Tightened purse strings and economic troubles have not stopped University employees from donating generously to both local and national charities through a workplace-giving campaign.
University employees have given about $923,000 for the 2008 giving year, an increase from the $880,000 raised in 2007, noted Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign administrator Careen Waterman, a University community relations associate. Overall participation as well as donation totals increased this year, Waterman said, as University employees have given 3,870 individual gifts during the campaign, which began in October and is scheduled to end Monday.
CVC is a workplace-giving campaign working with about 155 commonwealth agencies that allows employees to donate to the local, state or national charity organizations of their choice, Waterman said. University employees tend to give locally, she added.
“This year, Blue Ridge Area and Jefferson Area food banks got double of what they received last year,” Waterman said, adding that the Charlottesville Free Clinic also received significant financial support from University employees.
This is a common trend among commonwealth employees involved in education, CVC Program Manager Anne Dinterman noted.
“Most of the colleges and universities tend to give locally,” she said.
Although individual giving amounts have fallen about 5 to 7 percent from last year, total donations have surpassed the $4 million mark and are expected to meet the campaign’s goal, making 2008 a “banner year” for statewide employee giving, Dinterman said.
“More people are giving smaller amounts, which is exactly what we had wanted,” she said, highlighting the importance of giving whatever can be spared.
So far, the campaign has received 91 percent of the forecasted donation totals for 2008 and already has seen “a huge jump” in statewide employee participation from 27 percent to 41.5 percent during the past year, Dinterman said. “Probably about one-third of the state agencies have surpassed their totals from last year.”
The deadline for donation submissions was extended through the end of this week to allow employees at commonwealth colleges and universities to still make donations after the holiday recess, Dinterman said.
Giving totals this year have been significant not just in terms of dollar amounts, but also in light of the fact that there were fewer available donors this year in the commonwealth workforce because of recent layoffs and downsizing efforts, Dinterman said. Having a smaller number of commonwealth employees in the available donor pool, however, has not decreased giving but has encouraged people to give what they can and even make multiple donations, she said.
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