Ten local nonprofit organizations that might otherwise have been left unfunded will be supported by the College's Common Good Grant this year.
The Common Good Grant program was established in 2001 through a restricted gift by an anonymous donor who wanted to acquaint students with grants, philanthropy, and the needs of nonprofit agencies.
Since its establishment, it has allocated $10,000 annually to local nonprofit projects with the purpose of advancing the common good. This year was an exception, however, with $17,500 donated due to an added $7,500 to the grant base.
Deciding the allocation of the funds were 14 Bowdoin students, led by Doris Ramirez '07 and Bruce Baird '08, all of whom were selected in March to be on the committee. In response to a desire to extend the amount of grant money by raising additional funds for projects, an extension committee was also formed.
The extension committee in turn worked with volunteers from Bowdoin's development division and potential donors to discuss proposals and, when lucky, receive donations. Community members collectively added $3,500 to the grant pool, with an additional $4,000 coming from a gift from the Class of 2005.
In spite of the added financial backing, only 10 of the over 30 organizations that applied received funding, with grants being awarded to programs "with clear and reasonable objectives that would positively affect the local community and its citizens," said Extension Committee member Andrew Combs '06.
According to committee member Taneisha Wilson '07, it was difficult to select recipients of the award from among many worthy programs.
"The fact that we had $7,500 in grant money really helped and eased some of the burden by providing the opportunity to fund more programs," she said.
Receiving the 2006 Common Good Grant are Bath's Middle School Garden Club, the Dorcas Mission Team at Bath United Church of Christ, Care Net of Midcoast Maine, Flying Changes Center for Therapeutic Riding Inc., Friends of Merrymeeting Bay, Spindleworks, Patten Free Library, Pejepscot Historical Society, Sweetser, and Two Roads Maine.
According to committee member Lisa Peterson '07, the Common Good Grant Committee distributed grant applications to local non-profits in the fall and sponsored a grant writing workshop in January. Final applications were due in February. Applications were reviewed within subcommittees of three students each, after which the committee as a whole reviewed the finalists.
Organizations receiving the grants are required to provide updates on the progress of the project and use the funds within a year of the award.
For the Patten Free Library, the Common Good Grant is an opportunity to provide programs for which it would not otherwise have any funding.
According to Sandy Weiss, who runs the Community Read program at the Patten Free Library, "We would not otherwise be able to participate in the Community Read program because it is not part of the budget. It's a supplemental programming piece for which we need to fund raise. We always have to find grants for it."
"We try to get people in the community to read the same book and have discussions about the reading," Weiss said. "The grant will cover a good chunk of the purchase of these books."
Interim Director and Curator of the Pejepscot Historical Society Katie McBrien said that her organization will be putting its grant money toward developing educational programs that target groups underrepresented in curriculum.
According to McBrien, the Common Good Grant "has definitely strengthened the relationship between the College and the community. Brunswick is so lucky to have the College in the town."
Peterson agreed.
"The Common Good Grants challenge the image of a 'Bowdoin Bubble' and encourages students to be involved in the community in a very proactive sense," she said.