Columbia Business School Gives Back

Columbia Business School has announced its first large-scale, student-led volunteering initiative coming up on April 4th. The school’s inaugural Day of Impact includes ten service projects throughout New York City and will give students, faculty, and staff a chance to give back to the communities where they live and study.

Participants will partner with several different organizations, including the Citymeals-on-Wheels, Food Bank for New York City, The Humane Society of New York, and New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. Projects will include:

• Beautifying various city parks — Morningside Park, St. Mary’s Park, and Hamilton Grange National Park;
• Delivering meals to the home ridden through meal providers Jan Hus Church, Leonard Covello Senior Center, and Goddard-WEME Mainstream Nutrition Program;
• Preparing dinner for the Food Bank of New York; and
• Caring for animals in need at the Humane Society of New York City.

“Making an impact on society — however large or small — is a huge part of who we are at Columbia Business School,” says Sheila Lalani ’14, vice president of community service for the School’s Graduate Business Association. “The idea behind Day of Impact is to demonstrate our community’s commitment to not only bettering the business world once we graduate, but also working to improve the community in which we live.”

Lalani presented the idea in 2013 to the school’s administration. Since then, it has been embraced by the entire Columbia Business School community.  Lalani’s hope and expectation is that the Day of Impact will become an annual event that grows in scope and impact each year.

Volunteers will be communicating with each other throughout the day using social media.  The student organizers have set up the hashtag #CBSDayOfImpact and asked volunteers to post photos, videos, and updates about the progress of their efforts.

Associate Dean Michael Malone, who will be volunteering as part of the Morningside Park beautification efforts, commends the School’s community for giving back to society. “We are so proud of our students for bringing this opportunity to life.  They are constantly looking for new ways to demonstrate the impact Columbia can have outside of the classroom,” Malone says.

“This initiative really reflects what we believe in most strongly at Columbia: leadership through action, community-wide collaboration, and rolling our sleeves up to make a difference.”