Foundation of City College seeks funds for the school

May 17, 2010February 25, 2020 The Guardsman

By Liska Koenig
The Guardsman

“Invest in Education,” a new program to save classes at the school, was launched by the Foundation of City College of San Francisco this month.

“It’s like giving to your favorite charity,” said Armen Carapetian, director of development at the foundation. “If friends or family want to give you a graduation present, they can just go to the website, make a tax-deductible donation and print out a certificate.”

Minimum donations of $35 can be made through http://investineducation.bbnow.org, a website dedicated to the campaign.

Due to lack of funds, City College has been forced to cancel about 1,500 classes, including all 2010 summer classes. With the current California budget deficit and recent cuts to education, the school may have to cancel more classes in the upcoming fiscal year.

“It all depends on what the state does,” City College Trustee John Rizzo said. “If we are just looking at next year, we are looking at a deficit of about $8 million.” Rizzo said he doesn’t know where money to bridge the deficit will come from.

The average cost per class at City College is about $6,000, and about 170 contributions at the $35 level would be sufficient to save a course section, said Carapetian.

“Asking people to invest in education plays a vital role for City College. In the long run it also plays a major role for the Bay Area workforce. It’s a gift that will bring back dividends to the community,” Carapetian said.

Foundation President Haig Mardikian and City College Chancellor Don Griffin signed a Master Agreement on April 14, which outlines the agreement between the non-profit foundation’s commitment and the college to raise funds for educational purposes.

The foundation has raised approximately $150,000 to save classes, Carapetian said.

The campaign website also provides links to social networks like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace so users can participate in the fundraising effort by sharing the information through their personal profiles.