The senior class of Concordia Academy in Roseville, Minnesota received a lesson in philanthropy this spring when their class asked to give away $10,000, as part of "Nurturing Future Philanthropists," a pilot project of the Lutheran Community Foundation.
Through the pilot, the students learned about concepts of stewardship and philanthropy, and were entrusted with $10,000 to give to as many or as few charities as they wished.
"Giving away money is easy; giving it away well is more difficult," said Susan Hayes, Director of Community Grants and Services at the Lutheran Community Foundation. "My only stipulation was that they give the money away well. Now more than ever, we need to be sure that precious resources are used to make a difference."
LCF believes that Lutheran schools are in a unique position to teach the lifelong habit of giving by nurturing future philanthropists.
"It was an awesome opportunity to step out in leadership and faith," said Concordia's Dean Dunavan, who wrote the curriculum for the project.
The students started their exploration of philanthropy with research on famous philanthropists and moved to examine how they could make the greatest impact - weighing issues such as local giving versus international, and whether a large number of small grants would have a greater benefit to the community, or a small number of larger grants.
Through their deliberations, the students determined that the grant be split between two Global ministries. Then they surprised their teachers and the Foundation's advisors by truly becoming philanthropists themselves as they took the initiative to raise an additional $8,000 to give to an inner city school in Minneapolis. They presented the grant to the school in person.
"The process was tough," said senior Drew Boraas. "Initially, we each wanted our own project to win, but then we learned so much about how many different needs there are in the world."
The Lutheran Community Foundation believes that informed and inspired giving will achieve positive and lasting change.
"By becoming smart givers, this group of students has helped achieve positive and lasting change both internationally and in their own community," said Hayes. "It is also clear they also experienced the joy of giving."