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University of Southern California

Giving to Price

Ways to Give

There are many ways to give to USC Sol Price School of Public Policy. Giving consultants at USC can help you structure a tax deductible gift and gifts as part of your estate planning.

The school welcomes appreciated securities, stocks, and bonds, as well as those of real estate and personal property. You can also make a pledge to support the school over a period of time. To learn more about these options, email [email protected].

Unrestricted gifts are among the most valuable to USC Price, because they allow us to allocate funds wherever the need is greatest and take advantage of unique opportunities as they arise.

Directed gifts allow you to designate your gift to a specific program or priority area at USC Price. This type of gift gives you the satisfaction of knowing you are supporting a program that is of truly personal meaning.

You may also designate a gift for:

  • Current use, to provide funds and flexibility over the short term, or
  • Endowment gifts, which provide security over the long term by expanding USC Price’s permanent financial base.  This creates a predictable source of future income for such priorities as endowed faculty positions, scholarships and fellowships, and broad-based interdisciplinary research projects.

Giving by Mail 

USC Advancement Gift Services
1150 South Olive Street, 25th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90015

Checks should be payable to the University of Southern California. Please note the fund name or Price School in the memo line.

Types of Gifts

Outright Gifts
When you make an outright gift to USC Price, your contribution can be put to work immediately – by providing funding for current programs or by creating a reliable source of future income by expanding the school’s endowment. An outright gift may be composed of almost any asset of value, including:

  • Cash Gifts
    The simplest and easiest gifts you can make, cash gifts may be made through credit/debit card transactions, outright cash, personal checks, cashier’s checks, or money orders made payable to: “USC Sol Price School of Public Policy Annual Fund.” USC also has a wire account; email [email protected] for details.
  • Gifts of Appreciated Securities, Stocks, and Bonds
    Securities provide considerable tax advantages when transferred to USC Price before they are sold. If you have held your securities for more than one year, you may find that your gift will provide a two-fold tax benefit, creating an income-tax deduction as well as helping avoid capital gains taxes that would have been due upon their sale.If you wish to transfer stocks from a broker’s account, USC has accounts with major brokerage firms. You also may make a gift of mutual funds, non-marketable stock, or closely held stock. Please email [email protected] for further details and information.
  • Matching Gift
    Many employers will match your gift to the School, making it an easy way to double or even triple the value of your gift. Please send your contribution as indicated above, along with a completed matching gift form (available from your company’s personnel or employee relations office). For online gifts, simply follow the matching gift instructions when you fill out the form.

Gifts of Real Estate
Personal residences, second homes, income property and vacant land gifts offer a wide variety of tax and other benefits. While most give their entire interest away, it is also possible to give only a portion of the property (an undivided percentage interest) while retaining the rest for other purposes.

Planned Gifts
USC’s team of planned giving experts can help you create guaranteed retirement income or reduce your estate or capital gains taxes. Read about planned giving for more information.

Gift Pledges
Make a formal statement of your intention to give. Pledged gifts are directed to USC through regular payments over time. Each payment on your pledge is eligible for an income-tax charitable deduction. This is one of the best ways to give more generously than you may have thought possible.

To make a gift to USC Price, please email [email protected]. Or make a gift online now.

Annual Fund

The USC Sol Price School of Public Policy is a world-renowned institution that cultivates scholars to improve the quality of life, locally and globally. Currently ranked 4th among “America’s Best Graduate Schools” for public affairs, according to U.S. News & World Report, USC Price continues its academic excellence through research and practice.

The USC Price Annual Fund serves to provide students and faculty the finest resources of higher education. A gift to USC Price will allow the school to provide scholarships to today’s gifted students, retain award-winning faculty, advance classroom technology, promote innovative research and learning strategies, and sponsor educational labs abroad. Your donations, consequentially, improve the educational opportunities for USC Price students.

Through USC Price’s interdisciplinary studies, including planning, policy, public administration, health, and real estate development, students can learn innovative ways to building healthy and thriving communities. USC Price’s impact is also emphasized on a larger, global scale through the International Educational Labs. A gift to the USC Price Annual Fund will grant students hands-on experiences to solving the most critical societal issues, from local neighborhoods to worldwide.

One of the school’s primary objectives is to encourage interdisciplinary work through its research centers. USC Price provides a remarkably rich research environment for the faculty, who present significant contributions of knowledge in their respective fields. Your support to the USC Price Annual Fund will allow faculty to receive the best resources to conduct ground-breaking research, inviting students to explore and engage in their studies.

While we face challenges in all aspects of society, during trying economic times like these, it is comforting to know our faculty are preparing our students to tackle society’s most pressing issues and become talented leaders in USC Price’s degree programs.

In advance, we thank you for your support, and we look forward to working together as partners in the pursuit of academic excellence at the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy!

Endowment Gifts

Endowment gifts are among the highest priorities of the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy’s Strategic Plan. Our endowment is vital because it provides a consistent source of income that continues to grow over time. Endowment funds are strategically invested by USC, and USC Price receives a portion of the earnings every year.

Endowment Gifts

  • May be named for an individual, a family, or for someone the donor wishes to honor
  • Provide ongoing support for USC Price
  • Secure your legacy at USC forever

Endowment giving options include:

Chairs and Professorships
A named chair or professorship recognizes scholarly excellence and is the highest honor the School can bestow upon a faculty member.

Student Scholarships and Fellowships
Scholarship and fellowship support enhances USC Price’s ability to reward outstanding students, or it may provide student aid based on merit or financial need.

Additional endowment giving opportunities include:

  • Academic Programs
  • Research Institutes and Centers
  • Classrooms and Broadcast Studios

For more information on how you can support USC Price’s endowment, please contact:

Esmeralda Garcia
Development Officer
USC Price School of Public Policy
(213) 821-0593
[email protected]

Planned Giving

Many thoughtful alumni, parents, and friends have made planned giving their preferred way to support the USC Price School of Public Policy.

You do need not be wealthy to leave a legacy gift. Planned giving can be as simple as including a bequest provision in your will or naming USC Price as a beneficiary of your life insurance policy/retirement plan. Regardless of the amount, your gift will make a vital difference in the lives of students and faculty working to improve society through research and scholarship.

Planned gifts to USC Price can offer a wide variety of benefits:

  • Annual income for you and/or a beneficiary
  • Avoid capital gains on appreciated assets
  • Significant tax savings
  • Create a permanent legacy at USC
  • Membership in the Athenian Society

We ask you to join other generous Price supporters by remembering our school as you plan for the future. Here are some of the ways you can make your planned gift:

Establishing a bequest to USC Price honors a lifetime of academic and professional achievement. This method of planned giving will help future generations achieve their dreams. Click here for sample bequest language that will help you to allocate a bequest gift to USC Price.

USC’s Plan Your Gift Chart can help you determine which option best meets your individual financial goals.

For information about alternative gift options, please contact Esmeralda Garcia, Development Officer, USC Price School of Public Policy, at (213) 821-0593, or email her [email protected].

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