Saint Joseph College Honored for Community Service - Named to President’s Honor Roll
The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and the U.S. Department of Education recently honored the nation’s leading colleges and universities, students, faculty members, and staff for their commitment to bettering their communities through community service and service learning.
Saint Joseph College was admitted to the
President's 2012 Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll
for its commitment to service in a variety of areas. For the past six years, the University has been operating the Wellness Center, a partnership with the Franciscan Center for Urban Ministry, an outreach program of St. Patrick - St. Anthony Church in downtown Hartford. Through this partnership, students, faculty and staff work with a variety of outreach programs serving the poor and those in need. During the weekly Sandwich Ministry, SJC students serve food; nursing students provide health screenings (blood pressure checks and/or sugar testing); nutrition students provide nutritional information; and other student volunteers sit and talk with the clients. From July, 2010 to June, 2011, Saint Joseph College students helped serve 966 people through the Wellness Center. All students involved with the Sandwich Ministry are able to see the Mercy Values - supported through the mission of Saint Joseph College - in action and gain valuable experience.
Saint Joseph College students also work with many other programs such as: an after school mentoring program for fifth grade students; a yearly Alternative Spring Break Trip to work on a Habitat for Humanity Build; numerous park clean ups; participation in a number of local soup kitchens as well as numerous fundraisers. In the academic year 2010 - 2011, a total of 1,178 Saint Joseph College students engaged in 6,212 hours of community service.
“Through service, these institutions are creating the next generation of leaders by challenging students to tackle tough issues and create positive impacts in the community,” said Robert Velasco, Acting CEO of CNCS. “We applaud the Honor Roll schools, their faculty and students for their commitment to make service a priority in and out of the classroom. Together, service and learning increase civic engagement while fostering social innovation among students, empowering them to solve challenges within their communities.”
“Preparing students to participate in our democracy and providing them with opportunities to take on local and global issues in their course work are as central to the mission of education as boosting college completion and closing the achievement gap,” said Eduardo Ochoa, the U.S. Department of Education’s assistant secretary for postsecondary education. “The Honor Roll schools should be proud of their work to elevate the role of service-learning on their campuses. Galvanizing their students to become involved in projects that address pressing concerns and enrich their academic experience has a lasting impact – both in the communities in which they work and on their own sense of purpose as citizens of the world. I hope we’ll see more and more colleges and universities following their lead.”
The President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll recognizes higher education institutions that reflect the values of exemplary community service and achieve meaningful outcomes in their communities. The initiative celebrates the transformative power and volunteer spirit that exists within the higher education community.
The Corporation for National and Community Service, which has administered the Honor Roll since 2006, admitted a total of 642 colleges and universities for their impact on issues from literacy and neighborhood revitalization to supporting at-risk youth. For a full list of recipients, visit www.NationalService.gov/HonorRoll.
