Online Buffett Class: A Lesson In Charitable Giving

Published July 22, 2013 at 1:40 PM EDT

Sibblings Warren Buffett and Doris Buffett. (Sunshine Lady Foundation Inc.)

Thanks to her younger brother, Warren Buffett, Doris Buffett has a lot of money to give away.

Now, her foundation, Learning by Giving, is partnering with Northeastern University to offer an online course on effective charitable giving.

“Giving With Purpose” is a MOOC — a massive open online course — free and open to everyone.

It has some famous guest lecturers, including Warren Buffett, journalist Soledad O’Brien and baseball legend Cal Ripken Jr.

It will help its 10,000 students give away $100,000 by the end of six sessions.

Rebecca Riccio is the instructor of Giving With Purpose and the director of Students4Giving, a philanthropy education program at Northeastern University.

“When you give students the responsibility for giving someone else’s money away, they’re suddenly confronted with just how many problems there are in our communities and how hard it is to choose where the money’s going to go,” Riccio told Here & Now.

Guest

Rebecca Riccio, instructor of Giving With Purpose and director of Students4Giving at Northeastern University.