The Rocky Mountain Collegian

Issue date: 11/14/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Photo courtesy of Joan Schubert Nepalese children smile in their new school uniforms after Room to Read, a global non-profit organization built their village school in 2005. A group of 25 students at CSU are helping Room to Read by holding fundraisers this year. They say if every CSU student donates a dollar, Room to Read will have enough money to fund another school.

It doesn't cost much to provide an education to hundreds of third-world children, so says one student organization at CSU. Just $1 from every student at CSU would be enough to build a school in Nepal this year.

Hoping to keep the philanthropic spirit of CSU growing, CSU's chapter of Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) -- a global outreach program focused on community building -- launched a school-building campaign for underprivileged societies called Only 1 this year.

Only 1 volunteers pitch their campaign to student clubs and organizations at CSU, asking for donation to their first project, the school in a small village in Nepal.

They will send the donations to a global organization, led by former Microsoft executive John Wood, called Room to Read. Room to Read has built schools in underserved countries for nearly a decade.

SIFE hopes for grassroots community involvement from students at CSU over the next month.

"Every one of us is constantly pursuing opportunities to raise awareness of our cause," said Joe Gerdom, a junior Only 1 volunteer.

Gerdom and senior Alina Roberts, along with other volunteers have contacted organizations around campus to spread involvement.

Shubart said her students are zealots of third-world education and has optimism for the success of Only 1.

"As an instructor, I have shared (Only 1) with a number of my classes and they said 'that is awesome'," Schubart said. "CSU students really have a heart for helping."

Many of the volunteers first heard of the Only 1 vision through Schubart's classes.

"Professor Schubart likes to talk about socially responsible entrepreneurs," Gerdom said.

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