In a bout of sympathy, celebrities are able to dish out the big bucks to any organization—a million here, a million there. When you have the money, your philanthropic dreams seem to reach ultimate fulfillment.
Care about deafness? Wire 50 grand to the American Society for Deaf Children, say you’re welcome, agree that you’re such a loving/caring/fabulous/awesome human being, and then say sayonara until next year.
Have a knack for education? Two hundred grand and 2,000 laptops to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation later and you’re starting to feel all bubbly and important inside, because, well, you did something good, and it was selfless and unnecessary, but you did it, and hell, it cost you a shitload, but hey, that’s the point!
Oh, and about all those starving kids in Africa. Rest assured, you don’t just give a dollar a day, you give nine more, so you’ve exceeded the standard, and that’s especially important, because your publicist says so, and she’s always right.
Nicholas Cage, P. Diddy, and George Clooney each handed over 1 million dollars to the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. The hurricane devastation sucked and all, but what?!, one million?
The post-9/11 “America: A Tribute to Heroes” telethon event raised over 100 million. The what raised what?
While most philanthropic endeavors are founded in genuine concern for the issues they address, these issues are oftentimes shadowed by the numbers.
While money contributions are most certainly helpful, we must remember that philanthropy can be achieved in ways other than dishing out the moolah, and that philanthropy is a two-way street—it’s not only about those who benefit from it, it is also about those who provide it and what they learn from the experience.
In college, it’s difficult, if not entirely impossible, for students to write huge checks out to their favorite organizations. In lieu of this, philanthropy takes a turn from the macrocosmic to the microcosmic, and students find that by giving back without bearing the costs, they can have their cake and eat it too. What they lack in funds they make up for in enthusiasm.
What some students are doing
One of the easiest ways to access a gamut of service programs is to contact on-campus service organizations. Most colleges have an umbrella organization that oversees volunteer groups on campus and provides information on how to get involved. On-campus service groups usually just ask for volunteers and will cover transportation and material costs.
Hallie Santo of Wellesley College is involved in a program on campus called Wellesley Words on Wheels (WWOW). In this program, Santo visits a nearby elementary school once a week to read and play word games with kindergarten students in an attempt to build their reading skills.
Santo says, “Five or six of us go at a time and carpool in one of our school’s community service vans, so really the only cost is the gas to get us there, since the school provides the books and games.”
A mere 30 minutes a week allows Santo to make a difference without spending any money or much time. Especially in lieu of class work and other extra-curricular activities, it is reassuring to know that on-campus service organizations will provide a venue to give back for those short on time and money.
Claire Richard, a senior at Harvard University, devotes the majority of her extra time to volunteer groups. In addition to getting involved with the Phillips Brooks House Organization, a student-run social action organization on campus, Richard plays a salient role in Circle of Women (CoW), a registered 501c3 run entirely by Harvard undergraduates.
Richard says, “Circle’s mission is to advance girls’ education in developing countries where there is a significant gender gap in education.” She continues, “This organization is unlike most nonprofits because it is entirely student-run. This means that 100-percent of donations go directly to building the school or fundraising efforts supporting building the school. I helped coordinate fundraising events through the other chapters ranging from mother-daughter teas to fashion shows to Uno’s [a popular Harvard Square restaurant] nights and events at synagogues located in the community of certain CoW chapters.”
Despite its humble beginnings with a handful of ambitious college students, CoW has now reached international clout. Last March, CoW opened a school in Afghanistan, serving nearly 700 girls and a capacity for 500 more. It is results like this that make volunteering her time feel worthwhile. To Richard, the decision to be a part of CoW was easy.
She says, “One of the most surprising things to me was that I wanted to do what I had agreed to do when I left. When it came time for the meeting the next week, I couldn’t wait to go back. The girls in CoW are amazing women with such different interests, and yet the very same passion for providing educations to girls who wouldn’t have had the opportunity otherwise.”
Organizations like CoW are testament to the fact that college-level initiatives can indeed make celebrity-style differences. Check out Circle of Women at http://www.circleofwomen.org/index.php.
Volunteering, however, is versatile in its motivations and effects. While some give back for the sake of having done a good thing and making a difference, others find it a great way to buttress their interests with hands-on experience.
2008 graduate from Princeton University Flora Wu decided to volunteer at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City to explore her passion for art, something she neglected while pursuing a career in consulting while working for McKinsey & Company.
Wu says of her volunteer experience, “I learned so much and got to push myself professionally in ways that I wouldn’t have at McKinsey. For people unsure of what they want to do career-wise, it’s a great way to explore different fields.”
Wu put her passion to good use not only by supporting an institution she believed in but also by deriving professional inspiration through her volunteering. And lucky for Wu, the experience and the expense were priceless.
How to give back and make it worthwhile, without spending a penny
- Create a legacy
Whether you initiated your own volunteer opportunity or joined a pre-existing organization, make your mark! Be sure an idea you fore-fronted or a change you proposed continues to exist after you graduate. Expand your organization’s influence by expanding its breadth—involve more venues (schools, hospitals, farms, etc.)—and/or by strengthening its presence on campus—involve more volunteers or find more ways to infuse more money into the cause.
You don’t have to be a celebrity to be philanthropic. Philanthropy transcends the power of paper. Gauge the opportunities provided on campus or fill in the gaps where they are needed by creating your own opportunities. Sometimes it’s the little things that make the biggest differences. Don’t dismiss volunteer opportunities as trivial and inconclusive. If you’re passionate about making a difference, the results will show.