Thank you for considering a gift to MLA. Annual giving is an important measure of members’ attitudes and feelings about the Association. By participating you are showing your support for MLA and its valuable work. The gesture of your support is as important as the size of the gift itself. Any gift, of any size, helps MLA and is greatly appreciated.
Your donation will help ensure a successful and vital future for the Music Library Association. Gifts to MLA may be deductible as charitable contributions for Federal income tax purposes.
One of the rewards of making a charitable gift to MLA is knowing that your gift makes a difference. The Music Library Association supports a variety of scholarship through research and publication awards, and other special programs. Giving to MLA is also a wonderful way to honor the living or to remember the deceased. Contributions may be made by designation of a specific fund or to support MLA goals where funds are most needed. Gifts from individuals, organizations, businesses and foundations are critical to our mission.
You may make a donation to MLA any time either online or sending a check to the MLA Business Office at the address at the bottom of this page. Anyone can donate to the Association at any time, typically when members pay their annual dues, or at the annual conference. Non-members may also contribute using the guidelines specified below.
The value of your contribution can be doubled by you or your spouse/partner’s employer through the matching gift program. Add your voice today to the chorus of support by including your name on the growing roster of contributors.
Members and non-members of the Association can donate online.
If you are a member:
Use your login and password to access the online directory and at the site click "Donate."
If you are not yet a member:
Visit the MLA Online Directory and at the site, click "Donate" and complete the page. The form requires you to use personal information, including a login and password. Once you provide the information, you can proceed with your donation.
Payment can be made by credit card (VISA, MasterCard, or American Express), or you can select the mail-in option to print a formatted receipt to send to the MLA Business Office with your payment. (The address of the Business Office will print automatically on the form.)
Donations may take any of the following forms:
UNRESTRICTED DONATIONS
Those wishing to support MLA without contributing to a specific fund may consider an unrestricted contribution. MLA’s Board of Directors determines the use of unrestricted contributions based on the association’s current and future priorities.
GIFT OF STOCK
A gift of appreciated securities, such as stock and mutual funds, is an excellent way to support MLA. Not only is giving stock simple, but it can provide a greater tax benefit for you and your favorite charity than an equivalent cash gift. Please consult your tax/financial advisor for more specific details.
DONATIONS TO DEVELOPMENT FUNDS
Donors wishing to support a particular aspect of MLA’s mission have several development fund options. Contributions to these funds support the designated purpose either immediately or through growth of a designated investment (see information about asset types). Donors can indicate that they prefer a socially-responsible investment vehicle for contributions that are invested.
- The MLA Fund (Unrestricted)
- Contributions to the MLA Fund insure financial security for the Association and support programmatic activities of the Association.
- The Vincent H. Duckles Fund (Temporarily Restricted)
- supports MLA's annual publications awards: The Vincent H. Duckles Award for the best book-length bibliography or music reference work; the Richard S. Hill Award for the best article on music librarianship or article of a music-bibliographic nature; and the Eva Judd O'Meara Award for the best review published in Notes.
- The Dena Epstein Fund (Temporarily Restricted)
- established by a generous gift from Mr. and Mrs. Mort Epstein, provides grants for archival and library research in American music.
- The Kevin Freeman Fund (Temporarily Restricted)
- supports first-time attendance at a national meeting for an MLA member who has been a music librarian for no more than three years, a graduate library school student aspiring to become a music librarian, or a recent graduate (within one year of a degree) seeking a professional position.
- The Walter Gerboth Fund (Temporarily Restricted)
- offers an annual grants in support of research in progress to a music librarian in the first five years of his or her career.
- The Michael Ochs Endowment Fund for Notes (Temporarily Restricted)
- Michael Ochs established this fund in 2002 to create an endowment that would help assure the continuation of MLA’s journal. In its first two years, the fund received enough contributions from Association members to double in value.
- Lenore Coral Fund (Temporarily Restricted)
- The Lenore Coral Fund was established to honor the work of Lenore Coral, who served as Director of the US-RILM Office from 1984 until her death in 2005. The US-RILM Office oversees the submission of citations and abstracts for scholarly works published in the United States to the RILM database, and is supported by several scholarly associations (AMS, CMS, MLA, IAML-US, SAM, SMT). When fully endowed, income from the Lenore Coral Fund will cover MLA's contribution to the US-RILM Office's operations.
ENDOWMENT AND PLANNED GIVING
Endowments can be established to support a wide range of activities and research projects, including research leading to the improvement of music library service and collections, continuing education for music librarianship, or the establishment of a scholarship to attract talented individuals to music librarianship. A minimum of $50,000 and the approval of MLA's Board of Directors are needed to designate an endowment for a specific purpose.
Whether you wish to donate $5, $500 or $50,000, you may make an outright gift of cash (by check or credit card) or you may make a multi-year pledge.
Another option is to make a bequest for the future or make an irrevocable planned gift now and enjoy the benefits of giving to MLA in your own lifetime. Endowment gifts are fully tax-deductible to the extent of the law.
To discuss gifts of appreciated securities, annuities, or charitable remainder trusts, please contact the Music Library Association's Development Officer, at the address listed below.
James P. Cassaro
Development Officer, Music Library Association
Finney Music Library, Frick Fine Arts Library
University of Pittsburgh
B30 Music Bldg
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Phone: 412-624-4131 (Music)
Phone: 412-648-2411 (Fine Arts)
Fax: 412-624-4180
cassaro@pitt.edu