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Thank you for you contributions to the Philanthropic Leadership course. Your gift enables students to learn about complex social issues, develop goals and strategies to address them, evaluate the impact of those efforts, and experience the joy of giving.
An engaged, experiential course in which students learn an intentional process of identifying social issues and develop individual and collective philanthropic goals and strategies to address the issues about which they care deeply.
The four pillars of the course are:
As a part of their immersive, engaged learning experience, students make real grants to Tompkins County nonprofit organizations. Funding for these grants comes from our partner organization, The Philanthropy Lab, and gifts from donors like you! The total amount of funding available depends on course enrollment, an incentive structure, and fundraising. With an enrollment of 19 students in the course and with full participation by the students in the course incentive structure, the class should have $58,900 to donate within Tompkins County this year.
Each student is a member of the NBA 5035 Foundation Board of Directors, and each student, given that they meet course attendance and participation requirements, has equal weight when voting. As the instructor, I set three guideposts for giving: (1) All grant recipients must be 501(c)3 organizations working in Tompkins County, NY, with at least two years of activity; (2) 20% of our total grant amount will be split evenly among the nonprofits with whom the class conducts site visits (see pic below) or otherwise substantially supported our learning in the course; (3) grants will be for general operating support.
The class culminates in a Giving Ceremony in which the class celebrates the work of its grantee organizations. The class earns $500 per student from The Philanthropy Lab in incentive funding if Cornell's president attends. Last year, President Emerita Martha Pollack attended (see picture below). This year, Interim President Michael I. Kotlikoff is planning to attend.
Donors are invited to join us for the 2024 Giving Ceremony on Tuesday, December 3 from 5–6 p.m.
Enable one student to participate in the $10 Giving Challenge at the beginning or end of the course.
Students participate in a $10 giving challenge at the beginning and end of the course. Your gift of $20 supports one student's participation in these experiential learning assignments.
Each year, students participate in a site visit as class and additional site visits in small groups. Your gift of $50 enables one student to participate in the class site visit.
Your gift of $100 enables one student to participate in two site visits.
The students in Philanthropic Leadership makes decisions together about funds to grant to nonprofit organizations working in Tompkins County. Your gift of $250 enables students to experience researching a social issue that it important to them and making a grant for general operating expense to an organization or organizations that are addressing these issues.
The students in Philanthropic Leadership makes decisions together about funds to grant to nonprofit organizations working in Tompkins County. Your gift of $250 enables students to experience researching a social issue that it important to them and making a grant for general operating expense to an organization or organizations that are addressing these issues.
Increases the number and/or size of grants that the students are able to make to non-profit organizations in Tompkins County.