CCSI Newsletter

CCSI Newsletter

In This Issue:


Community Engagement Awards: Newman Nominee to be Selected

Presentation Proposals Being Accepted for Symposium

Faculty Invited to Apply for Service-Learning Fellowships

Community Engagement Fair Scheduled for January 21

Barry to Co-host Florida Campus Compact Regional Meeting

Nursing Students Bring Joy to the Lives of Seniors

Deliberative Dialogue Focuses on Human Trafficking


Community Engagement Awards: Newman Nominee to be Selected

 

One of the winners of the Community Impact Award will be selected as Barry University’s nominee for the Newman Civic Fellows Award presented by Campus Compact, the national organization of higher education leaders.

 

The Newman Civic Fellows Award honors college student leaders who have demonstrated—through service, research, and advocacy—an investment in finding solutions for challenges facing communities. According to Campus Compact, these students “represent the next generation of public problem solvers and civic leaders.”

The winners of the Community Impact Award will be students who have demonstrated exemplary community engagement – including service, research, and/or advocacy – that has a measurable impact on the community. The award will be presented on Thursday, March 26, on Barry’s main campus in Miami Shores.

 

Last year’s winners of the Community Impact Award were Hector Pizarro and Alejandro Tobon, undergraduate student leaders.

 

Information on the nomination process is available in CEMS—the Community Engagement Management System via the CCSI homepage—and directly from the CCSI.

 


Presentation Proposals Being Accepted for Symposium

 

The Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) is accepting proposals for presentations at Barry University’s second annual Community Engagement Symposium. Proposals may be submitted by faculty, staff, students, and community partners for concurrent presentations during two sessions of the symposium.

 

Relevant topics include service-learning, civic engagement, community-based research, community-focused fieldwork/internships, community-engaged scholarship, and community partnerships. Session formats are: 45-minute oral presentation, panel discussion, roundtable, and poster presentation.

 

The proposal submission deadline is Monday, January 12.

           

Additional information is available from the CCSI, service@barry.edu.

 


Faculty Invited to Apply for Service-Learning Fellowships

 

The Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) invites faculty members to apply for service-learning fellowships for next academic year. Two service-learning fellowships will be available.

 

Each service-learning faculty fellow gets a course release to serve as a workshop coordinator/instructor, faculty mentor, and engaged scholar. Fellows participate in a yearlong faculty development program focused on service-learning pedagogy, practice, and associated scholarship. 

 

For further information and to apply, contact CCSI Director Dr. Glenn Bowen, gbowen@barry.edu.

 

 

Community Engagement Fair Scheduled for January 21

 

The spring Community Engagement Fair will be held on January 21, 2015. More than 20 community partners are expected to participate.

 

Organized by the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI), the biannual fair brings community partners to Barry’s main campus for presentations and discussions with students, faculty, and staff.

 

This academic year, the fair features a special workshop related to Barry University’s Quality Enhancement Plan. Designed for community partners, the workshop will precede the usual showcase of community partners’ programs, services, and opportunities.

 

Faculty members are invited to bring their classes to meet community partners and discuss opportunities for service-learning, community-based research, and internships. This segment of the fair will take place in the Andreas Courtyard from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

 


Barry to Co-host Florida Campus Compact Regional Meeting

 

The next meeting of Florida Campus Compact member institutions in South Florida will be held on December 11 on Barry’s main campus in Miami Shores.St. Thomas University will join Barry as co-hosts of the regional meeting.

 

University President Sister Linda Bevilacqua, OP, PhD is expected to welcome representatives of South Florida colleges and universities that are members of the statewide organization.

 

High on the agenda is a presentation on Assessment of Community Engagement Programs and Projects.

 

 

Nursing Students Bring Joy to the Lives of Seniors

 

The staff at the Joseph Meyerhoff Senior Center has thanked Barry nursing students for their support.

 

The students have been participating in a “meaningful, mutually beneficial community partnership,” and they “add so much joy to the lives of our seniors,” said Donna Herzek, the Meyerhoff Senior Center’s adult daycare activities specialist.

 

“The individualized personal interactions between the program members and your students are priceless,” Herzek wrote in an email to Dr. Diann Carr, assistant professor of nursing. “Your community visits not only benefit our seniors, but engage the students' cognitive, affective, and participatory domains.”

 

The Joseph Meyerhoff Senior Center/Southeast Focal Point is located at 3081 Taft Street in Hollywood, Fla.

 

 

Deliberative Dialogue Focuses on Human Trafficking

 

Seventy students, staff, faculty, and community members convened recently on Barry’s main campus to discuss human trafficking. The discussion was part of the Deliberative Dialogue Series organized by the CCSI.

 

Leading the discussion was a panel composed of Roy Altman, deputy chief of the Special Prosecutions Office in the United States Attorney’s Office in Miami; Jorge Veitia, executive director of the Life of Freedom Center; Afiya Matthews, volunteer recruiter for the Guardian ad Litem Program in the 11th Judicial Circuit; Sambra H. Zaoui, a Barry alumna and instructor in the School of Social Work; and Emmanuella Carriere, a senior pre-law student. Steffano Montano, coordinator of service-learning for the Department of Theology and Philosophy, was the moderator.

 

The forum, which focused primarily on sex trafficking and the exploitation of women and children, drew attention to both international and local aspects of human trafficking. Participants mentioned the trauma experienced by victims and the challenges of preventing trafficking. Causes of human trafficking, such as consumer behavior and socioeconomic conditions in developing countries, were discussed as well.

 

Panelists shared their experiences working with trafficking victims, challenges in uncovering trafficking crimes, and diverse views on the causes and best methods of preventing human trafficking.

 

Department of Homeland Security Special Agent Victor Williams, who serves on the South Florida Human Trafficking Taskforce, participated in the forum. He emphasized the illegality of trafficking and the importance of not blaming trafficking victims.

 

Donté Roberts, a sport management major from Washington,D.C., appreciated the different perspectives and lively conversation at the Deliberative Dialogue forum.

 

“This is an important issue,” Roberts said. “I had no idea it was happening around me. It makes me want to do something to help.”  

 

Participants received information on volunteer opportunities at the Life of Freedom Center and Kristi House, two local organizations that provide community education about human trafficking and offer support to victims.

 

The National Human Trafficking Hotline, 1-800-373-7888, is open 24 hours a day.