The University of Montana Foundation

What The University of Montana Foundation does

The University of Montana Foundation is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation established in 1950 and headquartered in Missoula, Montana. It serves as the sole institutionally recognized fundraising and endowment-management vehicle for the University of Montana, operating under an agreement reviewed by the Montana University System. The Foundation's core function is to inspire, receive, and steward private philanthropic support for UM, managing approximately $70 million in annual gifts and distributing $20-40 million annually to the University across scholarships, academic programs, faculty positions, facilities, and research initiatives.

The Foundation's product portfolio spans an online giving platform (supportum.org) with modern payment integrations (Venmo, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, cryptocurrency), planned-giving vehicles (charitable remainder trusts, charitable gift annuities, donor-advised funds), annual giving programs (The Big Give 24-hour event, crowdfunding campaigns, Giving Tuesday), and endowment management services. Revenue is generated through a 1.86% per annum administrative fee on endowed funds, a 5% one-time development fee on non-endowed gifts, and a 10% liquidation fee on property sale proceeds. The Foundation employs 70+ professional staff, including college-embedded Directors of Development for Forestry and Conservation, Arts and Media, and Journalism, overseen by President and CEO Cindy Williams.

Go-to-market is relationship-driven and community-led, combining grassroots volunteerism with major-gift cultivation, event-based campaigns, and digital crowdfunding. The Foundation serves four primary segments: individual donors (alumni and non-alumni), business and corporate donors, private foundations, and UM students as beneficiaries of donor-supported scholarships and emergency funds. The most significant historical initiative was Campaign Montana (July 2013 - August 2020), which raised $450.9 million from more than 34,000 donors, making it the most successful higher education fundraising campaign in Montana history.

Name

The University of Montana Foundation

Legal name

University of Montana Foundation

Website

https://supportum.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1950

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The University of Montana Foundation is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation established in 1950 that serves as the sole institutionally recognized fundraising and endowment management vehicle for the University of Montana, stewarding approximately $70 million in annual philanthropic gifts from individual, corporate, and foundation donors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Fundraising Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

College Access, Scholarships & Student Success Nonprofits (BPAGADAE), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Major Gifts, Planned Giving & Endowment Development (EDALAOAC), Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Higher education fundraising
• Endowment management services
• Planned giving programs
• Scholarship administration
• Nonprofit foundation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Missoula

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Endowment Administrative Fee: A 1.86% per annum administrative fee charged on the Foundation's endowment funds. The fee is assessed annually based on the weighted average of the past twelve quarter-end unit values of each endowed fund.
2. Development Fee: A one-time 5% development fee on non-endowed, non-scholarship gifts. All bequest gifts have a one-time 5% development fee assessed including both scholarship and endowed gifts.
3. Liquidation Fee: A 10% liquidation fee assessed on the sale proceeds net of expenses incurred on the sale of property.
4. Philanthropic Gifts: The Foundation receives charitable donations including cash, stocks, bonds, real property, and pledges to make future gifts in an estate plan. Gifts are received from individuals, families, businesses, and private foundations totaling approximately $70 million annually.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The University of Montana Foundation is an independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation that manages private philanthropic giving in support of the University of Montana. It solicits and processes charitable gifts from alumni, individuals, families, businesses, and private foundations; manages the invested endowment; and distributes approximately $20–40 million annually to UM programs, scholarships, faculty, and facilities. Core service lines include annual giving programs, planned giving vehicles, endowment administration, crowdfunding, and online giving.

Product overview

The University of Montana Foundation operates as an independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that serves as the primary fundraising arm for the University of Montana. The Foundation offers a comprehensive portfolio of giving programs including online giving platforms, planned giving vehicles (charitable remainder trusts, gift annuities, donor-advised funds), annual giving programs (The Big Give, crowdfunding campaigns), scholarship programs, and endowment management services. The organization manages approximately $70 million in annual philanthropic gifts supporting UM's academic achievement, research, and student success initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Online Giving Platform Donor-facing digital platform enabling online donations to the University of Montana with multiple payment methods including Venmo, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and cryptocurrency options, processed through PCI-compliant payment infrastructure.
• Annual Giving Programs Recurring donation programs including The Big Give, a 24-hour annual online giving event held each spring to inspire alumni, donors, parents, and friends to support UM students, as well as Giving Tuesday and UM Phonathon efforts.
• Crowdfunding Campaign Annual fall crowdfunding campaign inviting campus programs and community causes to raise support through online platforms, enabling alumni, parents and friends to support specific projects.
• Planned Giving Deferred gift planning service for donors, encompassing charitable remainder trusts, charitable gift annuities, qualified charitable distributions, donor-advised funds, and planned estate gifts, with gift calculator tools for estimating benefits.
• Charitable Remainder Trusts Trust arrangements where donors transfer cash, stock, or real estate and the trust makes payments to donors for life or a period of years, with remaining assets supporting the University of Montana.
• Charitable Gift Annuities Contractual agreements providing fixed payments to donors for life in exchange for a gift, with an immediate income tax charitable deduction and no immediate capital gains taxes.
• Endowment Management Management of endowed funds invested in a pooled endowment portfolio, with an annual percentage of each fund's balance distributed to support designated purposes in perpetuity, and a 1.86% per annum administrative fee assessed on the endowment.
• Gift Management Services Administrative services for processing and stewarding philanthropic gifts, including assessment of endowment administrative fees (1.86% per annum), development fees (5% on non-endowed gifts and bequests), and liquidation fees (10% on property sales).

Quantifiable outcome

• For every $1 in fees received, the UM Foundation inspires $8 in new gifts to benefit the University of Montana
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• W.A. Franke College of Forestry and ConservationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2024Launched the 'Treasure Montana: Cultivating Our Tomorrow' fundraising campaign to inspire $20 million in private giving to construct a new hub for environmental and conservation research at UM. Donors' contributions will unlock $52 million appropriated by the Montana Legislature.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• Fidelity Charitable: Adjacent — the largest US donor-advised fund sponsor; comparable to UM Foundation's planned giving and DAF-related services, and a competitor for the same high-net-worth donor dollars that would otherwise flow to the UM endowment.
• Schwab Charitable (donor-advised fund): Adjacent — a large national donor-advised fund sponsor that competes for planned giving dollars by offering donors a lower-friction giving vehicle; relevant as a structural threat to in-house planned giving pipelines.
• Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE): Sector-level membership and standards organization for advancement professionals in education; relevant because it is the awarding body whose recognitions (which the UM Foundation has received) benchmark the entire peer group.

Direct peers

• University of Idaho Foundation: Direct peer — neighboring Pacific Northwest/Rocky Mountain-region public university foundation with comparable size, scholarship focus, agricultural and forestry program alignment, and reliance on rural state demographics.
• University of Oregon Foundation: Direct peer — a similarly-sized institutionally related foundation for a public flagship university, with comparable donor base, planned giving programs, endowment management structure, and CASE-recognized fundraising performance.
• Michigan State University Development Office / University Advancement: Direct peer — the fundraising and gift-administration function for a large public research university, offering the same mix of annual giving, planned giving, endowment, and capital campaign programs.
• University of Washington Foundation: Direct peer — institutionally related 501(c)(3) fundraising and endowment-management arm for a major public research university, with analogous scholarship, planned giving, and capital campaign programs.
• Montana State University Foundation: Direct peer — the analogous institutionally related foundation for Montana's other flagship public university, operating with the same 501(c)(3) fundraising-and-endowment model for in-state higher education.

Emerging players

• College Possible: Emerging player — a national nonprofit focused on college access, scholarships, and student success for low-income students, partially overlapping with UM Foundation's Montana Access Scholarship and college access programming.

Broad incumbents

• Stanford Management Company (Stanford endowment): Broad incumbent — the institutional investment operation for Stanford's endowment, representing the upper-bound scale benchmark for university-affiliated endowment management and a reference point for fee/return economics.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TheUMFoundation
• Facebookfacebook.com/umfoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/university-of-montana-foundation
• Xx.com/umontana

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The University of Montana Foundation