Photo courtesy: Metropolitan State University of Denver
Since 1963, FirstBank has been guided by its “banking for good” mission of ‘doing what’s right’ for customers, communities, and employees. As a result, the company has been recognized as one of the nation’s top-performing banks and a leader in corporate philanthropy.
FirstBank is also committed to bolstering the communities it serves through charitable contributions, financial education, and scholarship support. The FirstBank Scholars Program, in partnership with The Denver Foundation, continues to support this mission by helping fund leadership education at six major universities in Colorado.
What started as a small initiative to support several University of Colorado at Boulder leadership students has evolved to helping leadership education program students across Colorado.
In 1988, Roger Reisher, FirstBank’s former founding president, started an endowed scholarship fund, which would be used to support the FirstBank Scholars Program. Initial contributions totaled $37,646, which has grown to more than $5.4 million, providing more than 750 students with financial support.
Community partnership
As FirstBank searched for a way to continue growing the Scholar’s Program, it began exploring partnerships that could help facilitate the functions of the program, including managing the scholarship endowment and distributing the scholarships.
“Our involvement in the communities we serve is deeply rooted in our ability to listen to their needs. Our goal, first and foremost, is to listen to what those needs are, and then we can provide solutions.”
- Samson Eberhart, FirstBank senior vice president and Colorado Scholars Advisory Committee member
“We started poking around in the market and ultimately leaned into The Denver Foundation because of their expertise, knowledge, and level of sophistication in running a program of this size. The Reisher family, who established the initial scholarship fund, also has a profound relationship with The Denver Foundation,” said Erin Jones, FirstBank executive vice president and Colorado Scholars Advisory Committee member.
Roger Reisher and his wife, Margaret Reisher – both first-generation college students – have always had a passion for helping others achieve the goal of earning a college degree.
This was apparent in the FirstBank Scholars Program, but the family wanted to continue supporting college students. In 2001, they came to The Denver Foundation to open a new scholarship fund, which was the beginning of the Reisher Scholars Program.
With its longstanding history of managing the Reisher Scholars Program and other scholarship funds, The Denver Foundation proved to be an excellent partner that enabled FirstBank to make an even bigger impact. Having a partner connected to the community was important for FirstBank.
A forward-thinking strategy
“Much of the excitement we had around our partnership with The Denver Foundation was being able to pass off some of the administrative components, and the logistics of getting funds to various schools in the right ways,” said Eberhart. “It’s an opportunity for us to shift our capacity and focus on what matters, which is creating meaningful interactions [between scholars and FirstBank employees].”
“One thing we’re trying to be intentional about, through the guidance and support of The Denver Foundation's onboarding process, is the impact we can have on individual students.”
- Samson Eberhart, FirstBank senior vice president and Colorado Scholars Advisory Committee member
This partnership helps FirstBank ensure the scholarship continues to align with the bank’s goals and the evolving needs of the students.
Christy Lehmpuhl, FirstBank senior vice president and Colorado Scholars Advisory Committee member added, “If we’re not managing the paperwork side that The Denver Foundation can do for us, we’ll be able to reach out to each of the schools, build relationships with each of the leadership programs, and see what we can do to be more supportive, or more involved.”
Additionally, FirstBank looks to align its approach across the different schools.
“One thing we’re trying to be intentional about, through the guidance and support of The Denver Foundation’s onboarding process, is the impact we can have on individual students,” said Eberhart. “We want that impact to be noticeable to those individuals – it could be the difference between attending school or not, or attending school without needing a second job.”
A vision for strengthening meaningful engagement.
FirstBank plans to continue growing its scholarship endowment to support more students. But for FirstBank, the Scholars Program is more than just financial support. When asked about the program’s future, Jones responded, “FirstBankers want to engage and help beyond just the dollars.”
Whether through speaking engagements, career advice, or connecting students with professionals in their fields, FirstBankers can use their networks and expertise to bring in opportunities that can support scholars in every aspect of their educational journey.
“We’ve learned, not just personally but professionally, the more we give, the more we get,” said Jones, adding, “The gift is much more fulfilling than the actual dollars itself.”
Corporate Scholarship Funds
For leaders looking to make a lasting impact through corporate philanthropy, learn how a scholarship fund can support your efforts. Contact our team at information@denverfoundation.org or 303.300.1790.