Meet a 2009 Student Leadership Award Winner, The Student Philanthropy Project of Grove City College

In 2009, The Student Philanthropy Project at Grove City College earned a Student Leadership Award from The Jenzabar Foundation for making a difference in their community through philanthropy.   The Student Philanthropy Project was launched at Grove City College to provide an opportunity to help fulfill The College’s mission to encourage students the development of moral character shaped by Christian principles that are prepared to serve as responsible citizens and leaders of society.  By integrating philanthropy into the classroom, students have a forum for hands-on experience in researching and supporting non-profit service organizations. The Project helps students learn how to be engaged citizens and to understand the important role philanthropy plays in the health of local communities. 

The Student Philanthropy Project of Grove City College has used The Student Leadership Award to fund two classes for the 2009-2010 academic year, Media Aesthetics and Trends and Issues in Early Childhood Education.  The project has helped develop the next generation of lifelong civic leaders understand the importance of philanthropy in the community, the nation, and the world. 

Since its inaugural year of 2008-2009, the project has touched the lives of 106 undergraduate students across nine majors and partnered with 14 non-profit organizations in the surrounding communities. Professors in the departments of Communication Studies, History and Education have creatively integrated the art of philanthropy into course curriculum providing students with opportunities for real world application. “So far, students continue to benefit from the project beyond the course and semester. Several students have received internships as a result of the project. Many other Grove City College students continue to volunteer and support these non-profit organizations through time, talent and treasure” according to Brian Powell, Grove City College.

The Student Philanthropy Project Grove City College is the first institution in the state of Pennsylvania to integrate this model of philanthropy education at the undergraduate level. The Student Philanthropy Project holds special significance because the College is one of three colleges in America that does not accept federal funds. They rely solely on the generosity of our alumni, parents and friends.

The Jenzabar Foundation Announces the 2010 Student Leadership Awards Open Nominations.

Nominations for The Jenzabar Foundation’s annual Student Leadership Awards have officially opened.  The awards will honor ten student led student groups that have made a significant impact in the world through community service or philanthropic activities.  The Jenzabar Foundation is accepting submissions from institutions of higher education, non-profit organizations, religious organizations and self-nominations from students for their community service or humanitarian efforts during the current, 2009/2010, or previous, 2008/2009, academic year. A $5,000 grant is included with the recognition to support the student or group’s future humanitarian endeavors.

 Past award honorees included a wide range of impressive achievements. Some previous recipients include The Wartburg College Feed My Starving Children Project, Engineers for a Sustainable World at Harvey Mudd College, Flagler College Students in Free Enterprise, The Student Philanthropy Project at Grove City College, and many more. 

 Nominations are open for students enrolled in any accredited institution of higher education and can be submitted by individuals, educational institutions, or non-profit organizations that have produced work consistent with the mission of The Jenzabar Foundation:  to recognize and support the good works and humanitarian efforts of student leaders serving others across the global community.

For more information, please visit The Jenzabar Foundation website.

Women’s Rights in China

In China roughly 25 years ago, a 7- year- old child was found lost in the streets and kidnapped by a woman who was claiming to help her. This past November, that same child, who is now a 32 –year- old woman, was reunited with her family after many years of separation.

Soon after her kidnapping, the child was sold to a family who anticipated her to be the future wife of one of their sons. Still considered vanished by her home village, the family of the 7-year-old child had been actively seeking their missing loved one for the last 25 years.

Through the efforts of The Jenzabar Foundation, Women’s Rights in China, Children’s Rights in China, the Rescue Network, Chinese local government and media, and many volunteers, the family was reconnected in the village where she was born.  These organizations and individual volunteers worked together in researching her family and broadcasting her story – reuniting them after more than two decades apart.

The Chinese government’s family planning policy limits the number of children a couple can have, causing many acts of crime throughout the country. Human trafficking still remains widespread in China with kidnapped children being bought by childless couples and abducted women being sold for marriage or prostitution. 

Earlier this year, Chairman of the Board of Advisors for The Jenzabar Foundation, Ling Chai, announced a $1 million humanitarian effort to support human rights and a peaceful democratic China over the next five years. As part of this initiative, The Jenzabar Foundation is starting a campaign to help the many victims of the One Child Policy and raise awareness of human trafficking, kidnapping, and forced abortion.

We are bringing to your attention the case of Wujian.  Although she begged the nurse to let her baby live, she was forcibly aborted in the sixth month of her pregnancy.  The nurse told Wujian that she was one of more than 10,000 forced abortions in that county, just for that year. 

Wujian’s experience represents the experiences of countless millions of women who have been forcibly aborted in the 30 years since China implemented the One Child Policy.  To help some of the suffering women of China, we are hoping to gather 100,000 signatures for Wujian’s petition.  By showing your support, you can play a part in the next success story!

The Jenzabar Foundation Assists Babson College in Providing Educational Programs to Disadvantaged Communities

Babson College received a grant from The Jenzabar Foundation to help implement an educational program that will reach one hundred local school children and three elementary schools in Ghana.  Through the work of One Hen Inc., a nonprofit that teaches children to be financially responsible and helps guides them with ways to succeed in school and beyond.  As a part of the 2010 program at Babson College, forty graduate and undergraduate students will implement One Hen’s curriculum to teach entrepreneurship in Ghana high schools. 

The Net Impact Babson Chapter also received a grant from The Jenzabar Foundation to subsidize the cost of Babson students attending the 2009 Net Impact Conference in Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. The Conference will bring together those involved with the sustainable global enterprise movement, including sustainability and corporate responsibility practitioners, social entrepreneurs, and nonprofit leaders.

The Fourth Annual Harvard China Care Fall Benefit Dinner and Silent Auction

On November 12th, The Jenzabar Foundation sponsored the Fourth Annual Harvard China Care Fall Benefit Dinner and Silent Auction. The event featured critically acclaimed musical artist Dawn Xiana Moon and speaker Xing Hu of the Hauser Center for Nonprofits at Harvard University.

 The Harvard China Care is a college organization that has raised more than $200,000 for special- needs orphans. They directly impact the lives of thousands of orphans in China by supporting the operational costs and surgery requests for orphanages and children’s homes throughout China. The HCC also sent summer interns to work at orphanages in Baoji, Luoyang, Saiqi, Beijing, Changsha, Hengyang, and Tianjin.

In Boston, the HCC holds bi-weekly a playgroup called “Dumplings” for children adopted from China and their familiars. This playgroup is centered on cultural themes and allows them to interact with other role models.

This year, The Jenzabar Foundation contributed $25,000 for a nursery unit at the The China Care Project’s Childrens Home in Bejing.

One Million Signatures Campaign

At this year’s Glamour Women of the Year awards, One Million Signatures Campaign was among one of the eleven honorees. One Million Signatures Campaign started in 2006 by a group of Iranian women who risked their lives to end gender inequality in Iran.  They asked both males and females to sign a petition demanding changes in the laws that make women second class citizens.  For the first time in Iran, this movement has given women the courage to speak out. 

For more information about the One Million Signatures Campaign.

2009 Glamour Women of the Year Recipients

The 2009 Glamour Women of the Year Honorees:

• Amy Poehler
• Euna Lee & Laura Ling
• Jane Aronson
• Maria Shriver
• Marissa Mayer
• Maya Angelou
• Michelle Obama
• One Million Signatures Campaign
• Rihanna
• Serena Williams
• Stella McCartney
• Susan Rice

Most Memorable Moments from the 2009 Glamour Women of the Year Awards VIDEO