To the Editors:

This weekend, Oberlin College seniors have the duty to vote for responsible investing at Oberlin. The Senior Gift Survey is being readministered, and it’s time to stand up for our community.

The first time the survey was administered, there was a clerical error: Instead of giving the Social Choice Scholarship as an option, the Responsible Investing Organization — a student organization — was incorrectly given.

The Social Choice Scholarship is a groundbreaking new fund in the endowment, one that both supports need-based tuition assistance — for a student from Northeast Ohio — and advances the adoption of responsible investing according to Oberlin’s values and priorities. In the spring, we will hold a policy symposium in which our community — of students, residents, faculty, staff and alumni — will come together to discuss our values and formulate a responsible investing policy to apply to the scholarship.

Last year, over 70,000 foreclosure cases were filed in our Ohio. According to ESOP, an Ohio-based community organization, “Today’s numbers underscore the need for continued funding of foreclosure prevention counseling and relief programs that help keep families in their homes and stabilize communities.” With a $720 million endowment, Oberlin College has a crucial role to play in this stabilization, and the establishment and support of the Social Choice Scholarship is a first step.

So if you are a senior, cast your vote and encourage your friends to do the same. If you are not, you still have a crucial role to play. Consider donating to the scholarship; each donation shows Oberlin College that we’re serious about responsible investing. You can also familiarize yourself with the issues, participate in the upcoming conversations around responsible investing or organize with RIO.

But this isn’t the end; it’s just the beginning.We have a lot of work ahead to get our dollars, from the Senior Gift and in the general endo ment, to work in our community.

Responsibly,

The Responsible Investing Organization