McGill Charity Week Project

Transcription

1 McGill Charity Week Project 1. Project Overview 1.1 Overview, Inspiration and Mandate The McGill Charity Week Project (MCWP) is a student initiative with the intention of implementing a community oriented, cross faculty, campus wide annual fundraiser at McGill University. This semester the MCWP team has worked with departmental student associations in the faculties of Arts, Science, Engineering, Management, Education, Law and Medicine to gauge each group s willingness to consolidate charitable fundraising efforts (if existent) into a predetermined one-week period. The consolidation of fundraising across all departmental groups could lead to one of the most exciting and inspiring events of the year. University student groups across the United Kingdom organize annual RAG (Raise and Give) weeks, raising huge sums of money and garnering national publicity. Canada s own Shinerama drew in 35,000 students in 2009, raising $988,069 for charity. These events exemplify the potential to build community within and between universities. Why does McGill, one of the largest and most diverse Universities in Canada, have nothing that resembles this? Using the RAG and Shinerama models, we believe that McGill students have the potential to double or triple the amount given to charities annually. The central mandate of the MCWP is to build community among departments, faculties, and the entire student body through concentrated and unified charitable giving. 1.2 Formation of the SSMU Charity Committee The following referendum question will be posed to undergraduate students in November 2010: Whereas SSMU currently does not have a centralized fund to provide expedient international humanitarian aid; Whereas the risk of humanitarian disasters is increasing as a result of population growth and environmental change; Whereas SSMU does not have a centralized body to organize campus wide charity events for students and build relationships with charitable organizations in the Montreal community; Do you agree to contribute $0.50 per semester (opt-outable) to a SSMU fund that will be distributed to disaster-stricken countries, and to the formation of a SSMU Charity Committee that will oversee the fund and organize charity events at McGill (the specific structure of the committee and details about the events it will organize can be found at

2 If the referendum question passes, the SSMU Charity Committee will be established (please refer to the document SSMU Charity Committee Outline for more information about the Committee) and will subsume the responsibilities of the MCWP. 1.3 Financial Information Under the guidance of the SSMU Charity Committee, McGill Charity Week will potentially be financed by various SSMU funds and allocations (including the Campus Life Fund and surplus from previous years). The principal cost of Charity week will be for promotional activities, including a kick-off ceremony on lower field and an end-of-week party for Charity Week participants. It may be possible to consolidate existing events (e.g. OAP, SUS Carnival etc.) with both the kick-off ceremony and the end-of-week party. Promotional activities will also include the acquisition of sponsorships with local businesses. Other promotional initiatives will include posters, creation of a web space, lecture announcements, media and list serve publicity, and community forums for McGill students and administration. As described in more detail in section 1.4.1, some money will also be distributed to departmental student associations that express the need for funding in order to finance a particular event during Charity Week. 1.4 Charity Week Organization A Shared Venture between SSMU, Faculties, and Departments The organization of Charity Week will require equal participation from the SSMU Charity Committee (hereafter referred to as the SCC), the faculty student associations (e.g. AUS, EUS, EdUS, MUS etc., hereafter referred to as FSAs), and the departmental student associations (hereafter referred to as DSAs). Charity Week will also benefit greatly from SSMU club participation. Although the SCC will plan and publicize, make all necessary bookings, and facilitate communication, each FSA will be responsible for relaying information to its constituent departmental associations. The DSAs will be the fundraising teams during charity week. Each FSA will be responsible for informing DSAs about Charity Week well in advance, and keeping track of each department s charity selection and fundraising plans. Each FSA will be responsible for working with departmental groups to establish interesting events. Each FSA will be required to submit a report to the SCC that includes an outline of each DSA s charity selection and fundraising ideas and a list of DSAs that require financial support for event organization (and the amount that each DSA requires). Finally, each FSA will be required to keep a record of each DSA s revenue during Charity Week, which will be submitted to the SCC throughout the week to display publicly.

3 Although all SSMU clubs will be encouraged to participate in Charity Week, they will not be expected to partake in the organization of the event in the same capacity that FSAs will. SSMU clubs that are participating will act autonomously. They will be required to submit their charity selection to the SCC, and are entitled to apply for funding just like DSAs. They will be grouped together with DSA fundraising teams depending on their charity theme (see section 1.5.1). They are entitled to select any charity they wish Charity Selection Process Each FSA will be responsible for determining the charity selection process in the 2010/2011 academic year and ensuring that this process has been constitutionalized before Charity Week s inaugural year (2011/2012). FSAs will be required to consult with DSAs to decide on the charity selection process. Consensus must be reached among all participatory DSAs before a selection process is established. Larger faculties may opt to generate a list of charities that DSAs can select from to raise money for. Smaller faculties may opt to select one charity that every DSA raises money for (though this latter option would be more efficient and timely, it is fundamentally important that consensus is reached among all departments). Schools and faculties that are associated with a larger faculty but retain autonomy (e.g. School of Nursing, School of Environment, Faculty of Religious Studies) may select unique charities that apply specifically to their domains. Charities must meet a certain number of fundamental criteria (e.g. sustainable business model, positive track-record) to be selected. These criteria will be formalized by the SCC, participatory FSAs and community organizations (e.g. Centraide Montreal). Apart from these fundamental criteria, the charity selection process will be at the discretion of the organizing faculty or school and its departments. It is each FSA s responsibility to recognize all departmental input and decide on a charity selection process accordingly. Once established, the charity selection process must be submitted to the SCC for review and approval Charity Selection and Submission During Charity Week s inaugural year (2011/2012) and all subsequent years, FSAs are responsible for enforcing the selection process described in section FSAs will be responsible for submitting a list of participatory DSAs, associated charities, and funding requests to the SCC by a specified date. SSMU clubs must also submit their charity selections and funding requests by this date. Each DSA and club is encouraged to choose a team name, a slogan and/or a theme for its fundraising campaign. The SCC will be responsible for publicizing each fundraising team/charity and maintaining a public and up-to-date record of the amounts raised by each team. 1.5 Some Potential Challenges The SCC will be responsible for ensuring that the McGill community isn t drawn too thin during Charity Week. It would be unfavourable to discourage passer-by s from donating because

4 there are simply too many groups asking for money (overcrowding). It would also be a shame if the McGill community felt overwhelmed during Charity Week because of the number of diverse charities that they are being pressured into giving to. People may become disenchanted with the notion of charitable giving because of the vast diversity of charities and causes that are being promoted throughout the week. Finally, it would be equally disappointing if by monopolizing campus space during Charity Week, the event undermined the plethora of groups that have longstanding charitable fundraising traditions Overcrowding To address the first problem (overcrowding), the SCC will be responsible for managing the booking of tables and campus spaces across campus during Charity Week, ensuring that DSA and SSMU club fundraising is adequately spaced (both temporally and spatially), and that Charity Week does not interfere with other club initiatives, traffic flow on lower campus, and the smooth functioning of McGill s everyday processes. DSAs will be encouraged to organize creative off-campus fundraisers (see section for a list of potential fundraising ideas) and to team up with local organizations to reduce campus crowding Disenchantment To address the problem of the potential information bombardment that may arise on campus as a result of the diversity of represented charities, it has been proposed that the Charity week is compartmentalized by theme. After compiling charity selection submissions from each FSA, the SCC will divide the charities into several broad themes (e.g. Economic Development, Improving Health Outcomes, Education, Gender Equality etc.), and separate these either temporally (i.e. each day would have a different theme) or spatially (areas in campus would be separated by theme). Publicizing these themed days and/or areas will allow members of the McGill community to align with a theme and alleviate pressure to donate each day of the week or at every campus corner. The theme initiative would also foster community building between departments and faculties (many seemingly disparate groups would be fundraising together on the same day or in the same area) Interference with Pre-existing Charity Initiatives To address the problem of interfering with current well-established charity fundraising by other student groups (including SSMU clubs and faculty associations), the SCC will encourage such groups to participate in Charity Week or work with such groups to temporally stagger events in such a way that interference is avoided. One principal concern is that smaller groups (i.e. SSMU clubs) that would like to plan events on lower campus during Charity Week will be drowned out by the excitement of Charity Week. It will be the SCC s responsibility to inform SSMU Clubs about Charity Week dates well in advance of the event. However, SSMU clubs will be avidly encouraged participate in Charity Week.

5 Another principal concern is that Charity Week will undermine the faculty-organized charity initiatives that are firmly embedded in McGill culture. The SCC will work with such groups to address these concerns. One potential solution will be to host events simultaneously (i.e. pooling resources). As long as it was planned effectively, hosting events simultaneously could lead to a positive symbiosis between groups. Also, because many groups are experienced at planning charitable initiatives, the SCC is interested in consultation with such groups in the planning process for Charity Week. 1.5 Small and Autonomous Departments Small and Multi-Representational Departments Many departments at McGill University are small (<100 students), and some do not have student associations. In cases where students are not represented by a DSA, they will be connected to a different, related department in the faculty-wide charity selection meetings at the beginning of each year. The DSA that they have been connected to will be responsible for fostering communication with those students. In cases where DSAs represent two or more departments, the association will be responsible for fostering communication with students in all of the departments that it oversees. The respective FSA is responsible for assigning small departments to a DSA Autonomous Schools and Faculties Schools and faculties that are associated with (i.e. obtain funding from) one or more faculties but identify as an independent unit will have the same responsibilities as faculty organizers. That is, the student associations within such schools and faculties have the same responsibilities as FSAs and SSMU Clubs during Charity Week. 1.6 On-the-ground Details and Fundraising Ideas On-the-ground Details and Group Themes During Charity Week the campus space will be divided into themes (e.g. Economic Development, Improving Health Outcomes, Education, Gender Equality etc.). After receiving charity and event submissions by all participatory groups, the SCC will create a series of themebased groups. For example, the Nursing Undergraduate Society, the Outdoors Club and the Philosophy Students Association may be assigned to the same group based on their selections of Health Outcome charities. Groups that have requested campus space in their event submissions (e.g. for an underwear soccer game on Lower Field, a jail break in Three Bears Park, or a cookie sale in Leacock) will be assigned to an area or a day depending on their theme group assignment. Groups that have not requested public campus space for events will have more liberty to fundraise on any day(s) of the week, as long as the space has been approved by the SCC and/or

6 the supervisor or owner of the space. For example, if the History Students Association wishes to organize a mid-lecture male auction in Leacock 232, this would have to be approved by the professor and/or the TAs. If the McGill Undergraduate Geography Society wishes to volunteer in a local soup kitchen for the homeless, they are responsible for arranging this either with the soup kitchen or through a community organization like Centraide Montreal Fundraising Ideas The possibilities are endless. Some of the more popular events at many American college charity weeks include pub nights, poker tournaments, clothing raids, bachelor/bachelorette auctions, benefit concerts, balls, sports games, jail breaks and lecture raids. It will be the joint-responsibility of the SCC and the FSAs to disseminate information to DSAs and SSMU clubs about interesting and creative fundraising ideas. 2. Potential Organization Selection Criteria 2.1 Guiding Principles The World Bank defines equity in terms of two basic principles. The first is equal opportunities: that a person s life achievements should be determined primarily by his or her talents and efforts, rather than by pre-determined circumstances such as race, gender, social or family background. The second principle is the avoidance of deprivation in outcomes, particularly in health, education and consumption levels. Selected organizations must adhere to both of these principles. The organization must: 1) strive to equalize effort-based opportunity across a social spectrum; 2) strive to reallocate current resources to alleviate deprivation in health, education and consumption levels. The organization may operate at any scale (locally, regionally or globally) and in any country, including Canada. 2.2 Fields of Operation Because of the complexity of social systems and the interaction of policy and development, the organization may be selected from a range of categories including (but not limited to): 1. Advancement of Environmental Sustainability 2. Gender Equality 3. Improving Health Outcomes 4. Promoting Good Governance 5. Strengthening Basic Education

7 6. Supporting Private Sector Development 2.3 Criteria Questions for Organization Selection 1. Feasibility of Mandate/Vision. Has this organization considered how the political and economic factors and systems in its country of operation relate to its mandate (e.g. many countries, such as India, have some of the most impressive legislative acts on environmental issues in the world, but lack of resources, training, and corruption of local pollution control often conspire to delay implementation). 2. Institutional Credibility. Is the organization embedded in the political, economic and social systems that it seeks to reform (i.e. does the organization have access to the political, economic and social resources that are required for change to occur)? Is the organization affiliated with or sponsored by a credible governmental or intergovernmental organization (e.g. CIDA; UNDP)? 3. Track-record. Does the organization have a long-standing and positive track-record in the country/region in which it operates? Are there clear indicators that it has contributed to the systemic redistribution of resources from those with plenty to those with less/those in need? 4. Business Model. Does the organization have a sound financial record? Is its business model sustainable (this will require an in-depth review of its financial sources and sinks)? Are its resources (physical and human capital) used efficiently? 5. Applicability to McGill. Does the organization have a connection with McGill University? Are McGill alumni, students, faculty or staff currently associated with the organization? Does the organization support McGill s overarching vision and mandate?