PAY IT FORWARD College Student Philanthropy Education & Service Initiative Inspiring the next generation of philanthropists The Ohio Campus Compact (OCC) Pay it Forward program is developing a new generation of philanthropists through an innovative course-based service-learning program that engages college students in hands-on philanthropy, grant-making, and volunteer service while providing community nonprofits with much needed assistance during difficult economic times. Participating faculty infuse the study of philanthropy as a core component of the coursework and each course receives real dollars to award non-profit agencies. Students provide at least 15 hours of volunteer service to local nonprofit agencies while simultaneously identifying community needs, establishing funding criteria, and engaging in group decision-making as part of the course. Pay it Forward simultaneously improves student learning, faculty scholarship, college engagement and nonprofit capacity and impact. Participating campuses in Licking County during Spring 2013 semester and the 2013-14 academic year included The Ohio State University-Newark (OSUN), Denison University and Otterbein University for a total of 22 Pay it Forward courses that invested real dollars in the Licking County Community. Approximately 407 students at the three campuses provided 4,728 volunteer hours in Licking County, where they had the opportunity to learn about the role organizational capacity plays in increasing a nonprofit’s ability to meet its mission more efficiently and effectively. Students worked in teams at nonprofits and learned about funding streams, including the use of grants, then wrote a grant through the PIF program asking for money to fund their organization’s proposed project. Speakers, including a local foundation director, were invited to some classes to talk about grant writing and funding. Next, student teams presented their case for funding to their fellow students, instructor, and OCC staff. Presentations talked about who their organization is, its mission, the proposal students submitted for grant funding, and how the funding would impact the organization’s ability to serve the community. Students then voted on which organizations to fund at what level. Examples of projects funded are $2,500 to expose at-risk high school students to programs of education such as a day at a local college, $1,750 to develop a walkway, extend water lines and get closer to the goal of adding a basketball court at multiple community garden sites in Newark, and $560 to produce a financial literacy video for the lobby of the Licking County Coalition of Housing. Because of the impact and outcomes of Pay it Forward on both students and community partners, OCC will continue to expand upon Pay it Forward as a part of experiential learning in Licking County and throughout Ohio. We would not have been able to provide this experience for students and nonprofits without your generous support of the Pay it Forward program. Thank you. 631 N. Pearl Street Granville, Ohio 43023 (740) 587-8568 (740) 587-8569 FAX www.ohiocampuscompact.org Since January 2010, Pay it Forward has engaged nearly 4,200 college students in 197 courses across 37 campuses, dedicated more than 69,000 total volunteer hours, and invested $655,500 in 435 community nonprofit organizations.