![\"kiva_logo_tag_0](\"http:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/kiva_logo_tag_0-copy.jpg\"){kind=logo}
<\/a>Kiva offers funds to underprivileged people through microcredit loans \u2014 a very small amount of money usually lent to people in disadvantaged or impoverished situations, explained Kathleen Fitzpatrick, associate professor of accounting and instructor for the accounting classes. <\/p>\nFitzpatrick, who has been lending to people on the site for five years, said that the organization offered her 35 free credits valued at $25 apiece to use in her classes for educational purposes. After teaching students about the nonprofit organization and the necessity of microcredit loans in impoverished countries, student groups used the credits to donate to any cause they wanted on the site. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey don\u2019t have what we have in the way of normal access to loans,\u201d Fitzpatrick said. \u201cThere are no banks; they aren\u2019t accessible to the non-rich in that country, so there\u2019s no other option for them to borrow money. You\u2019re making a real tangible difference in the lives of people who have nothing.\u201d <\/p>\n
The organization has thousands of profiles from people around the world with various businesses or causes that they\u2019re trying to raise money for. The site allows lenders to give as little as $25 to the person or group of their choosing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI found the Kiva donation to be an excellent way to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday,\u201d said Jacob Beakas, a second-year chemical engineering major in Fitzpatrick\u2019s class. \u201cPersonally, our group provided funding to a man who was installing a well for drinking water in his village. Hopefully, our simple actions here at UT can provide a means to acquiring much needed clean water in his village.\u201d<\/p>\n
The University of Toledo also has a team on the site, which Fitzpatrick is a part of. Anyone is welcome to join, she said. <\/p>\n