Campus-Wide Fund Administration Strategy

Fund Administration · Fall 2026

A Campus-Wide Fund Administration Strategy

Reinvestment, institutional aid offset, endowment minimums, and spending thresholds for every fund

Taylor Thomas

Executive Director of Fund Administration

Colleagues taking notes around a meeting table

Executive summary

Four policies that put private funds to work

Each one applies campus-wide, protects donor intent, and returns value to the institution.

01

Spending thresholds

Every fund type gets a standard. Endowed balances cap at 1.5x annual distribution.

1,553

endowed funds above the ceiling today

02

Reinvestment

Excess above the ceiling with no approved spending plan returns to corpus.

$33.5M

current balance above the 1.5x screen

03

Private funds first

Scholarships offset institutional aid; faculty and program funds offset operating costs.

$7.8M

planning-case annual opportunity

04

Endowment minimums

A $50K floor, naming at $100K, and five tiers of donor provisions.

$25K

current floor, below SEC peers

Sources: FY26 year-end DASH, excluding Athletics and UTIA; Tiered Endowment proposal

2

The problem

Balances are growing faster than spending

Amount available ($M)

Amount spent ($M)

Bar chart of amount available and amount spent, FY15 to FY26

Fiscal year (FY15 to FY26)

+67% vs +40%

growth in amount available vs amount spent, FY15 to FY26

28%

of available balance spent in FY26, down from 37% in FY23

82%

of annual endowment distribution spent in FY26, down from 108% in FY23

FY15 to FY26, UT Knoxville excluding Athletics and UTIA

3

The problem

Both spending rates have dropped since FY23

Endowed funds: spent as % of annual distribution

All funds: spent as % of available balance

Line chart of spending as a percent of available balance and of annual endowment distribution, FY15 to FY26

0%

25%

50%

75%

100%

Fiscal year

FY15

FY16

FY17

FY18

FY19

FY20

FY21

FY22

FY23

FY24

FY25

FY26

% of distribution

89%

89%

97%

102%

103%

99%

81%

90%

108%

100%

81%

82%

% of available

33%

33%

35%

35%

34%

34%

28%

32%

37%

36%

29%

28%

FY15 to FY26, UT Knoxville excluding Athletics and UTIA

4

Where balances sit

A third of funded accounts spent nothing in FY26

The portfolio: 5,652 funds

3,623

Endowed funds

$73.1M available balance

2,029

Non-endowed funds

$62.6M available balance

$1.25B

Endowment market value

$39.0M in annual distributions

Unspent

1,389

36%

of funds with over $1,000 available recorded $0 in FY26 expenses

$33.5M in balances

Underspent

1,221

34%

of endowed funds hold more than two years of distributions

$50.5M in balances

FY26 year-end DASH (2026-14), excluding Athletics and UTIA

5

We can already measure the problem more precisely than we can act on it.

Fund Administration sits at Stage Three (Defined) on the FundMiner maturity model, with analytics already at Stage Four. Standing, campus-wide policy is what closes the gap.

FundMiner Fund Management Masterclass assessment

6

The strategy

Four policies that work as one system

Policy 1 · Every fiscal year

Spending thresholds

Each fund type has a standard; endowed balances cap at 1.5x.

Policy 2 · Above the ceiling

Reinvestment

With no approved plan, the excess returns to corpus.

Policy 3 · Every award and budget cycle

Private funds first

Scholarships offset institutional aid; faculty and program funds offset operating costs.

Policy 4 · New gift agreements

Endowment minimums

A $50K floor and five tiers raise the quality of funds coming in.

Governance holds it together

A Fund Administration Committee, required annual fund manager training, and a fixed quarterly metric set reported to the Chancellor's cabinet.

7

Policy 1 · Spending thresholds

Every fund type gets a spending standard

Fund type

Standard

Review trigger

Required action

Endowed spendable account

Balance at or below 1.5x annual distribution

Above 1.5x at fiscal year end

Approved spending plan, or reinvest the excess

Endowed scholarship or fellowship

Fully awarded every fiscal year

Any unawarded balance at year end

Award plan before next cycle; eligible for aid offset

Endowed academic position

Filled within two years

Vacant longer than two years

Recruitment plan or approved alternate use

Current-use fund (non-endowed)

Spending every year; gifts used within three years of receipt (proposed)

$0 expenses in a year, or gifts held over three years

Spending or savings plan on file, or escalation

All funds: expenses match donor purpose, accounts reconcile monthly, negative balances are remedied, and a donor impact report is filed every year.

Standards adapted from the Fund Compliance Review metrics

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Policy 1 · Spending thresholds

A 1.5x ceiling keeps endowed funds moving

3,266

active endowed funds subject to the rule

1,553

funds above the proposed 1.5x ceiling today

$33.5M

current balance above the 1.5x screen

Balance as a multiple of annual distribution

Healthy

Up to 1.0x

One-year payout reserve. No action.

Watch

1.0x to 1.5x

Flagged in quarterly reporting to the unit.

Action

Above 1.5x

Approved, time-bound spending plan or reinvest the excess.

Replaces the current two-year excessive accumulation standard.

FY26 year-end DASH, excluding Athletics and UTIA

9

Policy 2 · Reinvestment

Idle balances return to corpus and grow payout

1

June 30 review

Fund Administration flags endowed funds above 1.5x.

2

Notice

Fund manager and dean are notified with the balance detail.

3

Plan window

60 days to submit a time-bound spending plan.

4

Approval

Committee approves plans of up to three years.

5

Reinvest

With no approved plan, the excess above 1.5x returns to corpus.

What reinvestment returns

$1.2M to $1.3M

in added annual distribution, every year, if the $33.5M above the ceiling were reinvested at a 3.5% to 4% payout. The donor's purpose is unchanged.

Guardrails

Each gift agreement and Tennessee UPMIFA govern the fund
Counsel reviews the reinvestment mechanism before adoption
Standard reinvestment language in every new agreement
Approved strategic reserves are documented exceptions

Timeline proposed for committee adoption

10

Policy 3 · Private funds first: aid offset

Private scholarships first, institutional aid retained

Today

Institutional aid

Student

Proposed

Private scholarship

Student

Institutional dollars retained

Net tuition revenue

Same student, same award total. Where donor terms and aid policy permit, the private fund pays first.

$35.0M

positive balances in scholarship funds

$17.7M

FY26 scholarship fund expenses

$1.6M

planning-case annual aid offset opportunity

Already built: FY26 undergraduate offset inventory, fund banding A to E, and matching and allocation engines.

FY26 year-end DASH, excluding Athletics and UTIA; program code 280

11

Policy 3 · Private funds first

A $7.8M annual planning-case opportunity

Program support

Expense substitution

$3.4M

Faculty and research

Expense substitution

$2.8M

Scholarships

Institutional aid offset

$1.6M

Planning case = $62.7M above each fund’s spending threshold (endowed: 1.5x distribution; current-use: three years of gifts) × 50% eligibility × 25% capture. Only scholarships are aid offset.

Expense substitution tests

Faculty and program funds can carry $6.2M of eligible costs if all three hold:

1

The donor purpose permits the expense

2

The expense is already paid with institutional dollars

3

The shift creates no new recurring commitment

FY26 year-end DASH, excluding Athletics and UTIA

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Policy 3 · Private funds first

Start where balances and eligible costs meet

College or unit

FY expenses

Positive balance

Planning-case opportunity

Tickle College of Engineering

$8.3M

$27.5M

$1.8M

Haslam College of Business

$14.9M

$27.1M

$1.3M

Natural Sciences

$2.4M

$8.9M

$0.7M

Education, Health, and Human Sciences

$2.2M

$7.9M

$0.5M

Scholarships and Fellowships

$4.0M

$9.8M

$0.3M

Arts and Humanities

$3.3M

$5.0M

$0.3M

College Administration

$1.1M

$5.0M

$0.3M

McClung Museum

$0.1M

$2.3M

$0.2M

FY26 year-end DASH, excluding Athletics and UTIA

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Policy 4 · Endowment minimums

Five tiers with a $50K floor and naming at $100K

Tier

Minimum

Fund type

Provisions available

Annual payout at 3.5 to 4%

1

$50,000

General endowment

College or school designation; broad area of study

$1,750 to $2,000

2

$100,000

Named

Named fund; college and general purpose designation; award timing

$3,500 to $4,000

3

$150,000

Named, targeted

Adds specific major or discipline, basic eligibility criteria, and financial need weighting

$5,250 to $6,000

4

$200,000

Named, customized

Adds GPA floors, geographic preference, declared major, and classification year

$7,000 to $8,000

5

$250,000+

Named, full provisions

All of the above plus advisory donor selection input and full criteria authorship

$8,750 to $10,000+

Current policy: a $25,000 floor with no tiered provisions. The new tiers apply to agreements executed on or after the adoption date; existing funds keep their original terms.

UTF Tiered Endowment Giving Program, May 2026

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Policy 4 · Endowment minimums

UT sits below its SEC flagship peers today

Institution

Floor

Named threshold

Framework

University of Florida

$30,000 rec.

~$100,000

Named scholarships with criteria at $100K

LSU Foundation

$25,000

$100,000

$100K for a named restricted scholarship

University of Alabama

$50,000

$50,000

Raised from $25K in 2025; higher tiers for chairs

University of Georgia

$50,000

$50,000

Raised from $25K in 2025; no public tiers

Auburn University

$25,000

$25,000

Named at floor; criteria not formally tiered

UT Knoxville, current

$25,000

$25,000

No formal tiered provisions framework

UT Knoxville, proposed

$50,000

$100,000

Five tiers; named $100K; full provisions $250K+

Why a $50K floor

Matches Alabama and Georgia, which both raised their floors in 2025, and roughly doubles the minimum annual award.

Why naming at $100K

Aligns with Florida and LSU and yields $3,500 to $4,000 a year, a real step up from Tier 1.

UTF Tiered Endowment Giving Program, May 2026

15

Governance

A standing body owns utilization decisions

FundMiner maturity stage

1 Initiated

2 Developing

3 Defined · Today

4 Managed · Target

5 Optimized

Fund Administration Committee

Campus-wide membership. Approves spending plans and exceptions; reports annually to the Chancellor's cabinet.

One owner per workflow

Fund Administration owns threshold review. Utilization targets go into college and unit plans.

A defined escalation path

Funds flagged Urgent across two review cycles go to the dean and the committee.

Required training

Annual fund manager training tied to fund access; stewardship in leadership onboarding within 60 days.

FundMiner Fund Management Masterclass assessment

16

Implementation

Screen, pilot, then scale

0 to 30 days

Screen

Confirm fund purpose, policy, balances, and institutional expense overlap
Notify managers of funds above 1.5x
Set the adoption date for new minimums

31 to 90 days

Pilot

Match scholarship awards and selected operating expenses
Record realized displacement and an observed eligibility rate
Collect and approve spending plans

Quarterly

Scale

Report savings, utilization, compliance, and balance reduction
First reinvestment cycle at June 30, 2027
Extend to every college and unit

Annual opportunity proxy by capture rate

Conservative

10% capture

$3.1M

Planning case

25% capture

$7.8M

Accelerated

50% capture

$15.7M

17

Measures

A fixed metric set, reported on a schedule

Measure

FY26 baseline

Reported

Spending as % of available balance

28%

Quarterly

Spending as % of annual distribution (endowed)

82%

Quarterly

Funds with $0 in expenses and a balance over $1,000

1,389

Quarterly

Endowed funds above the 1.5x ceiling

1,553

Quarterly

Balance above the 1.5x ceiling

$33.5M

Quarterly

Verified institutional aid offsets and substitutions

New measure

Each award cycle

Approved spending plans on file

New measure

Quarterly

Excess reinvested to corpus

New measure

Annually

New endowments at or above the $50K floor

New measure

Annually

Baselines: FY26 year-end DASH, excluding Athletics and UTIA

18

Decisions requested

Five approvals to put the strategy in place

1

Adopt spending thresholds for every fund type, including the 1.5x ceiling for endowed funds

2

Authorize reinvestment of excess above 1.5x when no spending plan is approved, starting June 30, 2027

3

Approve a 90-day aid offset and expense substitution pilot led by Fund Administration with Financial Aid and Budget

4

Adopt the five-tier endowment minimums for agreements executed after the adoption date

5

Charter the Fund Administration Committee and fill the three drafted Fund Administration roles

19

Appendix

Data sources and assumptions

Data sources

FY26 year-end DASH extract (period 2026-14), UT Knoxville excluding Athletics and UTIA: all FY26 figures
FY15 to FY24: IRIS year-end files; FY25: DASH period 13; all exclude Athletics and UTIA (slides 3, 4)
UTF Tiered Endowment Giving Program, May 2026 (slides 14, 15)
FundMiner Fund Management Masterclass assessment (slides 6, 16)

Model assumptions

Expected distribution of 3.5% to 4%; capacity above each fund's threshold: 1.5x distribution (endowed) or three years of gifts (current-use)
50% private-fund eligibility screen
10%, 25%, and 50% capture scenarios on screened capacity
Proposed 1.5x balance ceiling on active endowed funds
Planning-case values are annual opportunity proxies, not booked savings
Program codes: 280 scholarships; 210 and 220 faculty and research

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