In line with DLSU’s core values of faith, zeal and communion, student organizations under the Council of Student Organization (CSO) and units of the University Student Government (USG) are encouraged to have socio-civic activities planned within the year . Activities that usually fall under this category are fundraisers for a chosen beneficiary, where proceeds from the event are donated to a predetermined beneficiary.
Process and principle
Arnel Galgo, Advocacy Program Coordinator for the Center for Social Concern and Action (COSCA) says that what usually happens is that students organizations come to COSCA with specified projects already. He adds that students think that COSCA has a ready list of community partners and ask for a potential beneficiary, when ideally, it should be done “the CWTS way”– following a process and a principle.
The process he says includes identifying the problem of a community and implementing a project addressing that problem. It involves observing and experiencing the community, analyzing and reflecting the encounters had, and moving to provide a solution for the situation.
“Ang hula namin is they (organizations) work [based] on assumption only,” Galgo says. Some organizations ask for a beneficiary and create an event to suit the beneficiary, he furthers instead.
Galgo adds that there are usually no follow-up events after project implementation since some projects are implemented independently and only for a specific time.
Students’ perspectives
Ana Marie Inton, Vice President for Activities in the College of Government for Education, says that they choose a beneficiary familiar to them for easier relations. They may opt to call up their beneficiaries or meet up personally to discuss the plans or any concerns regarding the arrangements. Inton also says that this is important so that the events end up being efficient and successful.
Inton adds that instead of giving actual cash to their beneficiary, they would have fundraisers instead and the proceeds are added to the budget. “In our batch government, we rarely donate money. We would prefer to donate goods,” she shares. “We also do outreach activities that would cater to the beneficiaries.”
On the other hand, Aaron Krout, Assistant Head for External Alliances for Samahan ng Mag-aaral ng Sikolohiya (SMS), shares that in selecting a beneficiary for their organization, the decision is done collectively through the votes of officers.
He says that prior to the event, the organization is able to personally interact with their beneficiary and evaluate how the event went afterwards. Krout adds that there are instances where a beneficiary can claim that the event the was a success, thus they hold a thanksgiving event with an offer for future collaboration to strengthen the their donor-benefactor relationship.
Krout admits that for major fundraising events, majority of the proceeds is not spent for the beneficiary as explicitly mentioned in publicity materials and room to rooms. Only a certain amount may end up going to the beneficiary.
“If the event is mainly a fund-raising activity for the organization, then it is logical that the majority of the proceeds go to the org. However, if the nature of the activity is socio-civic, then the org donates all of the proceeds (or donations in kind) to the beneficiary,” he explains. Although this is the case, Krout says that SMS ensures allotting a certain percentage to the beneficiary.
More than just learning
Galgo suggests that there should be an orientation for both students and moderators before holding activities with beneficiaries to check if organizations comply to correct process, imposing a stricter system. In the same way, he hopes more than 50 percent of the proceeds from the activity should go to the beneficiary. “Go to the people, know them, [and] build connections. It’s more than just the projects,” he advises.
Galgo says that projects are incidental to learning since formation still yields to be deeper than the act of learning. Galgo shares, “We assume na pag ang Lasalyano nahubog sa ganito (that when Lasallians are formed in this). When they become leaders, they will produce something that will alleviate the poor.”
