GivingPoint: A Youth Initiative to Improve College Readiness and Civic Engagement

Mission

GivingPoint’s mission is to unleash the passion and energy of young people to create an unprecedented level of civic engagement – to touch the hearts and minds of teens to develop future philanthropists.

Why GivingPoint?

Today, teens want to get involved, and they believe it is important to give, but most teens do not volunteer on a regular basis. Teens say that not knowing how to get started, lack of encouragement, and lack of good resources are top reasons for not getting involved. Young donors want interactive online tools and unique, personalized marketing approaches. Teens want fun, engaging volunteer opportunities that match their passion, and they want to see and feel the impact that their contributions make. GivingPoint is the answer!

Our Objectives:

GivingPoint closes the "knowledge gap" by offering a wide range of online, interactive service learning opportunities so teens can discover their passion and learn about critical issues facing local communities. They can also learn best practices in giving, volunteering and fundraising.

GivingPoint closes the "opportunity gap" by matching teens with nonprofits in their area that fit their passion and actively engage them in service. GivingPoint offers teens innovative ways to get involved with causes they care about. They can join an online community of world changers!

GivingPoint closes the "financial gap" by allowing teens to earn points (through service learning, volunteerism, and fundraising) that can be cashed in for grants that will be donated to causes they care about (for every 500 points earned, teens can apply for up to $250 micro-grants for their favored charities). They can post their friend-raising and fundraising projects on our site to help causes raise awareness and support.

GivingPoint closes the "legacy gap" by allowing teens to view and share their giving resumes. As teens input their contributions to society, they build their civic footprints. They can download their verified civic transcripts at any time and utilize it to confirm high school service requirements and/or attach with college applications.

GivingPoint’s Unique Capabilities:

GivingPoint is the first web tool that offers teens the opportunity to get rewarded (through a point system) for discovering, learning about, and helping causes that matter to them. For every 500 points earned through GivingPoint, teens can apply for micro grants to help the causes they care about. Though there are other existing on-line tools to encourage teen action and offer online fundraising capabilities, GivingPoint is the only source for teens to:

• explore their interests and learn what it truly means to give of their "time, talent and treasure";
• answer trivia questions to learn about the needs of the community;
• track and witness how their giving legacy is changing the world;
• get rewarded and recognized for doing great work;
• give grants to causes that matter most to them;
• share their stories and recruit others to join their causes;
• catalogue and record verified community contributions; and
• view and download their civic transcript for school requirements and college applications.

HOW IT WORKS FOR TEENS: FOUR EASY STEPS

Step 1: Teens create an account profile on www.mygivingpoint.org

Step 2: Teens can begin to immediately earn points if they:

• Learn about causes and take the service learning quizzes; post friend-raising and fundraising projects to help their causes; track volunteer hours; blog and upload pictures about community service experiences; invite other teens to join GivingPoint

Step 3: Teens can request a grant to support a cause

Step 4: Teens can view/download their civic transcript and realize their community impact