Claure Gaudiani
It’s been awhile folks, but I’ve just been waiting for the perfect opportunity to write. Currently I’m attending the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) District III Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. This is the professional organization for those in Alumni Relations and Advancement. What is great about this conference is that I will personally get to represent Cumberland University by hosting a round-table discussion on social networking. The discussion will take place on Tuesday afternoon, so I will make sure to let you all know how it went.
For our opening session tonight, I had the opportunity to listen to a wonderful woman speak. Her name is Claire Gaudiani, Director of the Graduate Program in Philanthropic Studies at New York University. She had a great message tonight to everyone in these difficult economic times: “America is rich because we give.” She currently has a book out named, The Greater Good: How Philanthropy Drives the American Economy and Can Save Capitalism. In her speech she told us that now, more than ever, is the time to invest in education, and yes, giving is an investment in the students that you support.
Let’s look at it this way: say a young man or woman with a very bright mind has the opportunity to be great. In order for their mind to reach their full potential, they obviously must attend university. Scholarships are necessary for this student to go to school. Now, after the investment is made in that student, he or she goes on to be a research scientist for renewable energy. Think about it…$100,000 may have been spent on that student to cover tuition costs, but to discover a breakthrough in renewable energy would not only pay for it instantly, but continue to contribute for a lifetime!
When someone gives toward education, it is an investment and it drives our economy because education trains the minds that keep our country and world going! Over each and every recession this country has faced, charitable giving has continued to increase.
Our founders knew how important it would be for our nation to thrive on philanthropy in order for us and our economy to survive. I’ll end this blog as Claire Gaudiani ended her speech tonight by quoting the very end of the Declaration of Independence:
“…And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”
