IU East named to 2014 President’s Honor Roll
Indiana University East has been named to the 2014 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll by the Corporation for National and Community Service.
This designation is the highest honor a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning, and civic engagement. The Honor Roll list is available online.
IU East has previously been named to the honor roll, most recently in 2013.
Chancellor Kathryn Cruz-Uribe said IU East is dedicated to serving the communities in the region.
“We are honored to receive this recognition acknowledging the service our students, faculty and staff provide to this region. IU East is deeply committed to the communities within east central Indiana and west central Ohio and is proud to participate in programs and initiatives that continue to help move us forward,” Cruz-Uribe said.
The Center for Service-Learning provides assistance for connecting community organizations with interested faculty and students. The Center for Service-Learning is housed in the Campus Library.
IU East was recognized for its community outreach through programs in nursing, literacy, and entrepreneurship. IU East completed the programs with community partners including Communities in School, Boys and Girls Club, public libraries, Girls Inc., Habitat for Humanity, YWCA, Amigos, Cope Environmental Center, and Reid Hospital & Health Care Services.
Frances Yates, director of the Campus Library and liaison for service-learning, said, “IU East faculty and staff continue to increase and enhance service engagement opportunities for our students. One in five students at IU East were involved in service-learning in fall 2014.”
Potential partners can find out more at iue.edu/servicelearning/ or contact the CSL at iueastsl@iue.edu.
During the 2012-2013 academic year, IU East’s service engagement increased by 30 percent due to expanded outreach to 40 local organizations in five counties, an increased number of programs and events, and a larger number of students with service-learning requirements or options in courses across disciplines.
Highlights of some of the community service partnerships IU East students are involved in:
- The School of Nursing contributed significantly toward healthy living by community members. Service is built into nine courses. With 90 students in three cohorts, there are 270 nursing students engaged in service each semester, impacting more than 3,000 individuals.
- More than 40 students participated in service projects through the campus entrepreneurship club and courses. These students dedicated over 1,200 hours to provide educational experiences for youth and adults that resulted in new product and business development in the region. As a result of these projects, thousands of community members developed their creativity, accomplished individual and team goals, and gained knowledge they can use in the future.
- The Spanish language and culture academic program at IU East instituted a service-learning requirement for all students, ranging from 5-20 hours of service per course. A cornerstone of the service is a large Hispanic Heritage Month celebration. There were 280 individuals that attended the Hispanicampus Festival and the Virtual Galleries, 35 students wrote Hispanic-content articles for the local newspaper, 33 students and community members gathered for a Cine foreign film fest, and 355 elementary students at three schools enjoyed the Huevos verdes y jamón bilingual story telling by IU East students. IU East Spanish students completed a total of 550 hours of service during the academic year and served as ambassadors of Hispanic culture.
About the President’s Honor Roll
The President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll is an initiative of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). The President’s Honor Roll is the highest federal recognition an institution of higher education can receive for its community service work. CNCS is a federal agency that engages more than 5 million Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund, and the Volunteer Generation Fund, and leads the President’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve.