The Inspire Fund, Brown Student Agencies' new funding initiative, offers up to $1,000 for students working on projects to benefit the University or Providence communities, according to the BSA website.
BSA intends for the need-based fund to "inspire social change," said Ellen Pederson '13, assistant director of BSA.
The BSA management team works together to select candidates for the Inspire Fund. Students must fill out an application, answering questions about their project and how it will benefit the community, Pederson said. BSA is looking for students who have experience in their project areas or students who are advised by a faculty member experienced in the project's field. Funds will be awarded to ongoing projects, rather than single events, she said. "We are looking for someone who is going to make a long-standing difference and help provide a lasting improvement for the community," she said.
BSA has not distributed any funding yet because the applications for the Inspire Fund were posted just a few weeks ago, Pederson said. BSA plans to begin awarding funds within several weeks to as many students as their budget will allow, she said. So far, the majority of applicants have been small groups of students, but the fund is open to individuals as well, she said.
There is no application deadline, and students will be chosen on a "first-come, first-serve basis," according to the BSA website. The money for the Inspire Fund comes from profits from BSA's services, she said.
Earlier this year, BSA sponsored another fellowship, the C.V. Starr Social Entrepreneurship Fellowship, which provided undergraduate entrepreneurs funds and guidance. Pilar Garcia-Brown '14, one of the students selected for the fellowship, is working with a group of women in Ecuador to sustain their jewelry-making business. She said she could not have traveled to Ecuador this past summer without the funding from BSA. "I wouldn't have been able to find money to buy jewelry from the women and maintain the infrastructure to keep the project sustainable," she said.
BSA's established services are designed to make student life easier, but the funding initiatives offer a different kind of support, Pederson said, adding, "We have our own programs to improve student life, but we want to help students be able to help the community in ways we can't."
