On Jan. 26, the Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy announced that it will be offering a cash prize of $5,000 for students who suggest innovative ideas for furthering philanthropy on college campuses. The submission deadline is March 11, and the winner or winners of the prize will be announced by Friday, April 15, according to the application.This is the second time the Sillerman Center has run this contest. Like last year, the Center offers a cash prize of $5,000 for students who suggest innovative ways for people to "increase their personal philanthropy," Director of Capacity Building,Claudia Jacobs '70, one of the coordinators of the contest, said in an interview with the Justice.

Jacobs said that the prize would "make sure that college students think about their values and habits for their future adult life . and their philanthropic approach to life with an aspect of civic engagement." The cash prize is an incentive for students, said Jacobs.

The application allows students to work alone and/or in groups in order to submit a "written plan not to exceed five to eight single-spaced pages answering the questions in the application." The finalists will be selected by a panel of judges made up of University officials from the Sillerman Center and two outside philanthropists, according to the Center's website. Finalists will be called back to give an oral presentation and after further deliberation, a winner will be announced mid-April.

The Sillerman Center was endowed by the Sillerman family in 2007 in order to "increase social justice and philanthropy . through research, education, practice and leadership development," said Jacobs. Since 2008, the Center, in association with the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, has been teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in philanthropy and have set up internships for Heller students in nonprofit organizations across the country. In the past few years, the Center has hosted various talks, lectures and movies on the subject of philanthropy.

Last year, first prize was split by Heller Master of Public Policy student Charles Francis, International Business School student Yuki Hasegawa '09, Robin Lichtenstein '11 and Julian Olidort '11 for their plan titled the "National Student Philanthropic Front" which now exists on campus in the form of the philanthropy club Phront. A team of six students from various schools at Brandeis collaborated and won the runner-up prize of $1,500. Jacobs said that, "although the Center would like to see Brandeis students applying, they would like more involvement from other universities."

The application is available online and submissions are due by Friday, March 11.