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The 53rd annual Columbia Community Service (CCS) campaign to raise funds for community-based programs in the University's neighborhood is underway, and faculty and staff have until the eve of the millennium to top last year's record of $175,200.
Donations to CCS go directly to more than 90 soup kitchens, job skills training organizations, children's tutoring programs, English language instruction centers, activities for elders and other charitable agencies in the Columbia community.
"CCS is one important and effective way that Columbians can help our neighbors," said President George Rupp, CCS chairman. "Each donation goes to some of the most deserving social services organizations in our neighborhood. Together we can make a difference in individual lives and in the future of the communities around the campus."
At the Riverside Language Program, for example, hundreds of immigrants and refugees are taught English and computer skills.
"These are things that were just not possible without the donation from CCS," explained program director Leslie Robbins.
Last year, a record $175,200 was raised by the campus community in support of community-based organizations within a 45-block radius of the Morningside campus. The staff of a number of Columbia schools and departments showed a significant increase in participation.
Of particular note was the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, where 44 percent of the tenured faculty contributed to the cause. According to Zvi Galil, dean of the school, a commitment to the cause motivated last year's success.
"Perhaps our contributions to CCS last year reflected on our community spirit and the morale in the school," Galil said.
Last year the Human Resources department also topped the charts with over 80 percent of staff officers giving to the campaign.
This year, the entire University should do as well or better, according to the new president of the CCS campaign, Law Dean David Leebron.
"CCS says a lot about the University in terms of how we regard and contribute to our local community," Leebron said. "It is a real opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people we see everyday. Whether we only work here, or both live and work here, CCS is central to Columbia's commitment to community."
According to Leebron, who was recruited by former CCS board president Professor Rosalind Miller as her replacement, this year's campaign will be marked by change. Leebron hopes that campaign captains and co-captains in each school and department will think strategically about how to raise contributions in their departments through more direct outreach to contributing faculty and staff. And, contributors should take note of the shortened campaign, which draws to a close Jan. 1, 2000.
As Leebron noted, CCS is not a matter of merely donating money. Much personal time goes into the raising of funds, the processing of grants and the selection of this year's recipients. CCS is administered by an entirely volunteer, 14-member board, which disburses grants ranging in size from $500-$10,000.
Contributors should know that 100 percent of their donations go directly to the charitable agencies because the cost of running the program is covered by University Development and Alumni Relations and the Office of Public Affairs-Community Relations.
"Not one penny of the contributions goes toward administrative costs," explained Assistant Vice President for Community Relations Larry Dais, who oversees the program at Columbia. "The amount we raise each year is precisely the amount we give away to the community."
This year's CCS campaign is led by President Rupp, with assistance from President Arthur Levine of Teachers College and President Judith Shapiro of Barnard College. Co-chairs include Don Hood, professor of psychology, and Richard Naum, vice president of University Development and Alumni Relations.
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