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Youth Advisory Committee in Action
Lesson 4:
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Lesson
Handouts
Academic Standards
Philanthropy Framework
6th-8th Grade
Subjects:

Language Arts, Library / Technology, Philanthropy and Social Studies

Key Words/Concepts click to view
ELA: Group Discussions; Listening; Presentations; Role-Play
PHIL: Board of Directors; Foundations; Fundraising; Needs Assessment; Nonprofit; Survey; Youth Advisory Committee
SOC: Citizenship/Civic Engagement; Common Good; Point of View; Volunteerism

Purpose:

Students will conduct a one-day fund raiser, survey members of the community (school or local area) to determine a need, write proposals to satisfy the need, serve as a board of directors and a youth advisory committee to determine how funds will be spent, and evaluate the project.

Duration:

Six Fifty-Minute Class Periods

Objectives:

The learners will:

  • explain why students have a responsibility to act in the voluntary sector to improve the common good.
  • design and use a survey instrument to collect data related to a need in the community.
  • explain how a youth advisory committee uses a form of “advise and consent” when making recommendations to a board of directors.

Service Experience:

Although this lesson contains a service project example, decisions about service plans and implementation should be made by students, as age appropriate.
The learners will raise funds in a one-day fund raiser, conduct a survey to determine community need, complete a grant application, present their request to a board of directors and fund a project.

Materials:

  • Letter to Parents (Attachment One)
  • Let’s Look Around Survey (Attachment Two)
  • Proposal Form (Attachment Three)
  • Proposal Evaluation Form (Attachment Four)
Handout 1
Letter to Parents
Handout 2
Let’s Look Around Survey
Handout 3
Proposal Form
Handout 4
Proposal Evaluation Form

Instructional Procedure(s):

Anticipatory Set:
Put the following quotation on the chalkboard: “The man who dies…rich, dies disgraced.” Let the learners discuss who they think said it and what was meant.

  • Explain that the quotation was the point of view of the immensely wealthy industrialist Andrew Carnegie, who, by the time he died in 1919, had given away $350,695,653. At his death, the last $30,000,000 was likewise given away to foundations, charities and to pensioners. His philosophy about money was written in his “Gospel of Wealth.” Ask the learners if they agree or disagree with his opinion. Do the learners feel American students have a responsibility to act in the voluntary sector to improve the common good? Why or why not?

  • Distribute Letter to Parents (Attachment One) for students to take home. Announce that, in this lesson, the class will select a money-making project, earn the funds and give them away, using the knowledge and skills learned in the previous three lessons of this unit. Because the focus of this lesson will be on giving the money away rather than earning it, ask the students to think of a way to earn money. Brainstorm a list of suggestions that might be accomplished in one day. (Among others, examples can include having a car wash, having a pizza party or conducting a school dance.) Using the parliamentary procedure technique learned in the last lesson, ask for volunteers to serve as chairman and secretary and work toward a money raiser that students agree on. Determine what committees will need to be formed to get the job done and allow students to break into committees based on areas of interest. Near the end of the period resume a whole group and have committees report their decisions. (Option: The teacher may opt to pre-select the activity after gaining administrative approval.)

  • Conduct the fund raiser and have students evaluate the process.

  • To begin the decision-making process, distribute Let’s Look Around Survey (Attachment Two). Discuss what the purpose is of a survey and what it should accomplish (give a realistic view of a need). Make sure students understand that it is important to include a variety of people in the sample rather than merely asking friends. (Note: Depending on the interest of the students and the amount of money available, students should make a decision on whether they are interested in a school problem or a problem in the larger community. The survey topics on the questionnaire should be based on that decision.) As a group, fill in the left column of the survey form. (Each survey form should look the same.) Explain that the learners are to survey up to ten persons in the designated community (students in the school or in the same grade, parents, neighbors, etc.) for answers. The surveys should be returned the next day.

  • When the surveys are returned the next day, compile the results and select the five areas of most concern. Unless the class strongly disagrees, these will be the areas for which proposals will be written to receive the available funds.

  • Explain that all community foundations have a Board of Directors which makes the final decision on who receives funding. Many of the foundations are adding “Youth Advisory Committees” to make recommendations to the Board of Directors for some of their funding choices. The class will follow this “advise and consent” model. The procedure for the funding will be that five recommendations will come from the Youth Advisory Committee but the Board of Directors will make the final decision. Split the class into six teams. Allow one team to serve as the Board of Directors. (Appoint the team or ask a team to volunteer.) The other five teams will serve as the Youth Advisory Committee. Each of the five remaining teams will select one of the five areas of concern from the survey, research ways to deal with the problem, perhaps by studying groups already dealing with that concern, and write a proposal. They will write a proposal using Proposal Form (Attachment Three) and present their recommendation to the Board orally and in writing. (It is not necessary for groups to design entirely new projects. They may recommend giving funding to an existing group who will use the funding for a specific purpose.)

  • While the five Advisory Teams are developing their proposals, the Board of Directors should be developing their evaluation procedure so that all proposals will be rated in a consistent manner. See Proposal Evaluation Form (Attachment Four) for ideas. Once they have approved the final format of the evaluation form, they should make a short presentation to the Youth Advisory Teams to inform them of the scoring procedure they will be using in determining the grant award(s). (NOTE: All teams, including the Board of Directors, must have presentation responsibilities as part of their skill development in this lesson.)

  • Using the parliamentary procedure learned in the previous lesson, have all teams present their proposals to the Board of Directors in a meeting format. Let the Board make its decision(s) and report the decision in a short presentation.

  • In a ceremony in school or at the location of the grantee, present the grants. A tour of the site should be scheduled for the future, if possible, to see how the project is developing.

  • Evaluate the experience by discussing the following areas:

    • Did this project show that youth can make meaningful contributions to the common good of the community?

    • Were the goals of the project and the consequences for the school, neighborhood or local community accomplished?

    • Did this experience demonstrate the work of the community foundation in the area?

    • Was the work of the Youth Advisory Committees meaningful?

    • How should this project be changed for the future?

Assessment:

Each student should write a short paper addressing the following topics:
  • Community foundations benefit from Youth Advisory Committees because…

  • The “advise and consent” model in grant making gives youth the following type of experience…

  • Serving as a director or grant writer (select one) in this activity, I learned…

School/Home Connection:

  • Interactive Parent / Student Homework:
    Students will ask a parent or relative, as well as other students and community members, to complete a survey question (see Attachment One, Youth Advisory Committee in Action).

Cross-Curriculum Extensions:

Let students do an Internet search on Carnegie, research his “Gospel of Wealth” and see how he spent his fortune on philanthropy.

Bibliographical References:

Lesson Developed By:

Evelyn Nash
Curriculum Consultant
Learning to Give

Handouts:

Handout 1Print Handout 1

Letter to Parents

Dear Parent/Guardian:

Your child has been participating in a unit called “Advise and Consent” where students are learning about how some of the President’s decisions are subject to “checks and balances” by the United States Senate. As part of this unit, students are also learning that the government does not do everything when it comes to services needed by the public. Families, businesses and nonprofit organizations also provide some of these needed services. One of the types of nonprofit organizations they are learning about is the community foundation. The community foundation provides help to various organizations which serve the community.

Students will gain the experience of what it is like to serve on a community foundation by earning a small amount of money through a one-day fund-raising activity; conducting a survey of the community to determine its needs; researching groups that provide assistance; writing and presenting a proposal to fund a community need; and selecting a recipient for the funds raised. Their final decision will be subject to the “advise and consent” idea since the final decision will be made by a small student “board of directors” which will take the “advice” of the presenters or reject it for a valid reason.

You may be asked to participate in a survey of community concerns for one of your child’s assignments. I encourage you to give a small portion of your time to completing the survey. This unit reinforces civics, economics, reading, writing, listening, speaking and research concepts and skills over a two-week period. If you have any questions or wish further information regarding this unit, feel free to contact me. If you have knowledge of a particular nonprofit group that serves the community and may be of interest for the researchers, I would welcome such information.

Thank you for your help with this unit.

Teacher’s name

Handout 2Print Handout 2

Let’s Look Around Survey

Directions: As a class, list the topics to be surveyed in the far left column. When conducting the survey, put a check mark in the appropriate column each time a person selects a topic as their main area of concern for which something needs to be done. In the far right column, briefly describe the interviewee’s concern.

 
Topic
 Responses
Specific Concern
Environment
 X X X              
Litter on school grounds
Animals
 X                  
Resources for animal shelter
Health
 X X X              
Smoking
Education
 X                  
Need for special field trips
Social
X                  
Lack of activities for youth
                    
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   
                   

 

Note to Teacher: Delete the samples before use with your class.

 

Handout 3Print Handout 3

Proposal Form

Name of Project:_______________________ Focus Area: _________________
Organization Name: ________________________________________________
Organization Address: ______________________________________________
Contact Person: Phone: ____________________________________________
Program Description:
Describe the purpose of the project, the way in which it will be carried out, how often its services will be provided, how many people will be served, and the location where the program is to be carried out.

Applicant Organization:
Describe the history of the organization proposed to receive funding. When was it founded, who does it serve and what is its history handling this type of community service?


Evaluation:
How will we determine whether the funding accomplished its purpose?


Project Budget:
Indicate how much money is being requested and a detailed estimate of project costs. Are requested funds sufficient to carry out the project?

Youth Advisory Committee Members Making This Recommendation:

 

 

Handout 4Print Handout 4

Proposal Evaluation Form

Project Name: __________________________________________

Questions for Consideration Points:3 (Good) 2 (Fair) 1(Poor)
Does the proposal merely hand over money to an existing organization or does it provide a project for the use of the money?      
Does the proposal clearly meet a need identified by the survey?      
Will the project work?      
Is it really needed?      
Will the organization be able to carry out the project?      
Is the amount of money being given sufficient to carry out the project?      
How many people will benefit from the project?      
Does the proposal include a means of evaluating whether the project accomplished its goals?      
Total Points:      

Philanthropy Framework:

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Unit Contents:

Overview:Advise and Consent Summary

Lessons:

1.
Limits of Power
2.
Who Should Do It?
3.
Community Foundations and Procedure
4.
Youth Advisory Committee in Action

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