Helping Women Reach Their Dreams: SI/Clovis, CA

Shout out to SI/Clovis, CA (Sierra Pacific Region) who achieved 100% on the Club Roadmap!

SI/Clovis made a huge impact in their local community with 35 Live Your Dream Awards given to local women attending several colleges in their area. The population of underserved and underrepresented women in the service area of their local community college district is extremely large. SI/Clovis awarded Live Your Dream Awards to 35 local women totaling $38,000: 23 awardees attended Clovis Community College, seven attended Reedley College, three attended Fresno City College, and three additional Clovis women attended other regional education programs.

The Celebration

Counselors, trustees and administrators from the State Center Community College District joined SI/Clovis and 23 of the recipients in their celebration. New Clovis Community College President Dr. Kim Armstrong spoke to the collection of students, their families and Soroptimists. “My heart is filled with so much love for these women, and for the group of women who are members of Soroptimist! You are strong!”

Dr. Armstrong is now a member of SI/Clovis and is busily encouraging other women to join as well! SI/Clovis worked with the other colleges to get their admins and awardees to the event, even offering a school van or Ubers. Children were welcome and added a delightful element, and SI/Clovis invited the campus photographer. As a result, the event was cost-effective and set up for community and college attention and engagement. 

Word of Mouth

“We are VERY fortunate that one of our past awardees is now a member and still a current student at one of our area colleges. She personally worked with the financial aid department to recruit applicants. We deployed club members directly to the college staff who are responsible for the target demographic of the Live Your Dream Awards. The CARE/EOPS programs were key to identifying possible candidates. We had local press, social media, and posters around the schools, but it was the diligence in person, by phone and via email that made the difference. Our local colleges now list the award portal and short explanation in their "additional scholarships" buckets of their websites. Our members followed up repeatedly with the colleges and we held workshops at many of the schools.” - SI/Clovis

How the Awards Were Funded

SI/Clovis raised more than double the funds they have ever raised at their annual fundraiser. SI/Clovis states that the key for this success was their emphasis on personal connections for personal invitations. They continued their efforts to leverage connections with area community colleges to gain attendance. The Denim & Diamonds auction appeal had "personal" connections to many of their members and area VIPs. SI/Clovis had a large donor repeat their generosity from years past. Another large donor stepped up after attending one of the club’s events and, after hearing their message, was moved to donate another $10,000. This allowed SI/Clovis to allocate $38,000 to the Live Your Dream Awards while still having funds to run the club. Their past recipient-turned-member did a heartfelt short "call to action" at their event, and this moment reflecting the true impact helps donors connect with the mission. 

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