Make an Individual Donation

Individuals can contribute to WISE in order to build local WISE labs and to help bring their local schools into our network, to sponsor professional development and support for their favorite WISE teachers, or to sponsor WISE events in local communities.
»Contact WISE to Make an Individual Donation.

Corporations: Support Local Communities

Corporate supporters can offer their communities a broad range of benefits by helping to sustain WISE’s educational mission. These donations can be pivotal in developing a well-trained and innovative workforce for tomorrow's great companies.

In addition to much-needed financial support, companies can also offer the support of their employees' invaluable experience and mentorship in WISE labs and for WISE contests and events, as well as sabbatical and summer internship opportunities for WISE teachers and students.
» Contact WISE to Make a Corporate Contribution

Planned Gifts and Estates

In addition to making outright gifts of cash or securities that benefit WISE today, it is also possible to help secure the financial future of the institute by making planned gifts. To ensure that the very highest standards of innovation, creativity, and excellence in exploration and education will be available to future generations, you can make a contribution that benefits the institution during or after your lifetime by including WISE in your estate plans. Such gifts are essential to assuring a stable future for this unique organization and can also offer significant tax advantages for you.

Through careful planning and consultation with your attorney, financial advisor, or estate planner, your planned gift may also enable you to give more to WISE than you ever thought possible, while still providing for your loved ones. Through your planned gift, you may choose to provide general support or you may choose to designate your gift to one or more of the special funds for which WISE seeks endowment:

• The General Endowment provides funding for WISE’s ongoing national program operations and facilities.
• The Programs Endowment expands and preserves WISE’s outreach and education programs and events.
• The Teacher Education Endowment can support the best possible professional development for favorite teachers or endow long-term teaching positions at specific schools for teachers that foster WISE goals.

What kind of assets can you contribute to WISE?

• A gift by check or credit card is the simplest and most common way to support WISE and allows you to offer immediate support. If you itemize your income tax deductions, your gift is deductible up to 50  percent of your adjusted gross income (or as currently allowed by law). If you are unable to deduct the full gift amount in one year, you may carry the unused deduction forward on your tax returns for up to five additional years.
• A gift of appreciated assets, such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or real estate, can be an excellent way to provide much-needed support. By contributing appreciated assets you receive a double benefit: you avoid tax on the appreciation and you receive a charitable income tax deduction on the value of the assets. Because of this potential double tax savings, a gift of appreciated securities usually has a lower after-tax cost than an equivalent gift of cash. If you itemize your tax return, your gift of appreciated property is deductible up to 30  percent of your adjusted gross income (or again, as currently allowed by law) and you may carry any unused portion forward on your tax returns for up to five more years.
• Securities, such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds, are easily contributed. WISE can give you instructions for transferring the securities. Generally, if your securities have decreased in value, they should be sold first and the cash proceeds donated.
• Closely Held Stock offers another way to support WISE. This kind of stock is privately owned and not publicly traded. If you are considering a gift of closely held stock, it is important that you not enter into a prior written agreement with either the corporation or a potential purchaser before you make your gift.
• Real Estate can be an important gift. Because of the special nature of real estate, WISE will carefully evaluate each property prior to acceptance, to ensure that it meets specific guidelines.
• A Gift of Personal Property such as collections, books, scientific, technical or lab equipment, lab furniture, or art may also be given to WISE. Special rules apply for these donations and it is important to discuss this type of gift with WISE prior to contributing it outright or designating it as a gift from your estate.

  Gifts of this nature should be carefully considered in relation to your financial and estate plans. We therefore recommend that you consult an attorney, financial advisor, or estate-planning expert in the preparation of your will or trust and to supervise its execution so as to comply with the requirements of your state.

  Creative Planned Giving Ideas

  What follows in this section are some examples of how you may include WISE in your gift-planning efforts. Gifts of this nature should be carefully considered in relation to your financial and estate plans and goals. We therefore recommend that you consult an attorney, financial advisor, or estate-planning expert in the preparation of your will and to supervise its execution so as to comply with the requirements of the state in which you reside. Ultimately, there are many ways that you can help WISE and accomplish your philanthropic and financial goals while still providing for your loved ones.

  • Make a bequest. Instruct your attorney to include a charitable bequest for WISE in your will or living trust. This is one of the simplest ways for you to provide for the institute. Your gift can be made for a specific dollar amount, a specific property, a percentage of your estate, or for what remains after your loved ones have been taken care of.
  • Donate retirement funds. Due to potential taxation concerns that can significantly diminish the value of your retirement account, you may find it beneficial to name WISE as the beneficiary recipient of your 401(K), 403(b), Keogh, IRA, or other qualified pension plan.
  • Contribute life insurance policy proceeds. Perhaps you find that a life insurance policy once necessary for your family’s security is no longer needed because your children are now independent and other assets are providing adequate income and resources for their future. Another simple way to make a gift is to name WISE as the future beneficiary of the policy.
  • Create a charitable remainder trust. Name WISE as the recipient of an irrevocable trust that can provide income for you or a named beneficiary for a fixed period of years (often for the lifetime of the individual). At the end of the term of the trust, the remaining trust assets are distributed to WISE. Cash, stock, or real estate can be used to fund the trust. Trusts are highly flexible gift-planning tools that have enabled donors to accomplish a variety of important personal financial goals and ultimately provide an important gift to charity.
  • Donate property. Bequeath your home or other property to WISE. You may also donate it while retaining the right to live there for the remainder of your life and receive an immediate income tax deduction.
  » Contact WISE to Make a Planned Gift.