Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is a fund balance and where do I find my current fund balance?

Fund balance is the difference in a fund’s assets and liabilities. This normally represents cash less any outstanding payables that have been keyed by Accounts Payable. This can be found using canned queries provided on the Systems Coordination website or we suggest using INB Banner. In INB Banner, the Trial Balance Summary screen (FGITBSR) will show the current fund balance in the lower right-hand corner of the screen – do not use line 40000.

2. Can we use a foundation fund for this purchase or salary?

Each Foundation fund is governed by a formal fund agreement specific to the fund. Foundation funds can be used for a variety of purchases that may not be as restrictive as state funds. However, foundation fund expenses must have a valid business purpose, must meet the purpose of the fund being used, must have cash available for the purchase, and must be allowed per the Foundation’s Board-approved expenditure policy. Please note that each foundation is a separate entity and each has its own expenditure policy, and while they are similar, ensure you are referencing the correct policy based on the fund type.  If the fund being used allows it, and funds are available, foundation funds can be used to reimburse the University for salary, but other salary-specific considerations need to be made. Please contact our office to ensure those are properly considered.

3. Who is my college contact?

(See contact information in  Foundation Financial Services Staff section.)

4. For endowments, how do they work, and from which fund may I spend?

True endowment funds are set up in the system with 3 related funds which are identified by the second letter of the fund number. They are the corpus (XCXXXX), restricted earnings (XRXXXX), & expendable fund (XEXXXX). For departmental spending purposes only the expendable fund may be may be used, and any expenditures must be in compliance with the purpose established by the fund agreement for the endowment.

True endowments generally are created when donors make gifts that are to be used to generate funding for a specified purpose and are intended to be held in perpetuity. These funds are invested in the Foundation’s investment pool and receive a pro-rata share of the investment earnings or losses each fiscal year. Once they exceed a specific threshold, they begin to fund annual spending distributions. The historical gifts to endowments are represented in the corpus fund, accumulated earnings not distributed are in the restricted earnings fund, and spending distributions are in the expendable fund. The Foundation’s Board of Directors annually approves the Gift Fee and Endowment Spending Policy which determines the annual distribution amount for endowed funds.

5. Can we hold a fundraiser event?

This is a question that is asked frequently, and while the Foundation does allow some fundraisers, there are several considerations that need to be made, depending on the specifics of each situation. We ask that you contact our office to determine what is necessary for a fundraiser.

Fundraisers can be as simple as a bake sale, or as complicated as a 5k or golf tournament. We also ask that marketing/solicitations be reviewed by our office prior to advertising an event. There are potential legal implications that range from tax deductibility of contributions, state sales tax, unrelated business income tax, and NC laws related to charitable raffles. There also are internal considerations regarding employees spending time unrelated to their duties, disability accommodations, parking, police, and the reputation of the Foundation and the University.

6. How much money do we have for scholarships?

The Foundation works very hard to make sure scholarship funding information is provided to the departments in adequate time to make selections during the spring semester. Our goal is to have firm scholarship balances to the departments by December of each year. This depends on several factors which includes finalizing our annual audit to ensure our spending distributions are based on audited balances. Other factors that must be considered are annual gifts from donors (which tend to come in more heavily during the last quarter of the calendar year), and the impact of anticipated spring scholarship disbursements.

7. How do I set up a vendor to be paid?

Foundation fund payments flow through the University Accounts Payable department; therefore, all new vendors must follow the vendor set up process outlined on the Accounts Payable website. A new vendor must be requested in PORT and the vendor will be required to complete their setup electronically in the system working directly with accounts payable.

8. If we are submitting an invoice/request for payment that is older than 30 days, what must we provide in addition to the regular supporting documentation required?

The person preparing the payment request must provide a formal memo documenting the reason for the late submission.

9. What do I need to include with deposits for foundation funds?

Deposits should include any documentation necessary to ensure the foundation staff is aware of the purpose of the deposit, who it came from, what may have been received in return (such as a meal or other benefit), and into which fund it should be deposited. The department is responsible for adhering to the University Cash Management Policy and should not hold checks or deposits. If for any reason a credit card number is obtained, please ensure the card data is protected at all times. Also, please deliver deposits to our office and do not put them in campus mail.

10. How can I track specific events, lectures, seminars, etc. being paid from general funds or across fund types?

Activity codes are a great way to track related expenses and work across fund types (think “tracking an activity”). For example, if a department is hosting and annual event and the expenses are being paid both from its general fund and the college level’s general fund, an activity code can be set up to be included with each payment and queries can be run on that specific code to see the total spent related to that event. Activity codes can help when budgeting for events that occur regularly; if you are planning an event and you want to look at historical costs for this event, it is much easier to compile the information for comparison if historically an activity code (ACTV) was used.

11. Who needs to approve expenses to be charged to foundations funds?

Foundation funds require the approval by the designated fund manager or his or her proxy depending on the amount of the purchase and the level of delegated payment authority. The Foundation also must review and approve all payments made on foundation funds to ensure there is a valid business purpose, there are funds available, proper fund manager/proxy approval was obtained, the expense fits the purpose of the fund, and that the purchase is allowed by the Board-approved expenditure policy.

If the expense is reimbursing a fund manager, his or her supervisor (or their proxy) must approve the payment.

12. Can I use my ProCard to make purchases on foundation funds?

The ProCard can be used for expenditures being paid using Foundation Funds. You must ensure that the purchase payment is allowed by the Foundation’s expenditure policy, as well as the ProCard policy. It is the purchaser’s/department’s responsibility to verify that funds are available to cover the purchase. Purchases are uploaded to Banner once all approvals have been processed through Chrome River.  Purchases/departments should be mindful of pending expenses for the fund when determining the available balance. Please refer to the ProCard user’s guide for more information regarding scanning and documentation requirements. Procedural questions regarding ProCards should be directed to the ProCard office.

13. Sometimes our department has payments related to patient care. What information should/should not be submitted as supporting documentation for such payments?

Due to the Privacy Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA Privacy Rule), identifiable health information held by covered entities and their business associates for individuals must be protected. The HIPPA Privacy Rule is balanced so that it permits the disclosure of health information needed for patient care and other important purposes. The HIPPA Security Rule specifies a series of administrative, physical, and technical safeguards for covered entities and their business associates to use to assure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of electronic protected health information.  For payment purposes at ECU this means that everyone (departments, the Foundation, Accounts Payable, etc.) should be careful regarding information that is saved on a computer, scanned in the system, or otherwise disseminated).

Some examples of payable documentation a department may receive:  An invoice from a vendor for taxi/shuttle service to take a patient from his or her home to an ECU clinic for patient care that has the patient’s name and address; an invoice from a vendor providing lab services for patients that has the patient names and dates of birth; an invoice from a vendor providing medication information that may include the patient name and medication.  In addition to the invoices, the department often has other supporting documentation, such as a form or memo from a social worker that includes a patient’s name, address, date of birth, and possibly a narrative about the patient’s illness.

For payment processing purposes, the Foundation requests that the department maintain copies of such documentation in a secure location (for historical and auditing purposes), and that it redacts any information that can identify an individual patient (name, address, DOB, illness, medicines, names of family members, etc.) from any documentation submitted to the Foundation.  The Accounts Payable department scans all payment documentation into the Banner Document Management System (“Xtender”), and any information identifying an individual or his or her family should not be scanned into that system.  The Foundation recommends that affected departments purchase a special redacting pen to mark through identifying information submitted, as white out liquid/tape, markers, and regular pens often allow the information to be visible when scanned.