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An important part of being a PwC Scholar is helping with the annual community service project. And this year, that project was bigger than ever.

The School of Management scholars program partnered with Kali’s Klubhouse in Apalachin, N.Y., an organization that uses horses to provide support for individuals with emotional, physical and social disabilities. Through both mounted and unmounted equine activities, Kali’s Klubhouse helps clients expand boundaries and increase their understanding of the world around them.

The students spent months planning the project and raised more than $18,000 to fund it.

While projects in previous years culminated in one day of community service during which the majority of the work was done, this year’s project was large enough that the scholars decided to expand the day to an entire community service week. Professionals and PwC alumni joined scholars in Apalachin to do the renovations over the course of a week. The project included:

• Painting the walls of the classroom
• Installing flooring and assembling new chairs
• Creating a library and book nook, and stocking it with hundreds of books the group collected
• Creating a mosaic backsplash for the kitchen through a partnership with a local artist
• Installing a handicapped-accessible gazebo
• Creating a digital clientele filing system and career guide for at-risk youth.

The scholars estimate that nearly 2,900 hours were spent over the course of the year on the project. They say the renovations have already been put to use, and that feedback from Kali’s Klubhouse has been positive so far.

Community involvement

The group’s involvement in the community is not limited to the community service project. All scholars are required to create their own semester-long project while taking the MGMT 350 course. Students are able to choose their own groups and to create a project that benefits the scholars program, the School of Management or the Greater Binghamton area.

PwC Scholars

Selection of the next year’s community service project begins in the spring. Organizations and projects are evaluated on potential impact to the community, and scholars narrow the list to 15 potential projects. After site visits and an assessment on logistical challenges and feasibility, that list is then reduced to three finalists, which are presented for a vote to all PwC Scholars.

This year, another scholars initiative was improving the accessibility of materials provided to prospective students about the program. New promotional materials were created and will be sent to the incoming Class of 2024.

School of Management

To create more opportunities for women in finance, an eight-week educational and mentorship program for freshman women who have an interest in finance began this past spring.

Topics included an overview of the industry, how to use a Bloomberg Terminal, Excel skills, networking techniques and the finance internship recruitment process.

The program will be run again in the fall with new participants and will be extended to a 10-week program with rising juniors in finance taking the lead.

The scholars also worked with Mazda to develop immersive learning projects and consulted with start-up companies at the . These initiatives will create more experiential learning opportunities for future School of Management students.

Community

The scholars worked with Lazarus Rising, an organization that combats homelessness by helping people develop the skills they need to secure meaningful employment, and were able to form additional partnerships with local shelters to run rèsumè building workshops.

A group of scholars also touched base with organizations from past community service projects to help maintain relationships and provide follow-up assistance. The group initiated a children’s wellness event with the NoMa (North of Main) committee in Binghamton that included a dreamcatcher craft activity to promote healthy sleeping habits and a Zumba event to encourage a fun-fit lifestyle. Because of the success of the event, it will be continuing on a monthly basis starting in the fall.