Grantwriting In Valued Environments (G.I.V.E.) is a BTU Priority Investment project in the English Department that advances students' professional writing goals by connecting their coursework to the writing needs of small non-profit organizations in the Baltimore/Washington region.
This project takes the stance that access and resources are meant to be redistributed, and this act of sharing takes a lifetime of effort. According to the Association of Black Foundation Executives, only 23% of Black-led organizations in the United States receive general operating support, despite the crucial role that it plays in keeping an organization open. This type of inequity is what motivates G.I.V.E. We aim to leverage and redistribute power to the surrounding community in honor of the historical injustices that have been inflicted on them.
This legacy frames our approach to the work we do: we acknowledge the legacies of injustice in Maryland and work within an anti-racist, anti-colonial framework in order to ethically and equitably empower our partners and students. We disavow the legacy of white supremacy, settler colonialism, and violence that has been institutionalized and embedded in our culture. This is why we must actively center the needs and expertise of Black communities, as well as other marginalized groups.
We are committed to create spaces that resist the harmful ideologies (racism, sexism, transphobia, homophobia, sexism, classism, ableism) that perpetuate harmful practices impacting us and our communities. These commitments create transparency and accountability in our efforts to counteract these practices.
G.I.V.E. is embedded within TU undergraduate and graduate level curriculum, providing participants the opportunity for real world application while receiving course credit. Two classes spend their semester working on projects—from writing grant proposals to leading writing workshops—for G.I.V.E. community partners.
History, theory, and practice of writing in public, non-profit, democratic, and humanitarian spaces. May include the study of rhetoric, writing, and communication as it applies to: service learning, community engagement, community organizing, grants, fundraising, charity drives, advocacy, social movements, e-newsletters, social media, public service announcements, and public relations. Prerequisite: Two ENGL courses.
Communication process, with special emphasis on writing, within the profit/nonprofit organization. Theories of organization, management styles, and relationship of written messages to the function of climate of the profit/nonprofit organization. Strategies of preparing written communication to meet internal and external needs. Prerequisite: Admission to MPW program or consent of instructor.
Please contact Prof. Zosha Stuckey at zstuckey AT_TOWSON for more information.