Power & Pride of Philanthropy for Kids in the HCJC Youth Center
Pictured: Kelly Collison, Alison Kaufman, (Magnified Giving), Penny Harris, Gregg Pickett, LaDonna Wallace Smith, Sarah Henry (Juvenile Court)
Imagine never being asked your opinion, or what you care about, or feeling trusted. That’s often the situation children find themselves in, especially children who, for a variety of reasons, end up in the juvenile justice system.
Magnified Giving is a Cincinnati non-profit dedicated to creating opportunities for all children to be heard, empowered, and trusted to act, including children currently housed in the Hamilton County Juvenile Court Youth Detention Center.
“We are a small non-profit with a very understanding and creative Board,” says Kelly Collison, CEO of Magnified Giving. “They want more youth to use their gifts and talents to become engaged in the joy of giving, no matter where they’re coming from.”
Magnified Giving has a strong and unique partnership with Youth Center art teacher Penny Harris and her students, all of whom are facing delinquency charges. With support from Magnified Giving, Ms. Harris’s art students create art and donate grant funding to local non-profits.
“I have our kids pick causes they are interested in like poverty, women, children,” says Harris. “I gather up information on non-profits that focus on their interests and we start dissecting them. Once an organization is selected by the kids, we go to work creating art for them.”
Just like most high school kids, the children at the Youth Center are required to do community service in order to graduate from high school, 120 hours for Cincinnati Public School graduates. When students are limited by their circumstances, it’s tough to find service opportunities.
Youth Center students cannot go to the non-profit to serve, so with the help of Magnified Giving, the opportunity to serve comes to them.
“Penny is fabulous when it comes to the creativity she uses to overcome restrictions,” says Collison. “We never tell her, we can’t do this. We consider the barriers, focus on the end goal and identify the small hurdles we need to jump over to make our program work for her kids.”
Youth Center students are currently making centerpieces out of old books for a fundraising gala and painting Free Little Libraries for Queen City Book Bank. They’re also working with HER Cincinnati to create large female empowerment paintings for the Anna Louise Inn, which provides safe and affordable housing to women experiencing chronic homelessness.
Along with the hands on work the kids do, the partnership with Magnified Giving also gives our students the responsibility to award non-profits $1,000 grants.
“We want the kids to know you don’t have to be old and rich to be a philanthropist,” said Collison. “Allowing kids to explore organizations and trusting them to decide how to allocate funds builds confidence and leadership skills, along with the satisfaction and positive feelings that come with doing good for and with others. These are life lessons and experiences that kids carry into their future lives.”
“By participating in the Magnified Giving program, the youth are being given a chance to explore their communities, the challenges being faced, and the resources available to provide direct support when they are in need,” says Alison Kaufman, director of programs for Magnified Giving. “It is important to give them this opportunity because when they rejoin the community they are now armed with the knowledge that they have time, talent, and treasure to be a positive contributing member.”
To date, Youth Center students have made $9,000 in Magnified Giving grants. In addition to Queen City Book Bank and HER Cincinnati, recipients include the Children’s Law Center, Ohio Innocence Project, Girls on the Run, and Pets in Need of Greater Cincinnati.
Ms. Harris says her students create projects for every organization that they consider for funding. They’ve made items such as placemats, bookmarks, and pet toys, for groups. Magnified Giving also helps fundraise for supplies needed to create these projects inside Ms. Harris’s art room.
Research shows that participating in service programs has a positive impact on teen’s mental health, makes them more responsible and boosts their self-esteem. The Court is grateful for the tremendous opportunity Magnified Giving provides our kids and looks forward to exploring expanding our partnership to include young people who are part of our probation and diversion programs.