Consortium releases Community Placements Survey
Worcester, MA - The Colleges of Worcester Consortium, Inc. hosted its fourth annual networking event "Colleges and Community - Creating Collaborations" on March 11 at Clark University.
This event, sponsored by the Consortium Community Engagement Committee, serves community organizations and businesses that want to "tap into" the skills and intellectual capital of the region's college students and it serves students themselves who experience community as part of their undergraduate programs. Ten Consortium institutions shared information with the community on the myriad of ways they place students into the community, including internships, work study, service learning, volunteerism and research. Last year over 9,900 students engaged in more than 590,000 hours of service and community-based learning. For more details on the impact of college students in the community, please refer to the 2006-2007 Community Placements Survey which was released in conjunction with this event.
The event featured the presentation of the Worcester UniverCity Partnership Awards. The "UP Award" honors the impact made by college student volunteers in the community and the agencies for which they worked. (see below for a complete list of award winners)
In addition, the William Meinhofer Award for Faculty Excellence was presented to Robert Krueger, PhD (Worcester Polytechnic Institute) and Laurie Ross, PhD (Clark University). The late Dr. Meinhofer, founding director of the Donelan Office of Community-Based Learning at the College of the Holy Cross and founding chairperson of the Community Engagement Committee, lost his battle with cancer in January 2007.
As director of the Worcester Community Project Center, Krueger has focused the innovative approach of WPI's Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) on efforts that serve the local community. These projects serve to both challenge the problem solving ability of technologically oriented students as well as develop their sense of social responsibility. The Worcester Community Project Center was awarded the George I. Alden Higher Education Excellence Award by the Consortium in 2007. In that same year, Krueger, who is also director of environmental studies and assistant professor of geography at WPI, was recognized with the university's Young Faculty Award for Innovation in Undergraduate Education.
Ross, an assistant professor in the International Development Community and Environment Department at Clark, consistently pursues opportunities to connect her research and teaching to the Worcester community. She co-developed a first-year seminar entitled "Making a Difference" that engaged undergraduates in an exploration of social change theory through readings, reflection and community placements. Other courses she has developed link students with a variety of organizations, particularly organizations with a focus on at-risk youth. Her work has provided a model for youth-oriented organizations such as the Worcester Youth Center and Girls C.H.O.I.C.E.
College Student Award Winners
Working through Assumption College's Reach Out Center, Maura Cook has provided dedicated service to the children of Friendly House. Collaborating closely with Friendly House staff, Maura has identified critical needs and developed positive responses to those needs, organizing blanket and towel drives, a holiday "giving tree," and holiday activities for the children.
The students of the American Red Cross-Clark University Club have formed a Disaster Action Team (DAT) to respond to local emergencies, particularly house fires. This on-call team is prepared to join other first-line responders in assisting victims at the disaster site. DAT members include: Paula Zimmerman, Robert Hipps, Rumi Pavlova, Nicole Paradis, Sarah Richard, Margo Sheck, Serena Pham, Joanna Lubkin, James Wilson and Amy Saba.
Carlie Geiger, a senior at the College of the Holy Cross, has been a dedicated volunteer at the Vernon Hill School since her freshman year. In the spring of 2007, Carlie and a fellow volunteer conducted a successful book drive, adding hundreds of books to the school's library.
The Student Chapter Executive Board of the American Pharmacists Association - Academy of Pharmacists at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences coordinated the efforts of other MCPHS students in volunteering at a major Health Fair in Worcester sponsored by the City of Worcester Department of Public Health. Their work touched the lives of hundreds of people in the Worcester area. Executive Board members are Christine Chaplin, Erica Choiniere, Stacy Gardner, Lisa Helgerson, Danielle Frentzos, Folasade Foose, Meredith Harper, Kristen Champagne, Candice Agnelli, Karen Slagle, Anna Stevenson, Kimberly Dolan, Joseph Sullivan and Ramin Eslampanah.
Ron Powers, Brittney Case, Kristen Howard, and Jeff Lindgren, members of the Nichols College Student Athlete Advisory Committee, in support of Cancer Awareness Week, organized campus fundraisers to assist victims of breast cancer in Central Massachusetts. Through the sale of bracelets and the generous contribution of gate receipts from an on-campus athletic event, the Athlete Advisory Council raised over $900.
Olga Valdman, a medical student at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, has been instrumental in establishing the African Community Education Program, a Saturday morning education program targeting African immigrant children in Worcester.
Building on the model established by the Exploradream program, Worcester Polytechnic Institute students Sabrina Varanelli, Erik Lovejoy, Scott Nelson, Shivahn Fitzell, and Nicholas Simone introduced the RoboKids program to children from Friendly House. By building and displaying their robots the children gained valuable lessons in science, team work and self-confidence.
Agency Award Winners:
African Community Education Program
American Red Cross
Friendly House
Vernon Hill School
Department of Public Health of the City of Worcester