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Humanics
More than 360 students participated in S4G and have awarded $275,000 to 50 different organizations from 2007-2024 (see grantees below), addressing critical funding areas for local community benefit organizations (CBOs) while preparing individuals for leadership in service to humanity.
CURRICULUM. The Humanics Program at California State University, Fresno, through the Department of Sociology, offers a course on “Philanthropy and Grant Making” (SOC183S) each spring semester, as a core requirement for the Humanics certificate in administration and leadership for community benefit organizations and/or minor degree in Philanthropic and Community-based Leadership. This course has been taught by Dr. Matthew Ari Jendian (2007), Dr. Don Simmons (2008-2021), and Adrian Gomez (2022-present).
The Humanics Students4Giving Philanthropy Project, a key component of the SOC183S course, provides students with hands-on experiences in philanthropy and community leadership by developing contacts with community benefit organizations and assessing community needs. Through this project, students learn how to request and evaluate funding proposals as well as how the sector is governed, operated, and funded. Through the companion course offered in the fall semesters, “Grant Writing & Evaluation” (SOC184S), Humanics scholars evaluate the impact of the grants previously awarded and learn about the importance of good stewardship.
HISTORY. In January 2007, the Central Valley Community Foundation partnered with our Humanics Program by allowing students enrolled in Philanthropy and Grant Making an opportunity to re-grant $8,000 over a multi-year process. In December 2007, Campus Compact and Fidelity® Charitable Gift Fund announced Students4Giving, an initiative that sought to inspire young people to become more involved with philanthropy. Thirty-five universities and colleges nationwide submitted proposals and competed for five winning slots and the chance to participate in the new pilot program. In addition to Fresno State, the others selected were Boston University; Portland Community College, OR; the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; and Whitworth University in Spokane, WA. Financed by Fidelity, the Students4Giving initiative provided each selected school with a “donor-advised” Gift Fund Giving Account® seeded with $15,000, overseen by the students participating in their respective school’s philanthropy courses and used for future grant recommendations within their communities. Smaller amounts of additional funding have been provided each subsequent year. Humanics@FresnoState received a Cohen Grant from American Humanics, Inc. in 2008 as well as a multi-year investment from the Geil Family Fund.
In 2011, a renewed partnership with the Central Valley Community Foundation provided $3,000 per year (2011, 2012, & 2013) based on the match amount raised by our Humanics Program for this project, and we established a one-year partnership with Friends For Civic Engagement—a donor-advised fund established in 2003 at The Fresno State Foundation by Dr. Richard Berrett (Professor Emeritus of Child and Family Science) which provided $3000 in support. In 2012, the Humanics Program created its first memorial grant in honor of Philip T. Manoogian. This grant, made possible by friends and family of Mr. Manoogian, was awarded every year from 2012-2017 to a CBO working in the area of education to honor his 35 years of professional service and commitment to public education.
In 2013-14, Humanics@FresnoState renewed its partnership with Central Valley Community Foundation ($5,000 per year through 2019) and received its largest single investment ever ($20,000) from The Whitney Foundation. In 2014, our 8th year of Students4Giving, Humanics scholars awarded three $8,000 grants, and, from 2015-2018, Humanics scholars awarded three $5,000 grants each year, bringing our cumulative total to $162,000 awarded to 36 different CBOs between 2007 and 2018.
In May 2018, The Whitney Foundation endowed the Humanics@FresnoState Students4Giving Grants with a $500,000 philanthropic investment in the Social Impact Investment Pool at Central Valley Community Foundation which will now allow for annual grant making of at least $13,000 every year in perpetuity beginning in May 2020.
2025:
Youth Services: ($11,000)
Restorative Justice for Systems-Impacted Populations: ($11,000)
Racial & Economic Justice: ($11,000)
2024:
Cultural/Environmental Enrichment: Environmental Collaborative of Central California (EcoCenCal or EC3) ($10,000): To develop a robust website to serve as a central hub for environmental organizations & community engagement, facilitating collaborative opportunities for organizations and opportunities for volunteers in addition to maintaining a comprehensive calendar of related upcoming events.
LGBTQ+ Services & Advocacy: The Source LGBT+ Center ($10,000): To host “The Beyond Binary Festival”—a free community concert featuring local Trans and Nonbinary artists to amplify Trans and Nonbinary joy (late summer/early fall).
Racial & Economic Justice (Solo): BLACK Wellness and Prosperity Center ($6,000): To improve health outcomes and address structural racism as a root cause of health disparities by training and strengthening doulas and community health workers as change agents through community organizing and civic engagement.
Racial & Economic Justice (Collaborative): Hope Now for Youth and Fresno Area Community Enterprises (FACE) ($15,000): To train and support formerly incarcerated individuals from disadvantaged situations gain employment experience and human capital through their five social enterprises—Hope Now’s Street Food Truck & Carpet Cleaning and FACE’s Rock Pile, Moving On Up, & Thrift on Blackstone.
2023:
Environmental Justice: Every Neighborhood Partnership ($6,500): To pilot 8 After School Edible Garden Programs in FUSD for AY2023-24. Two garden program staff to visit each site every week, teaching a 30-minute lesson covering topics such as gardening, sustainability, and healthy eating to support children’s physical, mental, and social wellbeing.
Educational Programming: Reading Heart ($6,500): To offer a 1-week summer pilot "young authors" program to help a diverse group of 20-30 local children from underserved areas in Fresno County learn how to write and illustrate their own books with the goal of publishing those books at our own print shop.
2022:
Economic Justice: Central Valley Workers Center ($12,934): Mission: To promote economic justice through strategic support for worker organizing, community education, and engagement.
2021:
Educational Programming: Grandma's House in Tulare ($9000): To provide after-school and distance learning programs.
Youth Services: Kids Rebuild ($9000): To support the "Young Author's Project"--a unique children's resiliency program for kids impacted by the fires in the Sierras.
Veterans Services: Our Heroes' Dreams ($9000): To support "Our Heroes' Dreams" in Hanford which provides hope to veterans and their families via healing retreats.
2020: All grants awarded to support COVID-19 relief to local CBOs
United Way of Fresno & Madera County ($7000) - Mission: To create paths to prosperity through resident-led and partner-supported work that acknowledges individual circumstance and prioritizes access, opportunity, and equity for all.
LifeLine Community Development Center ($5000) - Mission: To empower community members, aiding them in rediscovering their unique qualities, and celebrating together as they contribute to making their communities safer and healthier places once more.
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Service Center ($4000) - Mission: To advocate, seek equality, and promote self-determination through empowerment for those who seek our assistance; and to enhance the awareness and understanding of Deaf Culture and the unique communication needs of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals.
Marjaree Mason Center ($4000) - Mission: To support and empower adults and their children affected by domestic violence, while striving to prevent and end the cycle of abuse through education and advocacy.
2019:
Volunteer Management/Technology: Jakara Movement (Fresno) ($5000): To develop the organization's capacity through technology to better serve its volunteers by funding an 18-month subscription and customization of a Customer Relations Management (CRM) software system and the data transfer from existing systems.
Accessibility: Central California Adaptive Sports Center ($5000): To provide summer adaptive mountain sports opportunities for persons with disabilities who might not otherwise be able to afford to participate.
Public Policy/Advocacy: Every Neighborhood Partnership ($5000): To build leadership indigenous capacity in Fresno’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods through neighborhood-based convenings of a cohort of residents to organize a community-led improvement project or event and become peer mentors for other residents.
2018:
Volunteer Management/Technology: Fresno Interdenominational Refugee Ministries, Inc. ($5000): To obtain volunteer management soft-ware and purchase a laptop and will also support the launch of a new marketing pro-cess to expand and sustain the organiza-tion’s volunteer capacity.
Board/Staff Development: Lowell Community Development Corporation ($5000): To provide professional development and training for the board of directors and staff, update board books, policies, and procedures in transition from a founding board to a governance board, & allow staff to attend 7th Annual San Joaquin Valley Affordable Housing Summit in Fall 2018.
Public Policy/Advocacy: Mi Familia Vota (Fresno) ($5000): To support the Emerging Latino Lead-er program, designed to prepare and cultivate young Latino/as (ages 17-24) as agents of change through a service-focused strategy that blends leadership development with continuous civic engagement opportunities.
2017:
SPIRIT: Focus Forward ($5000): To support Focus Forward’s new Youth Advocacy Leadership Team by providing intensive training, helping youth increase their advocacy skills, develop a policy vision, and engage in advocacy over the next year.
MIND: Art of Life Cancer Foundation ($5000 Philip T. Manoogian Memorial Grant): To facilitate professional development and training for the board of directors and staff, including developing a board handbook, board orientation, and a strategic plan, in transition from a founding board to a governance board.
BODY: Poverello House ($5000): To obtain volunteer management software, hold a 2-hour volunteer training, provide new marketing materials to recruit volunteers, implement a volunteer ID-badge system for tracking, and put on the organization’s first volunteer recognition event in Fall 2017.
2016:
SPIRIT: Ronald McDonald House Charities of The Central Valley ($5000 Philip T. Manoogian Memorial Grant): To start the “Happy Wheels Cart Program” that will circulate through Valley Children’s Hospital with snacks and activity books and inform families of the services of Ronald McDonald House.
MIND: Warnors Center for the Performing Arts ($5000): To facilitate professional development and training for its board of directors and staff to support the organization’s continued growth.
BODY: Lowell Community Development Corporation ($5000): To provide workshops on tenants’ rights and responsibilities and safe and healthy housing.
2015:
SPIRIT: Fresno Metro Ministry ($5000): To create and pilot a toolkit incorporating design thinking and participatory planning exercises with 40 neighborhood leaders to develop the constituency needed to advocate for investment in existing neighborhoods and mixed-use development on Blackstone Avenue in Fresno.
MIND: Care Fresno ($5000 Philip T. Manoogian Memorial Grant): To enhance its after-school, summer, and mentoring enrichment programs at 4 community learning centers within apartment complexes identified by Fresno Police Department.
BODY: Kings Tulare Homeless Alliance (Continuum of Care) ($5000): To support its Housing Priortization Initiative and implement a Vulnerability Index within Kings and Tulare Counties to determine the chronic and medical vulnerability of individuals who are homeless and allow the bi-county region to allocate scarce resources in a logical, targeted manner.
2014:
SPIRIT: Good Neighbor Center, Inc. ($8000): To enhance its data collection, registration, and reporting technology in order to serve more individuals and provide additional protein to families in Pinedale ($6000), including the placement of a Humanics Intern to assist with implementation and evaluation ($2000).
MIND: Fresno Arts Council ($8000 Philip T. Manoogian Memorial Grant): To train 6 local artists in classroom management, lesson plan development, common core, visual and performing arts standards and initially provide access and equity to arts education in six Fresno Unified elementary schools ($6000), including the placement of a Humanics Intern to assist with implementation and evaluation ($2000).
BODY: GRID Alternatives-Central Valley ($8000): To install solar systems on three qualifying Single Family Affordable Solar Homes (SASH), saving families up to 80% on their electrical utility bills, providing hands-on installation experience to Fresno State construction management students, and helping to improve local air quality ($6000), including the placement of a Humanics Intern to assist with implementation and evaluation ($2000).
2013:
SPIRIT: Fresno Mission ($4000): To support the development and implementation of Volunteer and Case Management Software, including a mobile app ($3000) and the placement of a Humanics Intern to assist with implementation and evaluation ($1000)
MIND: Foundation for Fresno County Public Library ($4000 Philip T. Manoogian Memorial Grant): To support Downtown Fresno Branch Summer Reading and Meals Program ($3000) and the placement of a Humanics Intern to assist with implementation and evaluation ($1000).
BODY: Off The Front ($4000): To support the Earn a Bike Program ($3000) and the placement of a Humanics Intern to assist with implementation and evaluation ($1000).
2012:
SPIRIT: Wesley United Methodist Church of Fresno ($3000): Provided support for the Creative Arts Academy, a 5 day summer enrichment program for middle school students from El Dorado Park.
MIND: Rotary Storyland of Fresno ($3000): To enhance the Summer Literacy Education program held every Saturday at Storyland from June 16 through August 12, 2012.
BODY: Break The Barriers (BTB) ($3000 Philip T. Manoogian Memorial Grant): Provided for summer assemblies in SE & SW FUSD Schools and field trips to BTB.
Animal Rescue of Fresno (ARF) ($3000): To spay & neuter dogs through HOPE Animal Foundation & All Creatures Veterinary Clinic so these pets can be adopted.
2011:
Fresno Council on Child Abuse Prevention (FCCAP) ($3000): To provide 1,276 Child Abuse Mandated Reporter Handbooks & Training Packets in Spanish & English in Fresno County.
Naomi’s House ($3000): To provide staff with Mental Health First Aid training to more effectively serve women exhibiting mental health issues.
Tree Fresno ($3000): To fund “Trees for Campuses and Kids,” a school grant program that planted five trees at 40 schools in Fresno County.
2010:
Fresno Institute For Urban Leadership (FIFUL) ($3000): To establish a Junior Tutor component to the Wise Old Owl Tutoring Program to create a first employment opportunity for Jr. High & High School students in Lowell Neighborhood.
Fresno Reel Pride Film Festival ($3000): To provide a film screening at Fresno’s Tower Theater for outreach to GLBT students, allies, and film students that increases awareness, promotes GLBT acceptance, affirms GLBT students in need, and entertains people.
The Binational Center for the Development of Oaxacan Indigenous Communities (CBDIO) ($3000): To implement “Ve Sakua Escuela para Padres,” a new program in Fresno and Madera to help indigenous migrants develop literacy capacities and become actively involved in their children’s education.
2009:
Central California Regional Obesity Prevention Program ($4000): To purchase refrigerators and equipment to provide fresh produce and healthier food choices to local rural communities located in “food deserts.”
Fresno Street Saints ($4000): To develop a pilot after-school program to enhance existing curriculum and add wrap-around services to after school programs.
2008:
Boys & Girls Clubs of Fresno County ($4000): To introduce “Date SMART” (Skills, Mastery, And Resistance Training), for 60 women ages 13-18 at two Clubs—the East Fresno and West Fresno clubs.
River Tree Volunteers ($4000): To purchase 3 canoes to increase capacity to expose greater numbers of volunteers to the San Joaquin River to plant trees and remove trash and debris.
2007:
Fresno Interdenominational Refugee Ministries, Inc. (FIRM) ($2000): To provide “macro” & “micro” support for quality & affordable housing in Fresno, by focusing on: 1) Community Organizing training & development of Lao & Hmong language organizing curricula & 2) Management & support for FIRM’s first affordable housing redevelopment project on Tyler St.
Encourage Tomorrow ($1000): To enhance Las Hermanitas (Little Sister) Mentoring Program, a component of the La Rosa Program at Roosevelt High School in Fresno.
Valley Teen Ranch ($1000): To provide teenage boys an opportunity to learn responsibility and social skills through participation in a high school prom.