Learning by giving: UW-Green Bay philanthropy class awards $10K grant to non-profit | Fox 11

GREEN BAY (WLUK) — A local non-profit organization is benefitting from a $10,000 grant from a philanthropy class at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Students in the “Philanthropy: Civic Engagement Through Giving” course, alongside Associate Professor Lora Warner, presented a $10,000 check Thursday to this year’s recipient.

At the start of the class, students formed “giving circles” and identified two main issues they were passionate about: youth mental health and substance abuse and addiction. A goal statement was then developed: “Our mission is to empower youth by decreasing social isolation, establishing social connectedness and community for them, and strengthening resilience against addiction.”

A number of Green Bay area non-profits applied for the grant and shared how they would put the funds to use. Students then utilized a hands-on approach to vet the organizations and agree on a recipient which addresses their chosen cause.

COMSA, a resource center fostering the growth and success of immigrant and refugee youth in the community, was ultimately selected as this year’s winner. COMSA plans to use the donation to fund an after-school program and expand to provide academic support, career planning and job search assistance, aid in combating substance abuse and addiction and help decrease social isolation.

“I think this is exactly the kind of organization we as a class were looking for, an organization that makes a change, teaches us something about a current issue in the area, and brings to light an issue that we may not have known as much about,” said student Abby Schulte in a news release. “I am so glad to be a part of this class.”

Warner said for the purpose of the course, “philanthropy” is defined as the desire to promote the well-being of others.

“Students learn that there are many ways to have an impact as well as giving money. I aim to empower them to be strategic in how they invest their money, but also their voices and their time to make a difference,” Warner said in a news release.

“A lot of our students work directly with community members and non-profits and organizations and do philanthropy work as well,” said Dr. Alise Coen, an associate professor of political science at UWGB who also chairs the university’s Public & Environmental Affairs Unit. “I think it’s really important to them because they’re giving back to the community and showing their civic engagement.”

Since 2012, the course has donated more than $110,000 to Green Bay area non-profit organizations. Funding comes from the Boston-based Learning by Giving Foundation and an anonymous Brown County donor. UW-Green Bay’s philanthropy class is the only Learning by Giving course in Wisconsin.

Source: Learning by giving: UW-Green Bay philanthropy class awards $10K grant to non-profit