Fundraising for a Cause

Student organizations sometimes wish to raise funds for a cause that their organization supports. This is possible as long as the student organization designates a registered 501(c)3 non-profit (the designation for federally recognized charity) as the recipient of the funds.

Student organizations may not raise funds for individuals or any entities other than registered 501(c)3 non-profit.

In rare cases it may be possible to raise funds for a non-US based charitable organization in consultation with Dwight Hall. Student organizations should consult their entire membership when choosing a fundraising cause and recipient organization.

The most straightforward approach is for student organizations to encourage donations directly to the 501(c)3 non-profit; often, the non-profit can set up a mechanism for tracking donations so that the student organization can measure the success of their efforts. If the student organization collects the funds itself, those funds need to be stored in an organizational bank account outside of Yale (not an individual student’s account, nor an internal Yale account) and then directly transferred to the 501(c)3 non-profit. Note that any funds given to a 501(c)3 non-profit must be raised specifically for that cause, and may not include Yale funding sources. 

If your group is considering fundraising for an outside cause, please write to student.organizations@yale.edu, so that we can help guide you through the process.