Humanics Student Philanthropy Project. The Humanics Philanthropy Project at Fresno State began in 2007 with an $8000 grant from Fresno Regional Foundation & flourished to become part of Students4Giving, a national initiative of Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund & Campus Compact.  As part of our course on “Philanthropy & Grant Making” (Sociology 183) offered each spring semester, this project provides hands-on experiences in philanthropy & leadership by allowing students to develop contacts with community benefit organizations, assess community needs, and learn how to request & evaluate funding proposals.  More than 150 students have awarded $41,000 to 14 different organizations from 2007-2011.  Through the companion course, “Grant Writing & Evaluation” (Sociology 184), our students also evaluate the impact of the grants they previously awarded & learn about the importance of good stewardship.

Grant Writing Projects allow students to help research and prepare grant proposals that, through 2010, have brought over $2.1 million to community benefit organizations in our region.

Humanics Internships allow for 300 hours of supervised internship with a nonprofit, community benefit organization. In 2009-2010, 35 Humanics students interned with 30 different community benefit organizations (CBOs) & contributed 8,560 hours of service to the community (avg. of 245 hours per student).

Humanics Sustainable Partnerships Project. This project is part of the Social Innovation Generation: California Recovery and Renewal (SIG: CARE) initiative of California Campus Compact and Corporation for National & Community Service and funded by a Learn & Serve America Higher Education Grant and the Fresno Regional Foundation. As part of our two-semester course offering of “Governance & Financial Literacy for Leaders of Community Benefit Organizations” and “Entrepreneurial Approaches to Sustainable Community Benefit Organizations,” this project fosters collaboration, civic engagement, entrepreneurship, and leadership by applying a team-centered, case-management approach to provide students with experience in nonprofit management consulting while working to enhance the capacity, governance and sustainability of San Joaquin Valley Community Benefit Organizations.

The Capacity Building & Technical Assistance component involves three phases of assisting 5-6 CBOs each year through Humanics Consulting Teams, comprising 3-4 Fresno State students, 1 university alumnus, and a professional coach. The teams conduct organizational assessments and submit feedback in a comprehensive report to the CBO, work with CBO staff and board members to identify priority areas and implement recommendations, and evaluate impact annually.