How the Osher Initiative for California Community College Students is delivering on its promise

By Jill Scofield

On a recent warm spring evening, hundreds of community college students gathered with their family, friends and supporters in Sacramento City College’s auditorium. The mood was optimistic, happy even, with the crowd wearing bright, beaming smiles along with their Sunday best.

The gathering, which was replicated in some form at most community colleges throughout the state, was a ceremony to honor the college’s scholarship recipients. Among the awards given that evening were 17 Osher Scholarships, each totaling $1,000 and going to students with the greatest financial need.

This scene offers just one illustration of the legacy of philanthropist Bernard Osher, who through his foundation created the Osher Initiative for California Community College Students. This initiative, launched just two years ago, began benefiting students in fall 2009 and is now funding scholarships for more than 1,250 students for a second academic year.

For many students like those at Sacramento City College, the Osher Scholarships funded through this initiative have proven to be a bright spot in an otherwise bleak economic landscape.

Finding Hope in the Future

	Bernard Osher, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Foundation for California Community Colleges President Paul Lanning, and California Community Colleges Chancellor Diane Woodruff celebrate the launch of the California Community Colleges Scholarship Endowment on May 6, 2008.

It was another warm spring day during which hope sprang eternal for California Community Colleges as Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced the largest gift in history to a community college system. The gift from The Bernard Osher Foundation, which launched the Osher Initiative, was comprised of three components that are worth repeating:
• $25 million was given up-front to the Foundation for California Community Colleges, launching the California Community Colleges Scholarship Endowment, a permanent fund that provides scholarship support to thousands of students every year, forever.
• Another $25 million has been pledged to the endowment if the California Community Colleges can collectively raise $50 million by June 2011. This 50 percent match on gifts raised has already infused another $18.5 million to the endowment in gifts raised or pledged.
• A separate $20 million was also given to support scholarships for Community College transfer students to 19 California State University and University of California campuses.

The gift was game-changing for California Community Colleges, bringing much-needed scholarship support to students, leveraging an unprecedented opportunity for colleges to raise more philanthropic dollars through the match campaign, and rallying the system to see through a successful campaign to turn the $25 million lead gift into a $100 million scholarship endowment.

All this occurred in May 2008. Fast forward two years later, after the worst economic meltdown since the Great Depression, as the campaign is entering the critical final 12 months.
The landscape for those trying to raise money for any cause has shifted significantly, and higher education is no exception. According to the annual Voluntary Support of Education (VSE) survey released last February, private giving to American colleges and universities dropped by $3.75 billion in 2009. At a decline of 11.9 percent over the previous year, this represents the sharpest drop in private giving to higher education in the 50-year history of the survey, which is conducted by the Council for Aid to Education.

This trending down has not boded well for a system that has not traditionally had a centralized resource for campaigns of this magnitude, or for an education sector that is still relatively new to large-scale fundraising. As a case in point, based on previous VSE surveys, private giving to community colleges only accounts for roughly 2 percent of all gifts to higher education.

With the economic meltdown and subsequent reduction of funding that community colleges and districts rely upon to carry out their missions, fundraising has taken a back seat for many institutions, just at a time when increased and diversified investment in community colleges is sorely needed.

In light of these challenges, it has taken some time to build momentum in the campaign. With one year remaining until the June 2011 deadline, the Foundation for California Community Colleges and individual colleges have raised nearly $13.5million toward the $50 million goal. With the Osher Foundation matching every dollar raised by 50 percent, this leaves more than $18 million in match dollars on the table.

However, this progress in and of itself is something to celebrate, according to those closest to the campaign.

Grossmont College's Osher Scholars, Fall 2009 Image courtesy Grossmont College Foundation

“The fact that we have effectively created a $45 million endowment that will forever support community college students who are most in need is something we can all be proud of,” said Paul Lanning, President and CEO of the Foundation for California Community Colleges. “That’s $45 million that wasn’t previously available to support California Community College students, which is a significant accomplishment in any economic climate.”

These sentiments are echoed by Kerry Wood, the Foundation’s Vice President of Resource Development, who has overseen the statewide fundraising for the campaign. “At the launch of this campaign in 2008, no one could have predicted the economic challenges we all would eventually face,” said Wood. “With fewer philanthropic funds available for the more than 170,000 nonprofit organizations in California, this has impacted the level of giving across the California Community College system.”

Amid these challenges, Wood finds inspiration in the impact that this initiative has on students. “As a California Community College alumna, I have walked in the shoes of those students struggling to make ends meet while fulfilling their passion for a higher education, and ultimately, a better life. I understand the difficulties many students face, which makes the satisfaction of obtaining a higher education even greater.”

Rallying for the Cause
Throughout the campaign, more than 80 California Community Colleges and their foundations have been engaged in raising funds that will support their students locally, doing everything from launching smaller campaigns for their faculty and staff to fund a scholarship to holding major events and fundraisers with proceeds going to the endowment. Some colleges are aiming high, hoping to secure as many of the match dollars available from the Osher Foundation as possible.

Mt. San Antonio College College, nestled in Southern California’s San Gabriel Valley, is launching a major campaign of its own to raise more than $1.5 million for the endowment to support the college’s students. For Richard Morley, the executive director at Mt. SAC’s foundation, a major push for this campaign was a no-brainer. “We see it as an incredible opportunity to provide scholarships in perpetuity,” he said. “Any time you have a chance you have to tell a donor that you can match their dollar by 50%, that’s a wonderful story.”

Another factor that makes this campaign an easy message to relay for many of the college fundraisers is the example set by the Osher Scholars. Amanda Abbott is one such scholar. On her way to completing her education at Bakersfield College next year before transferring to Cal State Bakersfield in order to ensure a brighter future for herself and her children, Abbott credits the Osher Initiative for helping her focus on her education rather than the stress of finding funds for educational expenses.

Sempra Energy recently committed $250,000 to the the California Community Colleges Scholarship Endowment to benefit 10 California Community Colleges. Pictured are CCC Board of Governors member Bobby McDonald, Chancellor Jack Scott, Sempra Energy Foundation Executive Director Frank Urtasun, Foundation for California Community Colleges Vice President Kerry Wood, Board of Governors President Deborah Malumed, and Sempra Energy Director of Community Relations Kimberly Freeman.

Carol Garlick, another Osher Scholar who hopes to one day come back to community colleges to teach future generations of students, was able to transfer from American River College to Cal State Sacramento thanks to her Osher Scholarship. When she received the scholarship in fall 2009, she credited the funding for helping her complete her education. “Without the help of the Osher Scholarship I could have very well dropped out of school for lack of funds. I am on my own getting barely by on financial aid and school loans, and the Osher Scholarship lifted my spirits and my financial load greatly.”

These examples represent a very small fraction of the students already benefiting from Osher Scholarships. During the 2009-10 academic year, $1.25 million in scholarships was awarded from the California Community College Scholarships Endowment. For the 2010-11 academic year, another $1.26 million will be awarded. As colleges raise and invest additional funds and Endowment earnings grow, the amount awarded—and subsequently, the number of lives changed—will continue to increase each year.

The Final Countdown
July 1 marks the countdown to the final 12 months of the campaign. And, at the Foundation for California Community Colleges, it will mark the launch of a reinvigorated effort to bring more colleges and donors on board to support the cause.

“Because we do not have the luxury of time, it is important, now more than ever, that we continue to be tireless and efficient in our efforts to reach out to those individuals who and organizations that have the ability and the desire to support higher education through student scholarships,” said Wood.

“We are eager to succeed in this effort, just as the Osher Foundation is eager to support us with the full amount of their commitment,” added Lanning. “No one wants to see a single dollar in match funds left on the table at the end of this campaign, least of all Mr. Osher himself. He launched this initiative to bring as much support to California Community College students as possible, and we remain committed to carrying out his vision.”

To spur additional progress in the final months of the campaign, the Foundation recently made an important change in the campaign logistics. The individual fundraising goals—established for every California Community College at the launch of the campaign to encourage full participation of the system—have been lifted. This will allow colleges able to engage in this campaign to potentially benefit from additional match dollars than previously expected, resulting in more scholarships for their local students.

“The reality is that about 25 percent of our colleges are unable to raise funds for this initiative for a number of reasons, among them a lack of a foundation or fundraising staff, priorities shifting or being focused on operational dollars due to cuts in state budget funding,” said Lanning on the reasoning behind this shift. “By lifting the fundraising goals for each college, our hope is that participating colleges will be able to earn more match dollars and create more scholarships for their students, all while bringing the system closer to its collective goal of raising another $37 million in the next 12 months.”

As the campaign enters the final year, Wood hopes the stories of the lives changed by this initiative will continue to resonate with donors. “I’m excited about the awareness this campaign has brought to the surface about the community colleges’ need for support, and especially during these difficult economic times, the need to support community college students and create an educated workforce. I commend the Osher Foundation for making this possible.”