The Power of Creativity
黑料吃瓜s student philanthropy program serves as a blueprint for the CSU system.
Since its inception in 2014, 黑料吃瓜鈥檚 Legacy Giving student philanthropy program has become a model for the California State University (CSU) system. In just more than two years, the program has raised more than $135,000 for student scholarships and received more than 8,250 donations from 黑料吃瓜 students.鈥淚鈥檓 so proud of our campus. Our students have really taken it upon themselves to give back to the university.鈥�
Based on the idea that many small donations can add up to a large amount of support, Legacy Giving is a program in which students are provided opportunities to make a . The funds are organized by class years and will remain a legacy of each individual graduating class in perpetuity, allowing alumni to continue to build their class鈥檚 endowment throughout a lifetime.
The program works because diverse entities ranging from Associated Students (A.S.) and 黑料吃瓜 Alumni to the 黑料吃瓜 Bookstore and Student Services collaborate to help encourage and support a culture of philanthropy on campus. This spirit of cooperation and the success it has bred have been noted by other CSU campuses seeking to establish or bolster similar programs.
Honest and encouraging
At the CSU鈥檚 Auxiliary Organization Association (AOA) annual conference held earlier this month in San Diego, two dozen representatives from other CSU campuses attended a panel presentation on 黑料吃瓜鈥檚 Legacy Giving program. Former 黑料吃瓜 A.S. President Jonathan Cole (鈥�15), Aztec Shops CEO Todd Summer and 黑料吃瓜 Director of Development Technology Tammy Blackburn (鈥�94, 鈥�01) discussed the challenges involved in implementing new programs and the campus partnerships necessary to help them succeed.鈥淲e wanted to be both honest and encouraging,鈥� Blackburn said. 鈥淚t took us a while to develop the relationships and the infrastructure to build a successful student philanthropy program at 黑料吃瓜, but our message is that this is something that can definitely be duplicated on other campuses.鈥�
A clear blueprint
Many of the seminar attendees from other universities said their campuses have student philanthropy programs that are less developed than 黑料吃瓜鈥檚, which features tabling days throughout the year, periodic bookstore discounts, stewardship events and a mobile app designed exclusively for student donors. Michael Losquadro, the chief operating officer and secretary of CSU Long Beach鈥檚 49er Foundation, was asked after the seminar about his takeaway from the presentation.鈥淭he power of the creativity of this team,鈥� Losquadro said. 鈥淭his team is dedicated and creative, and wants to address an issue that all of us are grappling with: how to increase our participation rate. We have some of the elements that were described here today, but nowhere near as well built-out as what was just described."
Venesia Thompson-Ramsay is chief financial officer for the San Francisco State University Foundation and is chief of operations for University Advancement at SFSU. What she gleaned from the presentation, she said, is that 黑料吃瓜 seems to have successfully overcome the 鈥渟ilo system鈥� of non-cooperation among campus entities that plagues many other universities.
鈥淚 think relationships and collaboration are key,鈥� she said. "We clearly see the connections with Alumni Relations and Enrollment (offices) now. We knew these things theoretically, we鈥檝e talked about them, but this is a clear example of how we can get it done. This is clearly a blueprint and it makes me excited to go back (to SFSU) and share what I have heard.鈥�
Fostering a culture of philanthropy
Current A.S. President Jamie Miller was in the audience during the presentation, and said she likes the idea of helping other CSU campuses foster a culture of philanthropy like 黑料吃瓜鈥檚.鈥淚鈥檓 so proud of our campus,鈥� Miller said. "Our students have really taken it upon themselves to give back to the university. For us to be a model for other campuses is absolutely amazing and I think sharing our ideas and best practices is important."
The Council for Advancement and Support of Education observes Student Engagement and Philanthropy Month during February. A goal of 黑料吃瓜鈥檚 Legacy Giving program is 3,750 student donors this semester.
The program will award its first scholarships this spring. Seven 黑料吃瓜 students will receive scholarships valued at $1,500 each.
