CASE, Giving Institute 2015 · All Rights Reserved
Scholarship FAQs
Each of our 42 alumni chapters award scholarships to students who hail from their region.
Learn More About ChaptersOur Special Interest councils award scholarships to students who represent their communities. Visit our council pages to learn more about alumni councils and how you can support their scholarships.
Learn More About CouncilsWhat are Tri-Star Scholarships?
The Tri-Star Scholarship Program expands Tennessee residents’ access to a transformational UT education through three scholarships: Pledge, UT Promise, and Flagship.
Our goal is to ensure that all in-state students who qualify academically have a pathway to UT free of financial barriers.
Learn About Tri-Star ScholarshipsWhat Is a Scholarship Endowment?
Endowed gifts propel educational excellence, permanently.
An endowment fund remains intact in perpetuity, and its earnings support the area designated by the donor, whether it be student scholarships, faculty, or a college program.
Learn About EndowmentsEndowment FAQs
Perhaps the most rewarding aspect of establishing an endowment is that it allows you to directly accomplish your philanthropic goals while helping the university fund its initiatives and priorities.
The reasons for creating a named endowment are varied: the satisfaction of supporting academic excellence; the gratification of furthering important research; the pleasure of honoring a spouse, family member, or colleague in a way that is meaningful to him or her; the comfort of memorializing a loved one with a living legacy.
Additionally, creating an endowment may result in tax savings and other financial benefits that may enable you to give more than you might have thought possible.
The minimum gift level required to establish endowments are:
Faculty Support
- Faculty Awards: $100,000–$499,999
- Professorships: $500,000–$999,999
- Distinguished Professorships: $1,000,000–$1,999,999
- Faculty Chairs: $2,000,000+
- Dean’s Chairs: $3,000,000+
If a donor wishes to make a cash and estate gift towards a faculty endowment, then the award title will be the cash amount and once the bequest is realized, the award will change to the increased endowment value.
Student Scholarships
- Undergraduate Scholarship: $25,000
- Graduate Fellowship: $250,000
A minimum amount of $25,000 is required to establish an endowment; however, this can be pledged over a number of years. The gift for endowment purposes may take any of several forms. It can be an outright gift of cash; appreciated properties such as securities, real estate, and tangible and intangible personal property (art, books, copyrights, oil and gas interests, etc.) acceptable to the university. Endowments can also be created through a gift by will, a charitable trust or other life income plan, retirement plan assets, or an insurance policy. To learn more about planned gifts visit giftplanning.utk.edu.
You can also add to your endowment, beyond the initial funding level, through lifetime gifts, bequests, and beneficiary designations from life insurance or retirement plans. Many businesses and corporations have matching gift programs through which they match—and may double, triple, or increase by even more—donations made by employees. Participation in such a program enables your endowment to reach higher levels faster. UT Advancement staff are available to assist you in selecting a gift arrangement to best meet your financial and charitable goals.
Endowments allow the university to create and maintain excellence in academics beyond what can be accomplished with funding from the state. Endowments provide the funds for scholarships, fellowships, professorships, academic chairs, libraries, and programs that serve as crucial elements in student and faculty recruitment and retention.
When the gift or pledge is received, an Endowed Gift Agreement will be executed between you and the university. The agreement outlines the terms and conditions of your endowment gift. The university cannot change the agreement without the expressed consent of the donor or the donor’s designated representative.
Your fund will be officially endowed once the base funding requirement is fulfilled. The university will then administer your fund in adherence to the terms of agreement. You will receive an annual report on the use of your endowment funds from the chancellor of the university.
Your endowment will be invested in the university’s Consolidated Investment Pool (CIP). This pool is invested utilizing the expertise of internal staff at the university who work closely with an outside consultant to craft a dynamic investment program that addresses the needs of all constituents.
DAFpay FAQs
Over 1,000 DAF providers are searchable in the DAFpay directory, including the top 15 most popular DAF providers for UT donors.
The minimum DAF donation varies by DAF provider—this can range from $20–$250+. If a donor enters an amount less than the minimum and then selects DAFpay, their donation amount will be increased to the minimum and they will be notified of the required increase before they confirm their donation.
DAFpay is built and operated with comprehensive security tools and compliance protocols in accordance with all applicable regulations related to data privacy and protection. None of your DAF account information is recorded by DAFpay or shared with any parties.
Because your transaction is processed by DAFpay Network and sent electronically to the UT Foundation, your gift is more secure than when sent via checks in the mail, which is prone to loss, theft, fraud and human entry errors. Learn more »
There is no cost for a donor to use DAFpay.
Donors cannot use DAFpay in the following circumstances:
- When setting up a recurring gift
- When accepting an incentive for making a gift
- When establishing a match or challenge gift
Initiating your grant through DAFpay is the fastest and easiest way for you to give via your donor-advised fund.
Other benefits:
- Helps avoid lost checks, mailing delays, or gifts accidentally being submitted to the wrong organization or campaign.
- Shortens gift processing time so your gift goes to work as quickly as possible.
- Allows us to acknowledge your gift more quickly.
If your DAF provider is missing or listed incorrectly, please email dsi@utfi.org and we will request to have your provider added to the database.
Contact your fund manager or financial institution to recommend a gift to the UT Foundation.
Please use our legal name and federal tax ID:
Legal name: University of Tennessee Foundation, Inc.
Address: 1525 University Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37921
Federal tax ID number: 62-1844686
For more information or to speak with us about creating a legacy of support with a planned gift, please visit our Planned Giving webpage.
