Senior Capstone

The senior class capstone offers a unique opportunity at GW to combine scholarly and community practice to make social change in the District through an experiential philanthropy project. Students partner with the Learning by Giving Foundation (LxG), which will provide the class in 2024 with an initial $7,000 for their giving project. Students decide together which social issue their philanthropy will address. Utilizing the knowledge from previous coursework, students research the selected social issue, raise additional funds, put out a call for grant proposals and select grant recipients among local nonprofit applicants.

Past capstone classes have addressed gender, inequity, education, criminal justice reform, and homelessness.

"We envision a world that empowers and supports immigrant youth to reach their full potential."

GW Arc Foundation
Class of 2024

2024 Grant Awardees

The 2024 "GW Arc Foundation’s" mission is to financially assist organizations that provide access to legal support services to immigrant/newcomer youth (0–25) in the DMV area. The DMV is one of the United States’ largest gateway destinations for immigrant communities. Immigrants are vital members of the Washington D.C. community, making up approximately one in seven residents with 6,500 of them being children. Legal services are essential for this population. Unaccompanied children who are unable to receive adequate legal representation are five times more likely to be deported, often back to dangerous situations.

Applications for the grant will be accepted through April 3, 2024. More information on how to apply can be found at the GW Arc Foundation website.

Examples of Recent Philanthropy

Spring 2021 Topic: Homelessness: Awarded to New Endeavors by Women and Charlie's Place
Spring 2020 Topic: Criminal Justice Reform: $11,500 awarded to U.S. Dream Academy, The National Re-entry Network and Free Minds Book Club
Spring 2019 Topic: Education Assistance for Immigrants: $9,000 awarded to Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition

"This is the best capstone experience possible and it has been so much fun going through this process with my classmates. I will always be grateful for getting this experience in philanthropy."

HSSJ Capstone Student
Class of 2020