Natural disasters can shake campuses and communities—but as one community college found, careful planning and a focus on developing strong internal and external relationships can set the stage for quick action and relief.

The first crisis began in late 2017 when the Thomas Fire, the largest wildfire in California history, destroyed more than 1,000 structures across two southern California counties—some of them homes of Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) students, staff, and faculty. The SBCC Foundation prepared to distribute emergency grants to victims, and the school made the difficult decision to close during finals week that December.

Then, in January, intense rainfall caused a massive debris flow that killed 21 people (with two still missing) and destroyed more than 200 homes. In the days leading up to the storm, SBCC had already offered its campus as a Red Cross evacuation shelter site. When dawn broke on the morning of January 9, 2018, thousands of people had been displaced, stranded or injured. In response, the foundation offered emergency grants, assistance with shelter and transportation, and additional resources to its students, staff and faculty, and partnered with other efforts to serve the larger Santa Barbara community.

None of this would have been possible without the college and foundation's long-established relationships, says Geoff Green, chief executive officer of the Santa Barbara City College Foundation.

"Our leadership is very much of the mindset that we are both a part of and a resource for the community and that we should be there on the front lines to help," says Green.

While the college served as a shelter, the foundation moved quickly to make its funds available to members of the campus community who were in need. In addition, the SBCC Foundation agreed to serve as fiscal agent for all volunteer community relief efforts, such as the Bucket Brigade and the Santa Barbara Support Network, which were filling holes in the local response and serving the broader community.

"We replaced losses of personal possessions, covered transportation fees for anyone trying to reach our campus by taking water taxis around the freeway closure, and paid for lodging expenses for those who were displaced from their homes or otherwise stranded," said Green.

Santa Barbara City College's spring semester was delayed a week due to the extended closure of US 101. During that time, the campus also agreed to serve as a site for the displaced Montecito Union School. Hundreds of K-6 students got an early college experience while awaiting the clearing and reopening of their own campus.

Here are three lessons from SBCC on how community colleges and foundations can prepare to make a lasting impact on their communities during a crisis:

Build strategic relationships: The SBCC Foundation has worked tirelessly to build bridges and cultivate relationships with college leadership and the community. On campus, part of that relationship-building process was not only to create a culture of philanthropy, but to emphasize the importance of financial and social investment. Because of those pre-existing internal and external relationships, the foundation was empowered to act creatively and decisively to extend much needed aid to those in crisis.

Act from a position of strength: Standing unrestricted funds also played a key role in enabling the foundation to swiftly establish an emergency grant fund without needing to jump through multiple hoops for approval. Seeing SBCC act from a position of strength inspired others to step forward and offer aid. "My board members are also major donors," says Green. "They approached us to ask, ‘Can we do anything more?' which, from a development perspective, is a good position to be in."

Recognize ROI: Despite an extensive communication plan to raise awareness of available funds, the actual cost incurred was less than what the foundation had allocated for emergency relief. The return on that investment and the lasting impact made on the Santa Barbara community, however, cannot be overstated. For the price of a few weeks of Pandora advertising, SBCC supported staff, faculty and students in a time of acute need; strengthened ties with local nonprofits; prompted key donors to broach the idea of giving above and beyond current levels; and positioned itself as a pillar of support to the larger Santa Barbara community.

This article is from the May/June 2018 issue of the Community College Advancement News.