Today is Giving Tuesday, a global day dedicated to giving back. Inspired by the commercialization of the week after Thanksgiving (in the vein of Black Friday and Cyber Monday), Giving Tuesday asks us to donate to causes we care about, using our privilege to help organizations in need of financial support.
For me, UCLA is - and always will be - one of the causes that I care about most. Many arguments against giving to universities seem valid. For example, we pay for the service of education (it is not free), and we often spend a decade repaying debt. I argue that we must give back to the schools that made us who we are today.
As an Anderson student, I delivered a presentation arguing for giving back to one’s alma mater. Our professor made a quip in the beginning of the year about those pesky student telemarketers from university alumni associations asking for money he didn’t want to give, and the class heartily agreed. As the co-chair of the UCLA Young Alumni Development Council at the time, and an active philanthropic advocate, I took that as a challenge.
I argue that giving back to our alma maters protects the value of an institution and concretizes a culture of paying it forward. By giving, we ensure that our degrees retain their value. And the generosity of alumni before us makes our institutions great for generations of students to come. Apparently, my classmates and professor were convinced (I was voted “Best in Room” and got an A+ on my “Take A Stand 2,” for those familiar).
I give to UCLA, and I give to Anderson, but “giving” extends far beyond donating financially. On this Giving Tuesday, in addition to donating to nonprofits, I supported a fellow alum’s crowdfunding campaign. I used my network to find a freelancer for a friend. I sent a few friendly emails to former colleagues. And I edited resumes for undergrad mentees. I also reflected on the power of the UCLA Anderson network as a power for giving of good. UCLA Anderson engenders a culture of giving - a culture that I experienced as a student, and now again as an alum.
Today is also World AIDS Day. In addition to supporting education, for over 10 years, I have committed much of my activism and philanthropy to the battle against HIV/AIDS. While in college, I helped raised over $1M for research and education to help end pediatric AIDS around the world. After graduation, I worked for an NGO in Tanzania on the ground as an HIV/AIDS educator and community organizer. Since then, I have worked with numerous organizations, most notably an arts camp for HIV+ youth.
This summer, I volunteered for the camp once again (click here to read my 2013 post about camp). In launching a new program for this year’s camp focused on college readiness and career preparedness, I reached out to the UCLA Anderson network for help.
I was truly touched (though I suppose not thoroughly surprised) by the outpouring of interest from fellow alumni - over 10 responses in the first 12 hours. Most from individuals I had never met. Ultimately, five fellow alumni, several Anderson Sig-O’s, and a current student all joined me in the mountains of Malibu to launch our new program and give back to the community. I witnessed, first-hand, our shared passion for giving.
Thank you, Anderson family, for giving. Giving Tuesday is just one day, but the Anderson culture of giving lasts all year.
