Usually, college students don’t have a lot of spare cash to hand out to a local non-profit to help make Lincoln a better place. But this semester, 45 UNL students are doing just that.

The Learning by Giving Foundation has given a $10,000 grant to the Leading People and Projects class, a 400-level management course in the College of Business Administration. Now, the class’s goal is to work through the process of identifying a local non-profit that can best use the money.

Any non-profit 501c (3) organization within Lincoln’s city limits is eligible to apply for the $10,000, said James Verhoeff, a senior marketing and management major enrolled in the course. The class instructor is Colleen Jones, an associate professor of practice in CBA’s Department of Management.

“There are a little over 300 non-profit organizations in Lincoln and we want to choose the best one,” Verhoeff said.

To apply, students created a request for proposal, or RFP, for organizations to fill out and send back for consideration. RFPs require organizations to propose a project that the funds would be used toward and explain who will be impacted by the project.

The goal is to have a positive impact on Lincoln while increasing the connection between students and non-profit groups. At the same time, students are learning how to organize the classroom into separate committees and effectively administer the donation process. They have split into six groups, each with a different task. A selection committee will go through the applications and choose a winning non-profit.

RFPs are due Nov. 1; a winner will be chosen by the end of November, Verhoeff said. Class members said they hope to receive a wide range of applications.

“Everyone gets a chance to apply,” senior business administration major Vince Pelini said.

This is the second time the management class has participated in this project. Jones, the course’s instructor, said it was a great opportunity for students to get a look into Lincoln’s non-profit sector.

“Athletes and members of the Greek community get a look at this stuff a lot more through philanthropy, but other students don’t always get that,” she said.

Lincoln non-profits who are interested in applying for the $10,000 are encouraged to contact the class via email at projectimpactlincoln@gmail.com to start the proposal process.