The Student Philanthropy Committee will host its first Philanthropy Roundtable this month.
Trae Trousdale, mass communications sophomore and president of Student Philanthropy Committee, said the idea for the roundtable came from a freshman on the committee.
The Philanthropy Roundtable will be at 4 p.m. Thursday in the Ann Lacy Admissions and Visitor Center and is open to all students.
The event will feature three speakers who fundraise professionally. They are Christi Jeffreys, development officer for the Ann Lacy School of Dance and Entertainment, the Wanda L. Bass School of Music and the School of Theater; Stephanie Reid, dance marathon coordinator for Children’s Hospital Foundation, and Carly Johnson, development and special events coordinator for Boys and Girls Club of Oklahoma County. Jeffreys and Reid are OCU alumnae.
Reid Powell, programming and educational outreach chairman of the committee, said the professionals will be great at bringing in outsider perspectives on philanthropy.
“They’re going to be able to bring in opinions from outside the OCU community,” Powell said. “These outside opinions can help us to better run philanthropy events and fundraise around campus.”
Trousdale said the event will be a great fit for OCU.
“This goes right in line with the committee’s mission and with OCU as a nonprofit. Giving is a need on campus and an area where we need to step up,” Trousdale said.
Carrie Sauer, director of annual giving, said students who attend can learn a lot about their own fundraising.
“The idea is to talk about what works and what doesn’t work when fundraising on campus, like for a sorority or any type of club,” Sauer said.
Sauer said she is most excited to see what ideas are brought to the event.
“It’s great to have experts come, but I’m excited to see what the students bring,” Sauer said. “We have newer students, like freshmen, who probably don’t have a lot of experience when it comes to campus fundraising, so it will be great for them to come and learn and to see what they can come up with.”
Mackenzie Jones, dance senior and committee member, said the event will be beneficial for students who have questions or thoughts about fundraising.
“Any student or student organization will gain valuable information about how to run a successful fundraising campaign,” Jones said.
Trousdale said it’s important to hear diverse perspectives.
“Hearing different views on philanthropy allows us to see our campus as a whole,” Trousdale said.
No registration is required, and the roundtable is free to attend.
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