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    Titan Excellence Fund
January 30, 2010

Titan Excellence Fund nearing goal

BY LINDSAY VANHULLE

TRAVERSE CITY -- In many ways, the small efforts mattered most.

To raise $25,000 for an endowment fund for Traverse City West Senior High, organizers took a grassroots approach.

High school cookie sales generated about $1,400. Moomers Homemade Ice Cream contributed proceeds from a custom sundae. Last year's senior class gave $3,000. Individual donors, many of them school employees, kicked in anywhere from $10 to $50.

The Titan Excellence Fund is now about $3,000 shy of its initial $25,000 goal, slightly more than a year after taking shape.

"We've tapped a lot of resources," said Nick Glauch, a 2006 West graduate who launched the effort at the University of Michigan with three other West alumni. "We're going to get there."

When they do, the endowment will award grants to teachers and students for programs, field trips, equipment and other needs. The first payments could be made in early 2011 if progress is as swift as Glauch hopes.

The question that lingers is how quickly donors will be able to push the fund over the top. Fundraising occurred during 2008 and 2009 in the midst of a challenging economic climate that hasn't yet recovered.

So far, 82 people have made 95 gifts, said Phil Ellis, executive director of the Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation, which administers the fund.

Reaching potential donors in the current market requires organizers to present a clear vision of what they want their project to accomplish, Ellis said. A permanent endowment can be a different selling point than charitable programs designed to meet immediate needs.

"They've really taken it to the streets," Ellis said. "When people catch that, they can get behind it."

The school's staff did. Some, including French teacher Kate Kelly and librarian Chris Esper, joined the fund's advisory team to connect the school to the alumni who founded it.

The groups met monthly to discuss the status of fundraising efforts and who to approach next. Fewer businesses and large organizations contributed to the campaign, Esper said.

Rotary Charities of Traverse City, for one, follows guidelines that award grants to entire districts, not individual schools, Executive Director Marsha Smith said. It also doesn't fund endowments.

Ideally, organizers said, an individual or organization with the financial means would make a large gift to close in on the remaining $3,000. Optimistic economic news could only help.

But Glauch doesn't think that should be the only determinant.

"A good idea is a good idea no matter what the economy is," he said. "Even though we're hurting right now, the school also is hurting."

How to help

To learn more about the Titan Excellence Fund, or to donate, visit www.

titanexcellencefund.org.

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