More than 100 high school and college students from the eight area Permian Basin Students in Philanthropy (SIP) clubs and their sponsors participated in the group’s fifth annual conference, held Saturday, February 21 at Midland College’s Advanced Technology Center. The 2009 conference theme, “SIP-CSI (Case Study Investigation),” was designed to help SIP club members build the skills needed to make the best choices in grant-making. The conference was organized, conducted and funded by the Abell-Hanger Foundation with program support provided by the Nonprofit Management Center of the Permian Basin.

The original SIP club was founded at Midland College in 1997 by the Abell-Hanger Foundation to provide student leaders the opportunity to improve the quality of life in their communities. Since then, seven additional programs have been developed and implemented at the following area schools: Midland High School, Lee High School, Odessa High School, Permian High School, Odessa College, the University of Texas of the Permian Basin, and Greenwood High School.

All eight SIP clubs are funded by the Abell-Hanger Foundation, and in 2006, the Helen Greathouse Charitable Trust joined in funding the four SIP clubs in Midland County.

SIP members learn about the importance of philanthropy and the role of nonprofit organizations in the community. Members raise funds in the fall and participate in the grant-making process in the spring. MC’s SIP club celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2007. In the past eleven years, the club has awarded 185 grants to area nonprofit agencies for a total of $207,804 in monies raised and awarded to area nonprofits.

For further information about SIP, please contact Suzanne Thomas at the Abell-Hanger Foundation, 684-6655, or MC SIP Coordinator Laura McCabe, 599-0897.