Jewish Community News

News: June 2007

7th graders at Yavneh form philanthropy group

In lieu of bar and bat mitzvah presents, Yavneh students, their families and friends have been donating money to a philanthropic fund founded by the seventh graders.
      With more than $6,000 in the fund, the thirteen classmates organized as a board of directors, with a developed mission statement. Then they began the process of allocating the money.  Each student chose a charitable organization to represent. They interviewed the executive of the organization, analyzed the budget and wrote a persuasive essay. Finally, they delivered a presentation to the rest of the board.
      “The students grappled with real issues on an adult level,” says Head of Yavneh Day School Lori Abramson. “They determined whether or not the charity met their funding priorities, what its overhead was, how successful they have been, and whether or not their contribution would have a significant impact.”
    In the end, students decided to make a base-level grant to 13 chosen organizations, plus an additional sum to those that best met their priorities. The seventh graders presented the checks to representatives of the organizations at a special ceremony on Thursday, May 17. Attendees included representatives from organizations including Next Door, One Family, World Wildlife Fund, Camp Okizu, and Jewish Family Services and UCSF Comprehensive Cancer Center.