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Barry Students Join 1,400 Citizens at PACT Assembly to Demand Justice
Barry students, faculty, and staff joined congregants of more than 40 local churches, synagogues, and mosques last month to demand justice in the areas of affordable housing, gun violence, and juvenile justice reform. They were among more than 1,400 participants at the PACT (People Acting for Community Together) Nehemiah Action Assembly at St. James Catholic Church in North Miami.
In the Barry group were mainly students enrolled in service-learning courses, social work students, and Barry Service Corps (BSC) fellows, many of whom have been working with PACT since September.
BSC Fellows Kevin Dalia, Victoria Montanaro, Jennifer Sanhou, John Sem Victor, and Felix Vega Pagan have worked weekly with PACT, engaging Barry students in the organization’s community organizing processes and by providing logistical support to PACT staff. The fellows and some service-learning students participated in PACT’s Justice Ministry meetings, which focused on researching best-practice approaches to community problems and meeting with local officials to gain their support of PACT initiatives.
As a participant in PACT’s Juvenile Justice Ministry, Dalia has also contributed to the organization’s political efforts. Since January, he has traveled three times to Tallahassee with PACT members to meet with Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami, and other state politicians as PACT lobbies to pass Senate Bill 196. Labeled Juvenile Civil Citation and Similar Diversion Programs, the bill requires the provision of alternatives to incarceration for juveniles who commit non-violent offences.
Dalia and the other Barry students supported the PACT assembly by preparing invitations to public officials, organizing registration materials, and helping to facilitate the check-in process at the venue.
At the assembly, local officials agreed to:
Officials in attendance included Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez; Miami-Dade County Commissioners Esteban Bovo, Barbara Jordan, and Xavier Suarez; City of Miami Police Chief Rodolfo Llanes; Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez; Miami Gardens City Manager Cameron Benson; Miami-Dade County Public Defender Carlos Martinez; and MDCPS board members, Dr. Martin Karp and Dr. Steve Gallon III.
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Copies of Constitution Being Distributed as Part of Campus Democracy Project
Throughout this semester, the Campus Democracy Project (CDP) is raising awareness about U.S. government structures and democratic processes by reaching out to elementary and middle schools in
Through a partnership with Constitution Project, Inc., a Florida-based non-profit, the CDP has organized Barry faculty, staff, and students to visit local schools, facilitate conversations about the U.S. Constitution, and provide pocket-sized versions of the document.
Jasmine McKee, who supports the work of the CDP through her Federal Work-Study Community Service position in the Barry Service Corps, recently delivered copies of the U.S. Constitution to Comstock
McKee has been tutoring at Lillie C. Evans, providing support to middle-school students studying U.S. government as part of social studies.
The initiative to distribute copies of the Constitution began when Constitution Project, Inc. founder Joseph
“I think the work that is being done through Constitution Project is vitally important,” Foreman said. “It is important to get the Constitution in the hands of the young people so they can know about their rights. It’s important for students to know how the government operates as we have these big debates over immigration, health care, and education reform. It’s important to know the basic separation of powers, and the checks and balances between the three branches of government, which we’re seeing play out before our eyes almost every day in this current administration.”
The CDP will continue to provide copies of the U.S. Constitution to Miami-area classrooms through the end of May.
Serving with Foreman on the CDP Committee are Courtney Berrien, CCSI associate director and CDP co-chair; Emma Anderson Beavers, College Democrats president; Dr. Roxanne Davies, associate vice president of mission and institutional effectiveness; Laura Gagliardi, Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida (ICUF) presidential fellow; Francesca Martin, Student Government Association president; Dr. Jalane Meloun, professor of administration; Fabio Naranjo, social work instructor; Dr. Sam Perkins, associate professor of education; Dr. Manuel Tejeda, professor of management and psychology; James Wathen, College Republicans president; and Judisha Williams, associate director of resident education.
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Computer Science Students Address the Digital Divide in Local Community
Dr. Ricardo Jimenez is passionate about addressing the digital divide and strives to increase computer and internet access for underserved community members.
He teaches the SL-designated CS 305: Computer Systems. Through this service-learning course, his students benefit from real-world application of theoretical concepts and in turn are able to partner with local community-based organizations within a social justice framework.
Last summer, Jimenez began planning with His House, a faith-based non-profit organization in
The project involved computer science students expanding the capacity of the computer lab used by His House youth. Together with their course instructor and a CCSI representative, the students had meetings with His House representatives. Jimenez followed up with a site visit to His House to assess the setup and needs of the organization’s computer lab before the fall term began.
Jimenez’s computer science students learned theoretical concepts of computer systems such as hardware, cabling, and networking in the early weeks of the fall 2016 semester. And, during the latter part of the semester, the students deployed and installed 9 refurbished machines to supplement the 8 in His House’s computer lab.
Barry’s Division of Information Technology (DoIT) donated the computer components, including CPUs, monitors, and mice.
As a result, His House’s computer lab capacity more than doubled – allowing more computer access for homework, research, and recreational use with future plans for further expansion of computer and internet access for the organization’s youth.
His House is a front-line provider of residential services for at-risk children in South Florida. The organization was established in 1998 and has been offering safe and caring homes to abandoned, abused, and neglected children in
Jimenez commented during the computer installation that the students “are going to remember this for years to come.” He added: “This is what the (Barry) mission is all about.”
The CS 305 students who participated in the computer deployment were Kellie-Sheleen Chapman, Ironelly Ozuna Hernandez, Zenobia Philippe, and Yanni Robaina.
– by Liz James
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Barry Students Support Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Return to Human Rights Tour
Members of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) and their allies recently went on what they called the Return to Human Rights Tour. Among those on the tour were two Barry student leaders.
Paris Razor and Quayneshia Smith joined thousands of CIW supporters on the longest protest action in the past 10 years of the CIW’s Campaign for Fair Food. Razor is a Steering Committee member of the Student/Farmworker Alliance (SFA); Smith is a former committee member. Both are Barry Service Corps fellows, and Smith has received state-level recognition for her exemplary support of CIW and SFA initiatives.
The Return to Human Rights Tour went to the heart of Wendy’s territory, in Columbus, Ohio, on March 26, and ended the following week with a massive vigil in Tampa, Florida. The13-day tour, from March 16 to 29, included stops in nearly a dozen cities, including Atlanta, Chicago, and Minneapolis.
The CIW and SFA have been promoting a nation-wide boycott of Wendy’s, the fast-food chain, and Publix, the supermarket chain. Both have refused to support the Fair Food Program.
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Applications for BSC Fellows Program Being Accepted Until May 1
The Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) is now accepting applications for the 2017–2018 Barry Service Corps Fellows cohort. The application deadline is May 1.
The BSC Fellows Program is a civic learning and leadership initiative of the CCSI. Designed to develop civic-mindedness in undergraduates, the program has four major components:
“Graduates of the BSC Fellows Program have gone on to become community organizers, professionals in non-profit organizations, Peace Corps volunteers, political campaigns organizers, and social entrepreneurs,” said CCSI Associate Director Courtney Berrien.
Candidates for the program must be in good academic standing with the University, graduate no earlier than May 2018, participate in a weeklong orientation (August 14–19), and attend meetings on Friday afternoons throughout the academic year.
The time commitment for this program is approximately 7 hours a week, Berrien said.
Interested students may pick up an application form in the CCSI offices – Adrian 208 – or contact Berrien at cberrien@barry.edu or 305-899-4017.
Faculty and staff are encouraged to contact the CCSI associate director with their recommendations of potential BSC Fellows.
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Texas Town was an Alternative Spring Break Destination
The United States-Mexico border town of McAllen, Texas, was one of the destinations for Alternative Spring Break. A seven-member group spent six days in the
Maryknoll Sisters hosted the group. A not-for-profit Catholic organization, Maryknoll Sisters is part of the four-member Maryknoll movement headquartered in the village of
The Barry group volunteered at the Catholic Charities’ Humanitarian
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Faculty Learning Community Meets Next Monday
The academic year’s final meeting of the Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship will be held next Monday (April 24). The CCSI will host the meeting from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. in Adrian 208.
Any faculty member may join the FLC and attend meetings and seminars throughout the academic year.
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Resources at QEP Website Include CCSI Fact Sheets
Resources made available at Barry’s QEP (Quality Enhancement Plan) website include four fact sheets produced by the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI).
The downloadable fact sheets cover experiential learning, service-learning, service-learning internship, and community-based research.
Barry’s QEP is titled “Fostering Personal and Social Responsibility through Experiential Learning.”
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Literature Available through Community Engagement Management System
Literature on a variety of community engagement topics is available through the Community Engagement Management System, or CEMS. Books and book chapters, journals and journal articles, manuals, and fact sheets are among the available literature.
The literature may be accessed directly from the Resources section of CEMS.
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CCSI Newsletter
Posted On : April 18, 2017
