We are UA: Creating a Lasting Legacy

As educators and professionals, UA faculty and staff understand better than anyone the transformative power of access, excellence and opportunity. By establishing an endowment, you can ensure that the values you champion today – curiosity, equity, innovation and public service – endure far into the future.

Endowments provide permanent support that grows over time, creating a lasting source of funding for students, programs and priorities that matter most to you.

UA has entered the final year of The Rising Tide 2.0 Capital Campaign, a 10-year, comprehensive fundraising effort to strengthen the foundation of student and faculty support for future generations. The 2026 We are UA campaign offers faculty and staff the opportunity to define their legacy at the Capstone and be part of The Rising Tide 2.0, which concludes in September 2026.

Invest in Students, Forever

An endowed gift allows you to:

• Support scholarships and fellowships that expand access and reduce financial barriers
• Strengthen academic programs and hands-on learning opportunities
• Enhance research and instruction through endowed professorships
• Honor a mentor, colleague or milestone in your career
• Align your professional legacy with the university’s public mission

Whether your passion is student success, research excellence or community impact, an endowment ensures your support is both meaningful and enduring.

Leading by Example

Dr. Hyunjin Noh, professor of social work and PhD program director for the UA School of Social Work, has served on the School’s faculty since 2012. Dr. Noh’s impact on the School of Social Work extends beyond the classroom and the walls of Little Hall. Noh and husband, Changjae Lee, have established a pair of endowments to support students in the social work PhD program:

• The Noh and Lee Endowed Scholarship supports students completing international field placements, a vital component to social work education, offering hands-on experience in a broad range of settings, such as hospitals, schools and assisted living facilities, among others.
• The Hyunjin Noh and Changjae Lee Endowed Social Work PhD Student Support Fund is used for a variety of purposes to support the PhD program’s mission, including, but not limited to, supporting PhD students with needs such as summer expenses, attending conferences, data collection, fees and other uses that will support their academic success.

The Rising Tide 2.0 Capital Campaign is helping elevate UA’s student experience to new heights, enhancing research, furthering its excellence in athletics and extending its service mission across the state of Alabama and beyond.

With seven months left in the Campaign, we invite faculty and staff to be part of this record-breaking campaign by establishing an endowment.

Establishing an endowment

As a donor, you can initiate your endowment through an outright gift, a five-year pledge or a planned gift.

If you make a commitment and pledge it over five years, it will earn investment income for an additional year before the first earnings are available for use. Our endowment earnings are calculated as 4.5% of the market value over the previous five-year average.

Example 1: Endowed Professorship

A faculty member in the Barefield College of Arts & Sciences included The University of Alabama in his estate plans in 1996 and that gift established a professorship when he passed almost 20 years later. His wife also chose to add $100k to the professorship through her estate.

The market value of their gift today is $580k. It has provided support of more than $100k and will continue to support faculty in perpetuity.

Example 2: Endowed Lectureship

A faculty member recently pledged $100,000 in 2025:

• 5-year pledge should be ready for endowment in 2030
• First award will likely be made in 2031
• Earnings should be approximately $4,500 per year

For more information on establishing an endowment at UA, including the different types of endowments and frequently asked questions, please visit our endowment overview page.