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October 9, 2017 |
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Student Leaders Promoting Social Justice Initiatives in Local Community Barry Volunteers Contribute to Hurricane Clean-Up Women’s Basketball Team Prepares Meals for Needy Children Dozens of Volunteers Expected to Turn Out for Day of Service Proposals for Community-Based Research Incentives Being Accepted Faculty Members Present at Community Engagement Conference Faculty Learning Community to Meet Next Wednesday Alternative Breaks Information Session Scheduled for October 16
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Student Leaders Promoting Social Justice Initiatives in Local Community
Student leaders in the Barry Service Corps are promoting social justice initiatives involving 10 community partners this academic year. The initiatives cover civic health, equitable communities, and global citizenship.
The Barry Service Corps fellows are also offering opportunities for other students, as well as faculty and staff members, to support this year’s efforts through direct and indirect service.
In preparation for their assignments as social justice team members and project facilitators, the 19 undergraduates participated in a four-day civic learning and leadership orientation recently.
The civic health team has embarked on efforts to assist PACT (People Acting for Community Together) with organizing Miami-Dade residents to advocate policy changes pertaining to gun violence and affordable housing. The team will also support Barry’s Campus Democracy Project in registering and educating prospective voters about the electoral processes at the federal, state, and local levels.
Team members for civic health are Alberto Liriano, Jasmine McKee, Dellayah Pleasure, Shayna Ramirez, Antonio Rodriguez, and Felix Vega-Pagan.
The global citizenship team will concentrate on consumer behavior and the related issue of globalization, as well as immigration and refugee concerns. Team members Alexis Alexander, Taila Garrett, Presler Maxius, Althea Hylton, Paris Razor, Paola
The team seeking to promote the building of equitable communities will lend their support to youth development programs, environmental health initiatives, neighborhood beautification projects, and programs that aim to dismantle systemic racism. Through a partnership with Urban GreenWorks, team members Jenifer Acosta, Gabriel Bouani, Paola Lopez-Hernandez, Dominique McMillan, Pa Sheikh Ngom, and Rajon Wright will also promote Barry FairShare, a community-supported agriculture initiative that provides affordable access to fresh fruits and vegetables for area residents.
The Center for Community Service Initiatives coordinates the BSC Fellows Program. It is a subprogram of the Barry Service Corps composed mainly of students currently registered for federal work-study community service.
Throughout the academic year, the student leaders will also assist the CCSI with recruiting students for various community engagement activities and facilitating service trips. In addition, each fellow will design and implement a project that addresses a local community need.
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Barry Volunteers Contribute to Hurricane Clean-Up
More than 60 students, faculty, and staff members pitched in to clean up the facilities at Historic Virginia Key Beach Park on September 23. They helped to restore the park to its pre-storm state.
Hurricane Irma’s storm surge had covered the beach area, playground, dance pavilion, and part of the parking lot.
The Barry volunteers raked tree leaves and seaweed and picked up debris that filled more than 50 large garbage bags.
Among the participants were students enrolled in ORI 100, the orientation course in the Division of Student Affairs; the Men’s Baseball Team; and members of the Barry Service Corps. Park staff; Center for Community Service Initiatives staff; and Dr. Jorge Lopez, assistant professor and program director for clinical biology, also lent a hand.
According to the park’s website, during the era of segregation, when residents of African descent were not permitted to use the county’s beaches,
Historic Virginia Key Beach Park Executive Director Guy Forchion said only about one-third of the park’s funding comes from the City of
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Women’s Basketball Team Prepares Meals for Needy Children
Barry University women’s basketball team recently packed meals for needy children as part of a project organized by a nonprofit organization. All 16 team members participated. The Barry team members were among more than 100 volunteers who helped Feed My Starving Children hand-pack meals to be sent to the organization’s food partners in some 70 countries. They assisted in assembling enough meals to feed 3,100 people.
“It was rewarding to see our student-athletes enthusiastically working together to advance
Founded in 1987, Feed My Starving Children is a Christian nonprofit organization that provides nutritionally complete meals formulated specifically for malnourished children. Its mission is simply “Feeding God’s starving children in body and spirit.”
Senior guard Lexy Schoonover said: “Getting the chance to do community service for Feed My Starving Children was a great experience and very humbling. It reminds you of how much you have, and how great it feels to give to others, especially children.”
“Volunteering for Feed My Starving Children was such an eye-opening experience but very rewarding,” said freshman forward Charlotte Armstrong. “It felt good to know that we were all there together making a difference. Everyone was very involved and I really enjoyed taking the time to do the work we did.”
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Dozens of Volunteers Expected to Turn Out for Day of Service
An estimated 100 Barry volunteers – students, faculty, and staff members – are expected to participate in community service projects for Make a Difference Day, October 28.
“The service projects will address issues of poverty, homelessness, and food access in
Community partners for this year’s Make a Difference Day are Miami Bridge Youth and Family Services; Little Haiti Optimist Club; American International Relief, Inc.; and Urban GreenWorks.
Make a Difference Day is observed on the fourth Saturday of October – the 28th this year. USA Weekend magazine created the event in 1992 as “a celebration of neighbors helping neighbors.”
According to Points of Light, a sponsor, it is “a day to celebrate the power of people to make a difference.”
To register for Make a Difference Day, visitwww.barry.edu/service and log into CEMS – the Community Engagement Management System.
For further information, contact the CCSI at service@barry.edu or 305-899-3696.
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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.
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Faculty Members Present at Community Engagement Conference
Four faculty members from Barry presented a session at the 18th Annual Conference of the Engagement Scholarship Consortium in
Drs. Glenn A. Bowen, Laura Finley, Pamela Hall, and Celeste Landeros (formerly Fraser Delgado) led a roundtable session during which they shared perspectives on community-engaged scholarship generated by a faculty learning community. All are members of Barry’s Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship.
Earlier during the two-day (September 26 and 27) conference, Finley made a presentation titled “Engagement in Domestic and Dating Violence Awareness: Assessment of Student Perceptions of Service-Learning Activities.”
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Faculty Learning Community to Meet Next Wednesday
The Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship will meet next Wednesday, October 18, from 2:00 to 3:30 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.
For further information, contact
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Alternative Breaks Information Session Scheduled for October 16
Alternative Breaks executive board members will host an information session for students interested in Alternative Spring Break 2018. The information session will be held this Thursday, October 12, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m., in the Events Room of the R. Kirk Landon Student Union.
ASB 2018 is expected to consist of trips to
“Students who participate in the program in
As part of the
“The Immokalee program will immerse students in a community that is embedded in the
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.
During the information session, students who have participated in previous ASB trips will provide information about fundraising opportunities and what to expect as they prepare for Spring Break.
Both undergraduates and graduate students are encouraged to attend the information session.
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Community Engagement News
Posted On : October 09, 2017
