Campaign open to U. community projects

As a result of student efforts, University faculty and staff making charitable contributions to the University's employee charity will now be able to direct their donations to student community service projects. Beginning this year, University employees will be able to earmark their donations to Penn's Way to the Active Community Coalition Efforts Sponsored by Students which will then distribute the funds to different student community service organizations. ACCESS was formed in late 1991 by a group of faculty members and students in order to receive funds from Penn's Way, the University's workplace charity campaign. "[ACCESS] was formed in response to a number of students being involved in community projects and realizing that there was a lack of funding for these things," said Elizabeth Hunt, the chairperson of ACCESS's publicity committee. Penn's Way is the faculty and staff payroll charity in which University employees can direct a portion of their paycheck to several charitable organizations. The board of ACCESS is made up of representatives from eight graduate and undergraduate student community service groups, said ACCESS President Kathleen Sullivan. "We've created the groundwork for creating a strong organization," College junior Sullivan said, "If people have worked this hard to get it to the point it is at, it won't just fall apart." Included in this umbrella organization are the Graduate and Professional Students Association, the United Minorities Council and the Community Service Living Learning Program, said the College senior. "We're trying to get as large a voice of the population at Penn as possible so we don't exclude anyone," Sullivan said. Money raised for ACCESS will be used to provide students with the opportunity to participate in community service in such projects as the Alternate Spring Break and Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. In addition, ACCESS will subsidize internships for University students in community service organizations. Sullivan said that the funds will be disbursed in March, and any University group that is involved in community service can apply for funds. Hunt said that the funding ACCESS will provide service organizations "could definitely help with Penn's often rocky relationship with West Philly and the community around it."