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COLTON’S
CORNER
Philanthropy…Just Not For Millionaires
Colton’s Corner is a
page dedicated to
providing a spotlight
on youth philanthropy.
Stories will include
how young people
are getting involved
in their community,
ways you can make
a difference, and
personal stories/
reflections from Colton
himself. Philanthropy
is awesome, because
everyone can work
on making a positive
change in their
community. Colton
hopes to inspire you
with his stories, and
the stories of others,
so you can go out
and be a young
changemaker yourself
(if you’re not already
well on your way).
When I tell people that I am majoring in
Philanthropic Studies, one of two things
happens. The first is that they stare
blankly at me with a look of confusion on
their face (it is understandable since only
one school in the entire world offers that
degree) and the other thing that happens
is a ton of questions come flying at
me. What is Philanthropic Studies? So
you are going to work for a nonprofit,
does that mean you are not going to
make any money? Don’t you have to
be a millionaire like Bill Gates or Mark
Zuckerberg to be a philanthropist?
To answer the first question,
Philanthropic Studies uses many other
fields of study including economics,
political science, history, philosophy,
religion, literature, psychology, and
ethics (to name a few) to look at all of
the ways people give their time, talent,
and treasure to make the world a better
place. If you want a longer explanation
on Philanthropic Studies, you can visit
the Indiana University Lilly Family School
of Philanthropy’s website at www.
philanthropy.iupui.edu.
The second question has an easy
response, YES! Yes, I will be making
money working for a nonprofit. Nonprofit
organizations have expenses like
businesses. The simple difference
between a business and a nonprofit
organization is that businesses distribute
their annual profit to shareholder
(owners of the company) while nonprofit
organizations use their profits (often
generated from fund development and
services) to pay for their operating costs
and programs while attempting to make
the world a better place.
of dollars annually to causes that they
are passionate about. The good part
about being a philanthropist is that
anyone, I repeat ANYONE, can be a
philanthropist. I donate my time to a
student organization here on campus, so
that makes me a philanthropist. I am also
very talented at using technology, so I
help a nonprofit o &v旦F