Barry University student leaders Paola Lopez-Hernandez and Antonio Rodriguez are the winners of the 2019 Community Impact Award.
From 2016 to 2018, Lopez-Hernandez served as president of the Barry Green Team, a student club whose primary purpose is to contribute to the improvement of environmental practices on and off campus.
A junior majoring in international studies, Lopez-Hernandez currently coordinates Barry’s Food Recovery Project. The project prevents food waste in the university’s main campus dining hall, recovering it for donation to the Miami Rescue Mission. Since its establishment in the fall semester of 2018, the project has prevented the disposal of over 600 pounds of food – the equivalent of 500 meals.
As a Barry Service Corps Fellow, Lopez-Hernandez is assigned to the social justice team promoting equitable communities. In that role, she has supported the programs of Barry’s community partners. Furthermore, she has used the knowledge and guidance received from staff at Urban GreenWorks to facilitate activities with youth who participate in Gang Alternative’s after-school program.
Also a Barry Service Corps Fellow, Rodriguez supports the university’s partnership with PACT – People Acting for Community Together, the largest faith-based community organization in South Florida. And he regularly serves as a facilitator for community-based civic engagement activities.
From student government leader on campus to president of the College Democrats for the state of Florida, this junior political science major has made an impact. He has been instrumental in engaging Barry students, faculty, and staff – and young people across the state – in democratic processes and institutions.
Rodriguez has been a member of the Campus Democracy Project Committee for two years. The BucsVote initiative, which he created, has opened the door to civil bipartisan interaction and dialogue on campus.
Moreover, he engages his fellow students in the progressive issues that he values. Those issues include affordable access to education and health care for all, sensible immigration strategies, protection of the rights of LGBTQ youth, and environmentally smart conservation.
The Community Impact Award is presented annually in recognition of exemplary civic engagement with a measurable impact on the community.
Saliha Nelson, chair of Barry’s Community Advisory Committee, presented a plaque to each winner at the sixth annual Community Engagement Awards, which the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) hosted on March 27.