MARION, OH (MARION COUNTY NOW)—Students in an English class at The Ohio State University at Marion awarded $4,000 in funding to three area non-profit organizations Tuesday as part of the campus’s Pay It Forward Initiative.
The students in English 2367.015 met in Maynard Hall’s Guthery Community Room to announce the recipients. Grace Clinics of Ohio, Inc. and Ohio State’s Buckeye Food Alliance each received $1,750, while the Marion Victim Assistance Program was awarded $500. The funds are intended to support the organizations in the upcoming year.
Grace Clinics of Ohio is a non-profit medical ministry providing free healthcare, prescription assistance, and specialist services to the uninsured and underinsured across multiple communities.
The Buckeye Food Alliance (BFA) works to combat food insecurity by offering a client-choice food pantry and outreach efforts, ensuring no Buckeye goes hungry.
The Marion Victim Assistance Program offers county-wide services to victims of any crime, including emergency aid, crisis intervention, counseling, advocacy, claims assistance, court orientation, support groups, community referrals, and education. The program also assists victims and families of DUI accidents and homicide survivors.
(Photo: The Ohio State University at Marion)
Amy Tibbals, a Senior English Lecturer at Ohio State Marion who has taught the course for over a decade, said the class visited the three finalist organizations during the spring semester to learn more about their work.
Tibbals noted the positive impact the Pay It Forward initiative has on her students annually. “They learned about positive things people are doing to help Marion,” she said. “They worked with people who have big hearts that want to make Marion a better place, and they also learned what a volunteer might be able to do to help the Marion community.”
Tibbals expressed pride in the lasting impact of the experience on students. “Students leave the class with an experience that they will remember for a long time. They made a very positive impact while they were in the Ohio State Marion community,” she said. “Every semester it’s amazing to watch students become very passionate about the work that they’re doing and the organization they are representing.”
The Pay It Forward concept began in the 2010-2011 academic year through a collaboration between Tibbals and fellow Ohio State English faculty member Dr. Cassandra Parente, who secured a grant from the Federal Learn and Serve Program to educate students about philanthropy.
The United Way of North Central Ohio has been the community partner for Pay It Forward since its inception in 2010 and continues to participate each year. The funds awarded this semester were raised by students in Tibbals’ autumn 2024 Business and Professional Writing course, which generated $7,335.