Public higher education has grown to appreciate added support from charitable gifts. Philanthropic support for public higher education reaches back to the early 1900s, when public universities needed funding assistance to build campus facilities because state funds were stretched thin. To facilitate the process of acquiring, receiving, and…

In the late summer of 2008, after the 2007-2008 fiscal year's books had closed, the nation's wealthiest universities were confronted with an unfamiliar sight: single-digit endowment returns. Not since 2003 had Harvard University (Cambridge, Massachusetts), Princeton University (Princeton, New Jersey), or Stanford University (Stanford, California)…

Tax-exempt leasing is examined and compared to other financing mechanisms, and its applicability and the variety of structuring options available to public colleges and universities as lessees are explored. (MSE)

Many small, private colleges are examining aggressive ways of economically developing their land and other physical assets by strategies ranging from direct ownership of tangible property to joint and participating ownership arrangements consisting of leases, financing, and partnerships. In all cases, however, potential tax consequences should be…