A Tufts fund which is dedicated to giving back to the university's host communities awarded 26 grants, totaling more than $24,000, to various area groups last month.
Now in its 13th year, the Tufts Neighborhood Service Fund (TNSF) allows faculty and staff to donate to a special fund that gives relatively small contributions to local nonprofits. To qualify for a grant, groups must work with volunteers from the Tufts community and must serve Tufts' host communities: Medford, Somerville, Chinatown and Grafton.
"What I love about the Neighborhood Service Fund is that it is a very effective initiative that accomplishes multiple goals," said longtime TNSF supporter Rob Hollister, dean of the Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service. "It provides financial assistance to local nonprofits, it supports the volunteering of Tufts faculty and students and ... it builds community, both within Tufts and between Tufts and groups in our host communities."
Originally called the Tufts Community Appeal, the TNSF began as an annual charity drive for the United Way, an organization dedicated to the betterment of communities. Over the years, faculty and staff have expanded the drive to support additional causes, including the university's financial aid and several environmental and health organizations.
Even though nonprofit organizations have recently taken an especially hard hit from the recession, the TNSF did not see a surge in interest.
"This year, we thought we would see a whole lot more programs requests," said Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Chris Swan, a member of the allocations committee that reviews the one-page grant applications. He said that the fund received 45 requests this year, ten less than its record.
But Director of Community Relations Barbara Rubel expects that the organization will be receiving more grant requests next year.
"It might be that the pain people are feeling now, we'll see next fall," she said.
There will, however, likely be much less money to give away next December, according to Rubel.
"Last month, we had $24,000 to give away, and, unless something happens, next year at this time we will have only $17,000 to give," she said.
Rubel added that there is a delay in issuing grants because many donations are given via payroll reductions. "[Faculty and staff] make a pledge in October," she said. "It starts coming out of their paycheck in January, but the donation may not be complete until the following December."
Members of the faculty and staff can also give to the TNSF through direct donations. Once the money is collected, a committee of faculty, staff and administrators then decides how to allocate it based on a variety of requests.
"It's the full range," Swan said. "Some people apply for 'hard-stock' items like food, clothing and furnishings, and then other times people will ask for computer software and hardware for different education programs."
The TNSF is more likely to contribute to institutions that make the grants go a long way. "We tend to give funding to those institutions that get a whole lot from the dollars we give them," Swan said.
According to Rubel, the grants range in size from $250 to $2,000 and require a relatively simple application process.
Usually, approximately 30 to 40 percent of requests are funded, Swan said.
Hollister praised the TNSF for its support of many of the agencies that work with Tisch College.
"It promotes active citizenship at Tufts in ... multiple ways, which is the core focus of Tisch College as well," he said.
Rubel also commended the program. "It's very heartwarming to see faculty and staff putting their charitable contributions into this program [and] trusting their fellow employees to make good decisions about where the money ultimately goes," she said. "I just wish there was more of it to give away."
