Dartmouth kicked off its annual giving campaign with Granite United Way, the New Hampshire branch of the global charity organization United Way on Oct. 17, aiming to raise $300,000.
Area director of Granite United Way Rob Schultz said that the organization aggregates support from the community to make grants to more than 40 local charities.
“The Dartmouth campaign is a phenomenal resource through which Dartmouth employees, who are some of the most generous people anywhere in the region, support their community,” Schultz said.
The campaign’s goal is to raise $300,000 to donate to Granite United Way by Dec. 15, Schultz said. Last year, the Dartmouth United Way campaign raised $300,224. Schultz said this year there is a focus on bringing new participants into the campaign.
According to Schultz, the campaign started with the history of Dartmouth employees and administrators supporting their local communities through philanthropic giving from payroll deductions.
“There are a lot of people at Dartmouth who give five or 10 dollars a pay period,” Schultz said. “That adds up to over $300,000 every year.”
James Alberghini, logistics manager for conferences and events for the College, is one of the many Dartmouth employees who gives through the payroll deduction program.
“What I like about the Dartmouth program is that it’s a reminder to give and it makes it easy,” Alberghini said.
Alberghini explained that there is a form employees fill out for giving.
“Each month, a certain amount of money comes out of my paycheck and I never have to think about it throughout the year,” Alberghini said.
Alberghini believes the payroll deduction option is a great opportunity to increase giving to United Way.
In addition to donating to the United Way campaign, Alberghini volunteers at the Upper Valley Haven’s Hixon House Adult Shelter, a shelter for homeless adults that provides services to help residents achieve financial stability and find permanent housing that receives some funding from Granite United Way.
According to interim director of the Dartmouth Center for Service Tracy Dustin-Eichler, many Dartmouth employees are involved with their communities.
“Dartmouth has recently announced a volunteer leave policy that gives faculty and staff paid time off to volunteer with local agencies, many of which are connected to United Way,” Dustin-Eichler said.
Dustin-Eichler said she hopes this new policy increases employee volunteering. She serves as the president of the Hartford Dismas House, a charity that helps those formerly incarcerated reintegrate into society. Like many local organizations, Dismas House receives funding from Granite United Way.
“Granite United Way is a hyper-local organization with a local board of advisors,” Schultz said. “The money that is raised in the Upper Valley stays in the Upper Valley.”
However, the chapter still has access to the international network of United Way, he said.
In addition to the Dartmouth campaign, Granite United Way has other plans to provide opportunities for Dartmouth employees to get involved in their communities. One of these programs is a website, a partnership between Volunteer NH and Granite United Way, that pairs volunteers with service organizations.
“It is basically an online [matching] service for volunteering,” Schultz said.
Granite United Way is also working with Dartmouth’s human resources department and executive vice president Rick Mills to spread the word about the campaign, Schultz said.
“It’s an opportunity for Dartmouth to come together to show support for the community in which we live,” Dustin-Eichler said of the campaign.
Wally Joe Cook is a freshman from Breezy Point, NY and a graduate of Regis High School. Wally Joe plans to major in Government and Economics at Dartmouth, and decided to join the D because of his interest in politics and journalism. Before joining the D, Wally Joe wrote for his high school newspaper and Politico. In his spare time, Wally Joe likes to ski and play Spikeball.
