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February 26, 2018 | ||
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Barry Groups to Spend Spring Break in Northwest Haiti and at U.S.–Mexico Border Wills “Doc” Compere is a Role Model for Youth in the Community Experiential Learning Veteran to Speak at Engagement Awards National Conference Program Includes Barry Workshop Presentations Faculty, Staff, and Students Reminded to Support Barry FairShare Fine Arts Service-Learning Exhibit Continues in Student Gallery Literature Available in Community Engagement Management System Opportunity for Students to Live, Learn, Intern, and Serve in D.C. Public Service Fellowships Available in Williamsburg, Virginia
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Barry Groups to Spend Spring Break in Northwest Haiti and at U.S.–Mexico Border
Two groups from Barry University will spend spring break (March 4–10) engaging with communities. One group will be in the northwestern region of Haiti; the other will be in a Texas town near the United States–Mexico border. An eight-member group of faculty, staff, and students will visit schools, clinics, and social entrepreneurship project sites in the northwest region of Haiti. They will also partner with church administrators to provide professional development support to the supervisors of teachers in the region’s public and private schools.
Dr. Sean Buckreis, an assistant professor of education, and Courtney Berrien, associate director of the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI), will facilitate the educational activities with support from the Barry students.
Buckreis and Berrien were part of a Barry faculty/staff team who traveled to Haiti earlier this month to continue developing Barry’s education and nursing partnerships in the northwest region.
“The Alternative Spring Break trip will further the university’s partnership with the Diocese of Port-de-Paix,” Berrien said.
Presler Maxius and Marly Jean-Jacques will help with translation during the trip. Both undergraduates are of Haitian decent and are fluent in Haitian Creole.
Jean-Jacques and Brittany Okoh, students in Barry’s Baptist Health Scholars undergraduate nursing program, will put their nursing skills to use while visiting area clinics and assisting with a mobile clinic in the rural town of Jean-Rabel.
Although the community experiences will focus mainly on education and health care, Berrien said, the Barry team will also meet with two local cooperatives: a women’s artisan group and a coffee and chocolate collective.
This academic year, Berrien said, Barry students have been selling the fair-trade goods at campus events as a way to support the social entrepreneurship projects in Haiti.
The group going to Texas will be based in McAllen, where they will meet with community members to learn about their experiences living in a border town.
The 10-memnber group will include Dr. Victor Romano, associate vice provost for student success and undergraduate studies.
The purpose of Barry’s Alternative Breaks is to educate students about social, political, and environmental issues through direct service and group reflections in underserved communities outside South Florida.
The destinations for last year’s Alternative Spring Break trips were the same communities.
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Wills “Doc” Compere is a Role Model for Youth in the Community
Growing up is hard enough without the added difficulty of handicaps or disabilities. However, for Wills “Doc” Compere, who did not find out he was autistic till the age of 12, there is no excuse for not doing your best or trying your hardest.
“It didn’t bother me at all,” he said, recounting his experience growing up with autism.
He was nicknamed “Doc” because as a kid growing up, he wanted to become a doctor. However, he ultimately switched his focus to becoming a physician assistant.
A senior majoring in sociology with a minor in biology, Compere plans to go to massage therapy school in the fall before heading off to physician assistant school.
Compere is a Barry Service Corps member who uses his talent to be a role model and guide for youth in the community.
He serves with Gang Alternative, a Miami-based not-for-profit organization whose mission is to keep at-risk youth from being lured into juvenile delinquency and gang violence. A math and science tutor since 2015, he also mentors middle- and high-school students at a Gang Alternative community site.
“Since I’ve been there (at Gang Alternative),” Compere says, “multiple kids that I know have gotten accepted to colleges.”
You should see Doc in action. He really knows how to provide attention to the youth he serves. He would drift from table to table, giving each girl and boy the benefit of his time and talent.
“God gives … people talents, and my talent is working with youth,” he says.
As a Barry Service Corps member, he benefits from the Federal Work-Study Community Service Program and receives a stipend. Although what he does is technically a job, he certainly does not do it for the money.
Program Coordinator Valerie Scott confirmed that Compere does some of the work on his own time – which means he does it without pay.
“He goes to Gang Alternative because of his dedication,” Scott said. “He just loves the idea of community service. He enjoys seeing these students do better in school because he was able to motivate and guide them.”
Wills “Doc” Compere has also served the community through Barry’s Alternative Breaks, a program managed by the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI). He participated in Alternative Spring Break (ASB) 2016 in New Orleans and ASB 2017 in Texas.
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Experiential Learning Veteran to Speak at Engagement Awards
Nadinne Cruz, former director of the
Cruz is a long-time advocate, administrator, and veteran practitioner of service-learning in higher education. At Stanford, Cruz taught service-learning courses in the urban studies program.
Over the years, Cruz has been the recipient of several awards. They include awards from the National Society for Experiential Education, the National Youth Leadership Council, California Campus Compact, and the
Cruz’s work and achievements have been recognized also with honorary doctorates from
The Fifth Annual Community Engagement Awards will be held on March 28, from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m., on Barry’s main campus. Cruz will deliver a short address before the presentation of awards.
Community partners, students, faculty, staff, and a department of the university will be publicly recognized for their community engagement participation, contributions, and achievements.
Seats for the event may be reserved by emailing Marie Colom, CCSI administrative assistant, at mcolom@barry.edu.
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National Conference Program Includes Barry Workshop Presentations
Two workshop presentations by Barry University representatives are listed in the program for a national conference on civic engagement next month.
Dr. Glenn Bowen, executive director of the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) and director of the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), will conduct a workshop titled “Building Leadership Skills for Civic Engagement by College Students” at the IMPACT National Conference in Daniqua Williams, QEP project assistant, and Marie Colom, CCSI administrative assistant, will be co-presenters of a workshop on “Social Media and Advocacy: The Magnitude of Its Impact.” Williams, a master’s in counseling student at Barry, earned her B.A. in psychology at the
Colom graduated with a B.S. in biological sciences from
The IMPACT Conference is “historically the largest national gathering of student leaders, administrators, faculty, and nonprofit staff committed to engaging college students in service, activism, politics, advocacy, and other socially responsible work.” Its themes are related to service, action, and advocacy. The University of Dayton will host the IMPACT National Conference on March 1–4.
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Faculty, Staff, and Students Reminded to Support Barry FairShare
Faculty, staff, and students are reminded to purchase produce, eggs, and honey in support of Barry FairShare.
The Center for Community Service Initiatives has developed the project in partnership with Urban GreenWorks, a Miami-based environmental and food-access organization.
Barry FairShare purchases provide revenue directly to South Florida farmers, encourage healthy eating among young people, and support efforts to eradicate food deserts in low-income neighborhoods of Miami-Dade County, including Liberty City and Little Haiti.
Harvested from sustainable small farms, all produce is non-certified organic.
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Fine Arts Service-Learning Exhibit Continues in Student Gallery
The Department of Fine Arts in the College of Arts and Sciences is hosting a Service-Learning Exhibit in the Student Gallery. Opened on February 16, the exhibit will be up through April 20
Organized by Nicole Beltran, associate professor of graphic design, the exhibit features students’ graphic art projects completed for three community partners.
On display are posters created by poster design (ART 333) students for Kids In Distress and infographics by poster design as well as visual communications (ART 325) students for Pelican Harbor Seabird Station. In addition, the exhibit includes the work of typography (ART 335) students supporting Gang Alternative.
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Literature Available in Community Engagement Management System
A variety of community engagement literature is available through the Community Engagement Management System, or CEMS. Among the literature are books and book chapters, journals and journal articles, manuals, and fact sheets.
The literature may be accessed directly from the “Resources” section of CEMS.
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Opportunity for Students to Live, Learn, Intern, and Serve in D.C.
The March 13 final application deadline for the Summer 2018 Institute on Philanthropy & Voluntary Service in Washington, D.C., is fast approaching.
Focused on community leadership and service, this comprehensive program includes academic credit, an internship placement, and fully furnished housing in the heart of Washington, D.C.
From June 2 through July 27 this year, students may work as interns with social entrepreneurs to develop community programs; contribute to operations in a community-based urban food system; and lead enrichment activities for at-risk youth to propel future successes. An intern may also support victims of domestic violence as they rebuild safe and stable lives; raise awareness and money to combat diseases that affect millions; research nonprofit policy and report on agency program; provide hands-on training to jobseekers facing barriers to employment; or reclaim and revitalize urban green spaces for the local community.
DC Internships, the institute organizer, welcomes students of all majors, freshmen through graduated seniors, and offer scholarship funding for strong applicants.
Sponsored by The Fund for American Studies, the Institute on Philanthropy & Voluntary Service is an academic internship program for undergraduates active in service and leadership on their campuses and in their communities.
More information on programs offered by DC Internships may be found at www.DCinternships.org/IPVS. Questions may be directed to Kayla Anderson at kanderson@tfas.org or 202-986-0384.
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Public Service Fellowships Available in Williamsburg, Virginia
The William & Mary Office of Community Engagement is accepting applications for public service fellowships for 2018–2019. Four fellowships are available.
Successful applicants will serve as the fellow for alternative breaks, fellow for local engagement, fellow for education programs, and housing fellow.
Three positions are based in the William & Mary Office of Community Engagement and focus on engaging students in the work of active citizenship through student advising and program oversight. The community-based housing fellowship is aimed at increasing the capacity of a local nonprofit organization, Housing Partnerships, Inc.
Recent college graduates have the opportunity to serve for nine months – from August 6, 2018 through May 3, 2019 – in
Additional information is available on the fellowship webpage <https://www.wm.edu/offices/oce/commengagement-fellows/apply-for-the-fellowship/index.php>.
The review of applications will begin on March 1. |
Community Engagement News
Posted On : February 26, 2018
