Call it Philanthropy 101.
For a good part of the school year, 18 seventh-graders at the Mid-Peninsula Jewish Community Day School learned firsthand that donating money to charitable causes isn’t as simple as it may seem.
The students raised thousands of dollars, but deciding where the money should go took considerable time and debate.
“I thought the project showed us we can make a difference,” said Becky Bob-Waksberg, 13, of Palo Alto. “We learned the value of teamwork by pooling all our money together.”
Twelve-year-old Aviva Maine of Redwood City “learned a different type of tzedakah — a mitzvah — something good a person does for someone else. Not just giving money, but doing work and researching where it goes.”
Sue Schwartzman, an English and social studies teacher who directed the project at the Palo Alto school, said the aim was to teach students “about foundations, grant processes and leveraging their money with challenge grants and matching funds.” She brought in speakers, including philanthropist Laura Lauder of Estee Lauder and Michael Kesselman, a consultant and former program officer of the Koret Foundation, to speak to the students.
In addition, Judaica teacher Riva Jacobs taught lessons from the Torah about giving back to one’s own community and the world at large.
Setting up the Seventh Grade Fund, students donated gift money from their b’nai mitzvah, and parents wrote checks covering what they would have given them as presents.
The student selected nonprofit agencies to research, visiting and interviewing personnel. Then each student gave a 20-minute presentation to the foundation “board” and wrote a essay on why the respective agency should be chosen for funding.
“I felt research was very important,” said David Rappaport, 13, of Palo Alto. “We not only gained knowledge, but also acquired life social skills such as learning to interview.”
Students also learned the cost of delivering services. In some cases, they found that a little money can go a long way, said Alex Taran, 13, of Portola Valley. “I saw that even one person can make a huge difference to help a lot of people.”
Following the student presentations, the entire class “board” debated the merits of each agency. That process in itself was enlightening.
“I learned how to get along with the class as we expressed our own points of view,” said 12-year-old Maya Protter of Mountain View. “We learned to be really fair and see it in other people’s eyes, too.”
Added Bob-Waksberg, “I found we sometimes had to compromise, not just have our own way.”
After long hours of debate on the fund, which had reached $9,000, students decided to give two top grants of $1,500 each to the Anti-Defamation League and WATCH, a safe house for battered women and children. They hoped to leverage their donations to $3,000 each with challenge grants; Kesselman agreed to assist them.
The class decided to hold monthly bake sales to raise an extra $1,000. In addition, students committed to spending one day a month working at a particular agency or on a project. Already some have helped at Pets in Need, while others assisted in a clean-up of Arastradero Creek.
Students presented their findings and allocations to the community at a celebration of the Seventh Grade Fund on March 30. Representatives from the various agencies attended, receiving their respective checks.
Looking back, the project served as a great learning experience, said Rappaport. “It was definitely a sacrifice, giving up our own money, but it was very worthwhile and an incredible use of our money.”