Sheffield — When teaching artist Julie Haagenson asks young people what they know about philanthropy, it is usually very little. “They think it means you work for free, and they don’t think they know any philanthropists.” In fact, one in every four jobs in Berkshire County is provided by the nonprofit sector, she told the group of 14 eighth graders who had begun “Philanthropy in the Schools,” a program designed by the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires under organization Executive Director Liana Toscanini. “We learned that philanthropy is the love of mankind, sharing your time and talent and treasure with the world.” Besides dispelling common misconceptions, students learned that giving can even lower stress and blood pressure and improve mental health.
Then Haagenson asked them, “What matters to you the most? What are you passionate about?” For her, the heart of this program’s curriculum, which has so far been implemented at Reid and Herberg Middle Schools in Pittsfield, “is empowering young people to identify what they care about and giving them the resources to have a positive impact in their community.” The students then spent time flipping through the Nonprofit Center’s directory of the 1,300-plus nonprofits in Berkshire County to see which sectors appealed to them. Over the month of January, under the guidance of Mt. Everett teacher Lindsey Brown, students worked daily to decide which organizations should receive the $1,500 allotted them by the Nonprofit Center. Students selected their favorites and then worked together to whittle the choices down so that their donation could have a greater impact.
Brown explained that the project is one of several she is doing in “Genius Hour” this year. Under Mt. Everett’s partnership with the organization Transcend, she has been piloting a studio program of independent, project-based experiences for students. “Building community is one of the big initiatives for our Transcend program,” she said. In addition, “figuring out what they’re excited about, what interests them” gives middle school students skills that will help them make choices like which classes to take in high school.
At an awards ceremony at Mt. Everett on January 31, the students awarded $500 checks to the three nonprofits they selected: Greenagers, the Berkshire Humane Society, and the Sheffield Volunteer Hose Company #1. “I want to share how special it’s been to partner with the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires and bring community organizations into the school and make some genuine connections between folks that are doing amazing work and the young people who will soon be going out and doing amazing work.” Additionally, Brown said, her students “also practiced very applicable life skills: drafting emails, conducting interviews, making connections, communicating, and collaborating … so I hope that they can take those skills to apply them in other places of their lives.”
Students presented briefly about the nonprofits they chose, answered questions about their process, and speculated on how the project might influence them in the future. Eighth grader Noah said his group chose to donate to the Sheffield Volunteer Hose Company because it was local and his group has personal connections to firefighters. “These two have cousins, and my mom’s a firefighter. And then another reason is the recent Great Barrington fires. [Sheffield Hose] could also have upgraded equipment if something ever happens like that again.”
Representatives from the nonprofits were in attendance. A volunteer from Sheffield Hose Company thanked the students and said donations help take firefighting purchases off taxpayers’ hands. Regarding the Butternut Fire, he said, “We realized the forestry equipment that we have is not suitable for those types of fires, so we are going to need some forestry gear, new portable pumps, that kind of stuff. So $500 is definitely a good start.”
The Berkshire Humane Society was a previous recipient of a gift from Philanthropy in the Schools. “People have a soft spot for animals,” said Nicole McKeen, representing the nonprofit. When thanking the students, she noted that the two biggest programs in need right now are the wellness clinic, a low-cost veterinary care clinic, and the pet food bank. “There’s a lot of folks who are struggling or just lost their jobs, so we help by providing supplemental food for them so they can keep their pets in the home.”
A student in the group who chose the organization said, “I really love animals. We used to have some pets, but we don’t have as many now. I would love to continue to take care of animals even if I don’t have any.” Another claimed she could definitely see herself volunteering at Berkshire Humane Society when she was old enough. When asked what their least favorite part of this project was, one student said, “seeing how many animals aren’t adopted.”
Asked what about the project impacted them personally, one girl said, “Something that stuck with me was finding out just how many nonprofits there are in the Berkshires and how much they contribute to help our community.
Another claimed that “working together really helped us get united and get good at teamwork and researching together.” Many agreed that they felt it was less intimidating to reach out to an organization now, even if it was just an email.
Samantha Suters, Greenagers’ development director, said she received a “really nice email” with good questions about the impact of a donation to Greenagers. The student who spearheaded the selection of Greenagers was out sick, but according to Brown, “She was really jazzed up about the trail crews and getting out in nature and on trails.”
Will Conklin of Greenagers, a graduate of Mt. Everett, said he would reach back out to decide where the donation was most needed. “I also want to add that we’re one of the rare nonprofits that pays young people to come and do the work that we do in the community,” said Conklin. “That includes working on trails, in fact developing skills that could eventually fight fires, among a whole host of other skills.” He also noted that the vernal pool trail behind the school was one that Greenagers worked on a few years ago.
Haagenson thanked the adults for making a connection with the students. “Seeing the difference after they had emailed or interviewed you, and just how empowered they felt, and how seen and recognized they felt was really amazing. You may not know the impact that you have in just an email, but it was really amazing to see the students perk up and say, ‘Wow, I have agency; I can do this.’”
“Not a lot of people really ask them, ‘What do you care deeply about?’” Haagenson told The Edge. “They don’t know that’s the starting point. They don’t always know the answer right away, but it’s kind of cool to watch that unravel. Young people are just so capable and so curious and so creative about problem solving. They see the world in a different light, they see different possibilities than we do.”
According to the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires’ website, the organization is hoping to secure funding and expand Philanthropy in the Schools into northern Berkshire County and additional schools. Interested schools should reach out to info@npcberkshires.org.
