Minigrants and Easy Money
S.H.E.-- the club that I co-direct-- received several sources of unusual funding this year that would not have been possible to obtain if Willamette did not have such a supportive administration. We received a grant from the sustainability council, a council on campus that oversees sustainable and environmental efforts. They've given money to my friends to do carbon footprint research, sponsor environmental documentaries on campus and host retreats to brainstorm ways in which all members of the community can become involved with sustainable efforts. The best program they've offered to students is the minigrants which are easy to apply for and can give up to $500 toward any project relating to sustainability. It really can be anything, too. Last year someone did a movie campaign to get people to ride their bikes to school. Another minigrant bought reusable coffee mugs for entire floors of dorms. The minigrants is what originally started the bike shop on campus, too. SHE received a minigrant to make banners for our annual events so we could stop wasting so much paper with advertising. We received $250 and have made a series of amazing banners that otherwise we could have only dreamed of. Other councils on campus have started utilizing the minigrant program model and now clubs and individuals have endless opportunities to fund whatever outreach they want relating toeligion, service, social justice or a host of other issues. I realize that money like this is not normally so easy to come by and I only wish that I had applied for more!