Community Engagement News

October 16, 2017

In This Issue:

Symposium to Feature Posters Highlighting Social Responsibility Outcomes

Deliberative Dialogue to Focus on Homelessness Prevention

CCSI Calls for Applications for Service-Learning Fellowships

Proposals for Community-Based Research Incentives Being Accepted

Faculty Learning Community Meets This Wednesday Afternoon

Service-Learning Books Available in Community Engagement Library

Student Leaders Preparing for Alternative Spring Break

Leadership Conference Panels Discusses Community-Focused Careers

Symposium to Feature Posters Highlighting Social Responsibility Outcomes

One of the features of this academic year’s Community Engagement Symposium is a two-hour session featuring student posters that highlight the social responsibility outcomes of Barry’s Quality Enhancement Plan, or QEP. Outcomes of both curricular and co-curricular activities will be included.

Barry’s QEP is titled “Fostering Personal and Social Responsibility through Experiential Learning.” Key elements of social responsibility are identified as follows: “Becoming aware of the importance of contributing to the greater good; gaining civic knowledge and skills; and taking action with others to address issues affecting local, national, and/or global communities.”

Forms of experiential learning include service-learning, community-based research, fieldwork, study abroad, capstones, and internships.

Set for March 28, the Fifth Annual Community Engagement Symposium is being organized around the theme, “Demonstrating Social Responsibility through Experiential Learning.” The poster session is scheduled for 1:45–3:45 p.m.

Faculty, staff, and community partners will join students in making presentations during a concurrent session of the symposium. As in previous years, the symposium program will feature a seminar and a workshop by a nationally recognized community engagement scholar-practitioner.

For additional information on the poster session, contact QEP Project Assistant Daniqua Williams at qep@barry.edu.

Deliberative Dialogue to Focus on Homelessness Prevention

The focus of the first forum in this year’s Deliberative Dialogue Series will be the prevention of homelessness in the local community. Titled “Preventing Homelessness: Responding to the Challenge,” the forum will take place on November 9, from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m., in Room 112 of the Andreas Building.

According to the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, more than 1,000 people are living on the street and some 2,800 homeless people sleep in shelters.

“Homelessness is a public health concern that affects every community in the United States, and the consequences of homeless are many,” says CCSI Associate Director Courtney Berrien. “People who experience homelessness have difficulty navigating social structures and are vulnerable to exploitation, health problems, and marginalization.”

Berrien notes that the reasons for homelessness among individuals and families are diverse and complicated.

The Deliberative Dialogue forum will engage students, alumni, faculty and staff members, and community partners in exploring the effects of such factors as lack of affordable housing, unemployment, mental health diseases, substance abuse, traumatic experiences, and health crises. The participants will examine methods of preventing homelessness and will propose specific responses to this challenge.

The forum is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be provided. Additional information is available from Berrien at cberrien@barry.edu.

CCSI Calls for Applications for Service-Learning Fellowships

The Center for Community Service Initiatives has issued a call for applications for service-learning fellowships for the 2018–2019 academic year.

Service-learning fellows provide support for the coordination and promotion of service-learning across the university. They play a role in increasing the number and quality of service-learning courses and faculty who use the pedagogy effectively.

The responsibilities assigned to the faculty fellows range from professional development to support of university-wide community engagement programs coordinated by the CCSI. Fellows participate in monthly service-learning faculty development seminars and create or modify a course to include a service-learning component, with plans to teach the course either during the fellowship or within one year after the fellowship. They also participate actively in the Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship.

Two fellowships are available in the CCSI for full-time faculty members who teach either undergraduate or graduate courses. Fellowships are awarded through a competitive process. Each fellow is appointed for one academic year and receives a three-credit course reduction each semester (fall and spring).

The application deadline is January 15; however, faculty members interested in the program are asked to submit their applications as soon as possible. Additional information is available from CCSI Executive Director Dr. Glenn Bowen at gbowen@barry.edu.

Proposals for Community-Based Research Incentives Being Accepted

The Center for Community Service Initiatives is accepting proposals for community-based research incentives.

CBR incentives are awarded through a competitive process to full-time faculty members who teach undergraduate and/or graduate courses. Up to three CBR awards are available each year. Applicants may request $500–$1,000.

CBR proposals may be submitted at any time this semester.

A document with a detailed description of the Community-Based Research Incentive Program, the application form, and the rubric used by the Review Committee for assessing applications are available in CEMS – the Community Engagement Management System.

Faculty Learning Community Meets This Wednesday Afternoon

The Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship will meet this Wednesday, October 18, from 2:00 to 3:15 p.m. The CCSI will host the meeting in Room 208, Adrian Hall.

All members and prospective members are urged to attend the meeting.

The FLC is a cross-disciplinary group of faculty members who participate in a collaborative program focused on community-engaged scholarship. The FLC provides an intellectual venue in which faculty members exchange ideas with an academically diverse group and learn from one another’s experiences.

Service-Learning Books Available in Community Engagement Library

A collection of books on service-learning is available in the Community Engagement Library managed by the CCSI. Authors of those books include Robert Bringle, Susan Cipolle, Janet Eyler and Dwight Giles, Barbara Jacoby, and Edward Zlotkowski.

In addition, a series of 15 monographs on Service-Learning in the Disciplines is available in the library. Each monograph is focused on why and how service-learning can be implemented within a particular discipline.

All service-learning books, including the monographs, may be checked out for brief periods.

For further information, contact CCSI Administrative Assistant Marie Colom at mcolom@barry.edu or at extension 3696.

Student Leaders Preparing for Alternative Spring Break

Student leaders who serve as Alternative Breaks executive board members are getting ready for spring break trips. They hosted an information session last Thursday and are now promoting trips to Port-de-Paix,Haiti; McAllen,Texas; and Immokalee, Florida.

Students who take the trip to Haiti will visit schools and clinics and learn from local leaders involved in social entrepreneurship projects. The students also will interact with pre-service nurses and teachers.

During the trip to Texas, students will visit the U.S./Mexico border, meet recently arrived immigrants and migrant workers, and do volunteer work at a local respite center. After learning from local leaders about the realities of living in a border town, the ASB group will explore advocacy for immigration reform.

In Immokalee, students are expected to become immersed in a community that is embedded in the U.S. industrial agricultural system. They will learn about related social issues such as education for the children of migrant workers, violation of worker rights, cases of modern-day slavery, and the lack of affordable housing.

Barry’s Alternative Breaks generally provides students with community-based immersion experiences designed to build awareness of social, political, and environmental issues through instruction, reflection, and service that benefits diverse populations.

Leadership Conference Panel Discusses Community-Focused Careers

Barry University alumni representing three community partners were among the panelists participating in Barry’s Ethical Leadership Conference recently. They discussed community-focused careers and lifelong commitment to community engagement.

Ezra Dieuveille, a program coordinator, represented Gang Alternative. Dieuveille earned his master’s in public administration at Barry.

Kenneth Garret, an associate site director, was Breakthrough Miami’s representative. Donté Roberts, a program coordinator, represented Prosperity Social Community Development Group. Both Garret and Roberts studied sport management at Barry.

The Social Justice Leadership Panel Discussion was the culminating session of the Ethical Leadership Conference.

The other panelists were Naif Alkhathran and Paola Montenegro, seniors studying political science. Both are fellows in the Barry Service Corps and were winners of the university’s 2017 Community Impact Award.

The Ethical Leadership Conference is an annual event mainly for undergraduates. This year’s conference featured breakout sessions; a leadership resource fair; and a keynote address by Vernon Wall, director of business development for LeaderShape, a nonprofit organization that aims to help college students become professionals who “lead with integrity.”

Barry University’s Office of Mission Engagement coordinates the Ethical Leadership Conference.