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April 30, 2018 |
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Barry University has been marking Earth Justice Month (April) with various projects and events in the community and on campus.
Barry Service Corps Fellow Paola Lopez-Hernandez coordinated an intercollegiate beach cleanup project on April 7 at the historic Virginia Key Beach Park. Twelve students from Barry and three from Nova Southeastern University participated in the community service project.
They picked up debris from the shoreline and, with support from TREEmendous Miami volunteers, removed invasive species of plants from the beach park.
“The students began the day by discussing the significance of preserving the historic Virginia Key Beach, a landmark with a rich history,” said Lopez-Hernandez. “It is always important to know about the organization one will be working with and have a clear understanding who or what is being served when engaging in community service.”
Lopez-Hernandez added: “It was a special experience that gave students the opportunity to make connections with people from diverse backgrounds in the community, work together to enhance the conditions of the environment, and maintain an important historical landmark in Miami.”
Guy Forchion, executive director of the Virginia Key Beach Park, thanked the volunteers for their service.
A month-long Book Collection Drive benefiting Better World Books is still underway.
Books that are being accepted include college textbooks (published within the past 10 years); antiquarian, rare, and collectible books; dictionaries and thesauruses; children’s books; hardcover fiction and nonfiction; mass-market paperbacks; travel books (published within the past three years); and foreign language books (in western script).
In addition to books in print form, donations may include CDs, DVDs, books on CD, and video games (only complete sets with original case art).
The books, DVDs, CD will be sold; the library will receive 15 percent of net sale price and Books for Africa will receive 5 percent. Unsold books will be donated to Books for Africa or recycled.
Collection boxes are located in the Library, Thompson Hall, Garner Hall, Landon Student Union, Powers Hall, and the School of Podiatry.
The Move-Out Drive and a Stop Food Waste Day are among other events on the Earth Justice Month calendar. According to the organizers, the Move-Out Drive involves students on all residence halls. Donations benefit people in need in the community.
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Student Organizes Project to Deliver Surplus Food to Community Agency
By Glenn Bowen
Dominique McMillan saw a lot of food going to waste in the campus dining hall – and she decided to do something about it.
The Barry senior developed a project that would combat food waste while meeting a requirement of the civic learning and leadership program in which she has been engaged.
The project was designed specifically to prevent the disposal of excess food from the Roussell Dining Hall and to donate it to Miami Rescue Mission.
A nonprofit community agency, Miami Rescue Mission provides food, shelter, healthcare, substance abuse treatment, education, job placement, and other services to people in need.
So far, more than 300 pounds of food – enough for 460 meals – have been diverted from the waste receptacles to dining tables at a Miami Rescue Mission center.
At the outset, McMillan had discussions with representatives of Dining Services regarding food waste and misconceptions about liabilities pertaining to food donations. Once she got the necessary buy-in, she set about getting her peers involved.
In the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI), she turned to Experiential Learning Coordinator Liz James, who assisted her by creating a 10-hour service-learning opportunity for students.
The CCSI organizes the Barry Service Corps (BSC) Fellows Program, the civic learning and leadership initiative that has galvanized students to scale up their community service from charity to social justice. BSC fellows are required to develop projects to address social issues or community needs and to showcase their project at the annual Community Engagement Symposium.
McMillan was the first-prize winner in a student poster competition organized as part of this year’s symposium. Her poster was titled “Recovering Surplus Food to Address Food Waste and Insecurity in Miami-Dade County.”
In organizing the project, McMillan got some of her peers involved in research as well as promoting and implementing the project. In the process, they learned about the issues of food waste and food insecurity, and they identified the Food Recovery Network (FRN) as an effective model of campus-based food-waste prevention.
Self-described as “the largest student movement against food waste and hunger,” FRN prides itself on its achievements in recovering and donating more than 2 million pounds of food since its founding in September 2011. That’s enough food for 1.8 million meals, the organization has indicated.
McMillan and the service-learning students have not only transported the food from campus to the Miami Rescue Mission location but have also served dinner to people who show up there.
They have gone a step further by making plans to encourage students at other South Florida colleges and universities to implement a similar project.
Barry’s Office of Mission Engagement and the Alumni Association have begun to lend their support to the efforts spearheaded by McMillan. And there is momentum for starting an FRN chapter at Barry aimed at “fighting waste (and) feeding people.”
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Variety of Presentations Made at Community Engagement Symposium
Barry’s Fifth Annual Community Engagement Symposium featured a variety of oral and poster presentations. Topics included service-learning, community-based research, study abroad, advocacy, and community partnership building.
“Demonstrating Social Responsibility through Experiential Learning” was the theme of the symposium held on March 28.
The lead presenter was Nadinne Cruz, former director of Stanford University’s Haas Center for Public Service and an internationally recognized experiential learning expert. She facilitated a workshop titled “Doing Justice, Making Peace in a Divided World” and a seminar on “Community Engagement as Epistemic Justice and Democratic Practice.”
There were five concurrent presentations during one of the six sessions of the symposium: “Collaboration with Community Partners: Oral Historiesof Virginia KeyBeach – ‘The Colored Beach’”– Dr. Ruth Ban, Valerie Scott, Liliam Dominguez, and Guy Forchion “Educational Initiatives of the Barry UniversityNursing and Education International Learning Partnership” – Dr. Sean Buckreisand Courtney Berrien “Gender Differences in Attitudes towardsExperiential Learning” – Dr. Pamela D. Hall, Dr. Laura Finley, Dr. TamaraHamilton, and Dr. Raul Machuca “Humanitarian Protection for the ‘Dreamers’ in America”– Francesca Gerard “Promoting and Evaluating Youth Empowermentthrough Face-to-Face Social Learning and the videoRehearser Media Platform” –Dr. Lauren Shure, Carlos Vasquez, and Octavia Yearwood Among the 17 posters presented by students andfaculty were three that were peer reviewed: “More Than Words” – Nicole Beltran “The Benefits of InterdisciplinaryCollaboration for Faculty and Nursing Students Participating in a Study AbroadProgram” – Dr. Mureen L. Shaw “Educational and Social Movement: APartnership with Gang Alternative in Serving Little Haiti Youth” – Wills Compere This year’s Community Engagement Symposium Committee was composed of the following members: Dr. Glenn Bowen, chair; Dr. Sheila McMahon, proposal review subcommittee chair; Courtney Berrien, general arrangements coordinator; Liz James, registration coordinator; Daniqua Williams, poster session coordinator; Amy Deutch; Dr. Sean Erwin; and Felix Vega Pagan.
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Public Recognition Given for Achievements in Community Engagement
Barry’s Fifth Annual Community Engagement Awards Ceremony was held on March 28.
At the event, public recognition was given to students, faculty members, community partners, and the School of Law for their community engagement participation, contributions, and achievements.
Nadinne Cruz, an award-winning experiential learning expert, was the guest speaker at the event.
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Barry student leader Jasmine McKee has been featured this month as a Newman Civic Fellow.
In the feature on its home page, Florida Campus Compact noted that McKee has been “deeply involved” in Barry University’s Campus Democracy Project, a nonpartisan initiative aimed at promoting civic learning and democratic engagement.
McKee is one of only 14 students from Florida colleges and universities selected for the one-year fellowship awarded by Campus Compact, a national organization, to community-committed college students.
The Campus Compact state affiliate also noted that McKee, as a Barry Service Corps Fellow, serves on a team of student leaders who support the work of Miami's PACT (People Acting for Community Together).
Florida Campus Compact is a network of college and university presidents and their institutions, who affirm the value of local partnerships and engagement pedagogies as contributors to a quality education that yields civic-minded, career-ready graduates.
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Community Engagement News
Posted On : April 30, 2018
