Giving Compass' Take:

• Philanthropy and the Public Good course at Baylor University teaches students how to distribute money to organizations and evaluate them as if they were a board of directors.  

• What are the main takeaways that students can gain from this course in philanthropy? 

• Read more about why philanthropy in the classroom will help students. 

From the fifth-floor reception area in McLane Stadium, visitors may easily see threads of the Baylor-Waco tapestry—campus, downtown, the Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative, and development springing up and extending from I-35. The sweeping vista provides a providential backdrop for the capstone moment of a life-shaping academic opportunity through Philanthropy and the Public Good, a unique Baylor class.

Each 15-week course of Philanthropy and the Public Good, culminates with the grant awards reception at the stadium. There, the students in the class are joined by representatives from local nonprofit organizations that will share more than $50,000 of grant money. Each organization is chosen by the class members following a rigorous process in which students essentially form a charitable foundation board of directors that winnows dozens of prospects to a handful of recipients.

“Taking the class inspired me on a journey of generosity,” Diana Castillo, BA ’17, says. “There’s an idea of what philanthropy and charity mean, but Philanthropy and the Public Good shows you what it’s like when they’re carried into action.”

The premise is simple. Donors provide more than $50,000 each semester for students to share with deserving organizations, most of which are in Waco. Students research, study and collaborate to collectively determine how to divide those funds among the nonprofit nominations.

However, the process is less simple. By design, students quickly understand that the problems are endless, the worthy organizations seeking to address those issues are plentiful, and the students’ capacity—which is a generous sum of money to distribute—is finite.

Read the full article about philanthropy and public good course at Baylor University