August and September Volunteer Opportunities

We have quite the calendar of opportunities coming up this month and next!

August 27: Warrior Welcome Service Projects, Willimantic, CT
Incoming freshmen and transfer students signed up to volunteer at 11 project sites including making gifts to donate, community gardens, and volunteering with high school students!

September 10: Service Fair, Webb Lawn, Eastern Connecticut State University 
If you want to get involved in one of our amazing Community Programs (i.e. tutor a student over the period of a semester, become a mentor to a student, volunteer with those who are homeless or recovering from an addiction) then this is the place for you to speak directly with our community partners and sign up to learn more about how you can get involved!

September 15: CureSearch Walk for Children's Cancer, Hartford, CT 
Do you want to bring more awareness and support to children's canacer? Form a team and fundraise to participate in a walk of solidarity with others who feel the same way.

September 20: Poverty Awareness Marathon, Eastern Connecticut State University
Bring a can or some money and join in the marathon around Eastern's campus to bring awareness that poverty can occur all over the world to anyone. You can walk or run for as many laps as you want!

September 24: Connecticut Mobile Food Truck, Willimantic, CT
For those who are unable to access fresh groceries, the CT Mobile Food Truck provides a way for them to obtain fresh produce and groceries for them and their families.

If you have any questions about our Community Programs or Special Events, email the Center for Community Engagement at cce@easternct.edu


* Transportation is provided for most Special Events and all Community Programs

CCE's Fall 2013 Volunteer Opportunities!!

We are thrilled to show off our Fall 2013 Volunteer Opportunities!

 

If your interested in a Communtiy Program, email Luis Rodríguez, Assistant Director of the CCE at rodriguezlu@easternct.edu.

 

If you want to get involved in a Special Event, email Max Goto, AmeriCorps*VISTA of the CCE at gotom@easternct.edu.

 

If you don't see something you're interested in or passionate about, contact the CCE at cce@easternct.edu to start a new initiatve or program!

 

 



How to Choose the Right Nonprofit to Support

Choosing the right kind of nonprofit to give a donation to can be a little overwhelming. You want your money to go to good use. There are many great programs, services, and leaders out there, but there are also scams and, unfortunately, nonprofits that mismanage their money. 

So, to help you wade through the murky waters of giving a meaningful donation, here are some useful tips and the websites where we found them!

1. Clarify your beliefs and preferences (http://bit.ly/13TzfQQ)

• Do this before you open your checkbook, volunteer your time, or look at that letter from a charity

• Think about what matters most to you. The environment? Education? Hunger? Animal welfare? Helping sick children? Economic development?

• Think about where you want to make an impact. In your neighborhood? Region? The nation? Internationally?

• Ask yourself if you want to support a large or small charity, a new or an old one.

2. Make sure the charity is legitimate (http://nbcnews.to/1bpGcuK)

• The Internal Revenue Service maintains a list of all organizations registered as charities. Also check with your state’s attorney general or charities bureau, which is responsible for policing charities within the state and can provide a wealth of information about them. Don’t know your state’s charity regulator? Go towww.nasconet.org, a national association of state charity officers, to find yours. 

3. Don’t be afraid to ask questions (http://nbcnews.to/1bpGcuK)

• Charities are required to provide information about their programs and expenses. Start with these questions: How will my gift be spent? How many people did you help last year? In what way? If you don’t get adequate answers, don’t give anything. 

4. You Don't Have To Give A Lot at Once (http://onforb.es/17kkOE6)

• If you believe in a cause, you don’t have to limit your giving to the dollars you can spare right now. Consider getting into the charitable habit by making small regular donations throughout the year, just as you make regular contributions to your 401(k) or other saving accounts.

5. Make sure mission aligns with your vision. (http://bit.ly/13TzfQQ)

• Look at a charity's description on GuideStar, on its Web site, in its literature, or on Charting Impact.

5 Fundraising Ideas for College Students

We do A LOT of fundraisers and thought we'd make a list of the best ones for college students. Here's a list of some of our most successful fundraisers. 

1. Bake Sale: An oldy but a goody, you can reach out to staff, students, and your entire student body to make a good amount of money. It is all about strategic placement and marketing so we suggest bringing your baked goods to staff and faculty, then reserving a table at a popular hang-out spot on campus to reach students.
2. Partner with a Local Business: Reach out to a local business that has a great relationship with your college/university and where a lot of the campus community hangs out to support your cause. Ask if they can sponsor you during a time when they're busy (i.e. breakfast hours at a coffee shop) or make an "item of the month" where a part of the proceeds brought in from the selling of that item goes to you (i.e. money brought in from strawberry waffles sold in the month of march goes to your cause).
3. -Thons: Always a blast, these events ask people to see how long they can do an activity. They work great for college students schedules because of their flexible hours and varying time requirement. Some examples include a "yoga-thon," "baseball-thon," "zumba-thon" and more!
4. Car Wash: We have had a lot of success in the past with car washes. On a nice fall or spring day, just when the weather is getting gross, faculty and staff will really appreciate the opportunity to have their car cleaned and the money going to a good cause!
5. Personal Sponsorship: Reach out to friends and family members asking for a personal sponsorship for your cause. Just a $5 or $10 donation can go a long way towards making your trip or service commitment a reality.

Don't be afraid to get creative. Any game, fun activity, or talent that you have can be tied into raising money for a great cause!

Alternative Spring Break: Car Clean Up!

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

This past Friday, March 2, there was a different kind of commotion occurring in the parking lot next to the Gelsi-Young building. The Alternative Spring Break members were busily cleaning faculty cars to raise a little bit of money for their expedition to Pennsylvania!

Trip members stood outside from 12pm-5pm vacuuming out cars and wiping windows clean for the ECSU staff. Junior co-trip leader,Lauren Kostak (Environmental Earth Science Major, Canton, CT) stated "this has been a wonderful fundraiser. Having the Eastern faculty and staff willing to help students achieve their goals is awesome. I know all of us really appreciate their generosity".

The Alternative Spring Break will be occurring during the Spring Break week (March19-26) and the trip members will be headed to Jennerstown, Pennsylvania. They will be staying at Sequanota State Park in cabins and helping the Park staff to clean and maintain trails, work at a local soup kitchen, and provide any other helping hands that are needed in the area.

"We are really excited about heading to PA. I can't wait to see what the trails have to offer us! We are bonding quickly as a team and work well together." Said Junior co-trip leader, Brae Ferguson(Communications Major, Bethel, CT).

Overall, the ASB trip members made $415 during their time cleaning cars! Congratulations to all the trip members and good luck!

Left to right: Lauren Kostak (trip leader), Calvin Underwood, Brae Ferguson (trip leader), Kristina Scherber (ECSU staff supervisor),Tom Przybylek, Todd Mitnick
Not Pictured: Anna Sobanski, Zanaib Giwa