Unrestricted Gifts

What is an ”unrestricted“ gift?

“Unrestricted” means that your gift will be used to address Oberlin’s highest priorities – scholarships, classroom resources, emergency maintenance, and more. Unrestricted gifts go where they are most needed at the time they are made to maintain the quality of an Oberlin education. For this reason, we encourage donors to make unrestricted gifts to The Oberlin Annual Fund’s Area of Greatest Need or to establish scholarships with the broadest possible selection criteria (“for a ‘needy and worthy student’”).

What is the Area of Greatest Need?

Critical needs of our students and faculty are met through gifts to The Oberlin Annual Fund. These gifts are distributed to the areas of greatest need during the current fiscal year.

Typically, about 87 percent of your unrestricted gift will go to scholarship aid. The remainder will support current-use needs around campus. These include everything from facility enhancements to emergency student loan funds.

Oberlin Annual Fund gifts also allow the College to make the most of opportunities that arise throughout the year – the chance to send a student to present research at a conference or to bring a great musician to campus for a master class.

Taking the Next Step

To learn more about unrestricted, current-use support, please feel free to contact The Oberlin Annual Fund at annual.fund@oberlin.edu  or (800) 693-3167 .