Student Philanthropy Board

Sydney Montgomery, Lead Advisor Student Philanthropy Board: The Student Philanthropy Board is an organization
that I think is incredibly unique at Boise State. We recruit students who are involved students, who come from various backgrounds and have various spheres of influence on the campus, to help guide us as
University Advancement on how we can make a greater impact on this campus. The only way I think we can get better as a university, as a community of staff and faculty, is if we’re consistently being guided by students.

Text on Screen: Each year, $25,000 in grant monty will be awarded to support the philanthropic efforts of various Boise State University student organizations and individuals.

Sydney: So the grant program was an initiative that we were looking to find: what is the gap that exists for students that don’t allow them to actually pursue the thing that they may want to see come to fruition on campus?

Mason Perry, Grant Program Recipient Campus Clothing Closet: We, as students, know what students are experiencing. We, as students, know where those needs are. We are the ones experiencing the university. And so being able to, like, take what you have, and take your idea, and then push that to the next level…It was amazing–I’ve never had that experience before.

Kalista Barkley, Student Philanthropy Board Board Member: So this last year with the Student Philanthropy Board, through our grant program, we were able to give a grant to the campus clothing closet.

Mason: I was in a position where I have actually seen the closet grow since the very beginning. We have been, so far, just donations-based, and we have been able to fill up the closet. Which is so exciting. The big part of the closet is we want everyone to use it, and we want them to use it for any reason.

Terry Scraggins, Staff Advisor for Grant Recipient Campus Clothing Closet: There are students or individuals that are really passionate about
impacting change, or making differences, and the only thing that standing in the way is the financial component. I think that
having a resource, and having a grant such as that, like, makes it that much more achievable and attainable, because I think a lot of times students have great ideas, and they’re very passionate about something that can cause a big impact in a positive way, but they don’t have the funding.

Mason: We do need money because our dressing room currently is like not accessible. It’s not big enough. We’re advertising this as a place for everyone, and– but it’s not. Like, it was not able to meet everyone’s needs. And so with that funding, we’re able to do all of those things that we had initially wanted.

Kalista: The campus clothing closet reminded me so much of the food pantry, which started as something so small and grew into this beautiful,
amazing thing that helps students so much. And when we were in the grant hearing, I just kept thinking, ‘this is going to be huge.’ And the Student Philanthropy Board is making that happen. And I’m so glad that we were able to be a part of that process.

Gator Colón, Grant Recipient Forum Beutification Project: There were basically two parts to my grant. The second part was hiring a student muralists to represent the city of Boise, and Boise State impact on the community, right outside of The Forum, which is where Admissions is located. So the goal is to basically have a great piece of student art, that not only tells a story, but gets visitors excited.

Brock Olson, Grant Recipient Student Outdoor Society: There was a study conducted by Boise State students that realized that the more students were able to get outside and to recreate and be around water, naturally they would perform better in school. They would have better mental health, and therefore having a better overall, you know, mental presence in the classroom. What I kind of wanted to do was to provide an opportunity for students who may have been less fortunate, or may have not have had an opportunity to really get out and recreate.

Ryan Brevik, Student Outdoor Society Grant Beneficiary TRIO Stem Scholars: I’m in TRIO STEM scholars. We serve first generation limited income students and students with documented disabilities studying STEM degrees. The grant funded our peer mentoring experience — our training going up to Bogus Basin mountain resort during the summertime. We sent five peer mentors up there and two staff members, and we got to experience all the summer activities, whether that’s hiking, you know, tubing, going up on the chairlift for the first time…

Brandi Moncrief, Student Outdoor Society Grant Beneficiary TRIO Stem Scholars: It really touches my heart because, like all of us are like low income and we come from diverse backgrounds, and so it’s just– it’s really incredible to just have extra funds to be doing things that we never thought we’d be able to do.

Brock: When I think about what I wanted this organization to be…without the grant program, without the funding, it definitely wouldn’t be where it where it is now.

Calvin Doerr, Student Philanthropy Board Board Member: The grant program exists because it not only helps the people who are involved learn how to grant write, which is an important skill, but it also contributes to students on campus. Like, we are trying to make a change with all of the grants that we give out. I do feel like we’re making decisions that matter. We have fantastic faculty leadership, and I always feel supported in the decisions that we make, and they steer in the right direction, but it’s nice to be part of a student-led organization where the leaders are truly the students and we have our own say in– in what we’d like to do.

Sydney: I think philanthropy is one of those unique things that, it’s all of our responsibilities to care and love the Boise State community on a consistent basis. And I couldn’t think of a better way to care about Boise State than focus on its philanthropic impact and overall, just engaging in philanthropy to better our university. And being guided in that work by a board of students is, I think, one of the best ways in which we can do that, which is how the Student Philanthropy Board essentially came to fruition.

Ali Russell, Student Philanthropy Board Board Member: The money we have to give away, we’ve seen it make such a big impact already.
These students are getting the resources they need to fund these amazing, amazing projects that are helping others.

Kalista: And the Student Philanthropy Board is making that happen.
And I’m so glad that we were able to be a part of that process.

Matthew Ewing, Vice President for University Advancement: Our vision for the Student Philanthropy Board was pretty simple. First was to expose, and not just expose, to teach our students the power that philanthropy can have. That it can have on this campus, but also that it can have on society in broader terms. And secondly, provide them a sandbox where they can develop their leadership skills… a vulnerable place where they can come together with like-minded individuals, meet different type of individuals, and develop those leadership skills.

Kristen Pederson, Student Philanthropy Board Alumni and Founding Member: Being able to build something from the ground up, as a founding board member, that was something of truly getting to sit down and say, ‘What do we want this to be?’ Being given that responsibility when you’re a student in college as well, being on this board is just– was a great opportunity, and I think a great growing experience for– for everyone on there.

Matthew: In the last couple of years, it’s been way more successful than I could have ever even imagined. One of the things that we wanted to be able to– to also align with, is that it was going to be students that were helping students. That was the powerful piece that was going to make this successful. And what the team, particularly under Sydney’s direction, has been to be able to develop with the grant program is just that. The power that philanthropy can play, both what it means to receive it, and ask for it, but also what it means to make that decision to give it away. There’s a lot of thought that should go into that.

Kristen: When you first identify a problem or an issue or a cause that you’re really passionate about, I think that’s a great first step and a great first motivator to get involved with philanthropy on campus.

Sydney: I was a student at Boise State. I experienced the university as an undergraduate student. I experienced university living on campus, being involved on campus, and really seeing what Boise State as a community and as a university can do for somebody. I feel like I get to live that out every day and saying, when I was a student, Boise State, I was invested in, and look what now I can contribute back to the Boise community as well as the university.

Matthew: And as we’re thinking about education here, and not just the education they learn in the classroom, but as they take that out into the rest of their career and the society that they are going to make that– choose to make that impact on, that’s the powerful thing that we wanted to be able to provide, and why I think this particular program is probably the most important thing we’ve launched in recent years.

Sydney: Growth doesn’t happen for students unless you have people who are investing in them personally. A care and consideration of their students, the learning moments, the growth opportunities, and being by their side the entire time.

Matthew: We’re just starting this. And so the more alumni that graduate out of this program, and choose to stay a part of it, and come back, and help those students develop, talk about their experience… that’s the powerful piece. And I think when we get to that place, and I’m confident we will, that’ll be a true mark of success for me.