LSU Receives National Recognition for Community Service

05/25/2011

BATON ROUGE – LSU has been recognized by the Corporation for National and Community Service, or CNCS, as a leader among institutions of higher education for their support of volunteering, service-learning and civic engagement.

LSU was admitted to the 2010 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for engaging its students, faculty and staff in meaningful service that achieves measurable results in the community.

“This award honors the outstanding work of our faculty, staff and students, while it also honors our commitment to not only serve our students, but our community and our state as well,” said LSU Chancellor Michael Martin.

A total of 641 colleges and universities were named to the Honor Roll for their impact on issues from literacy and neighborhood revitalization to supporting at-risk youth. LSU has received recognition on the Honor Roll annually since its inception in 2006, at which time it was one of six institutions recognized with the Honor Roll’s highest honor, the Presidential Award.

LSU was recognized for a variety of civic engagement initiatives, including service-learning classes, extracurricular activities, and student-led volunteer initiatives.
Through LSU service-learning classes, 3,500 students a year partner with community non-profits to provide service and implement projects such as public relations campaigns, graphic designs, special events and websites.

Numerous service-learning partnerships engage LSU students in K-12 tutoring and mentoring programs. LSU provides more than half of the tutors for Volunteers in Public Schools, an organization that places volunteers in public schools to work one-on-one with students struggling in math and reading. Chemistry, engineering and geology students perform science demonstrations in K-12 classrooms and biological engineering students design and build safe, accessible playgrounds with the public schools.

Volunteer LSU, the student-run, on-campus community service organization, involves students in service projects throughout the school year, beginning with the annual Community Bound on the first Saturday of the fall semester. The service event brings together incoming first year students, transfer students, faculty and staff for a school clean-up day at local K-12 schools.

Several other annual activities also bring LSU together in service, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, during which LSU affiliates refurbish area homes, and Spring Greening Day, where students landscape areas of campus using environmentally sustainable practices.

Student and Greek organizations are a strong component of LSU’s commitment to community. These extracurricular organizations host numerous charity fundraisers and participate in initiatives ranging from combating human trafficking to promoting recycling. In collaboration with the Shaquille O’Neal Champs Life Skills Program, LSU student athletes also contribute thousands of service hours benefitting local organizations each year. The collective effort of student-led initiatives directly impacts our community with respect to public education, poverty, sustainability and community re-building.

Honorees are chosen based on a series of selection factors, including the scope and innovation of service projects, the extent to which service-learning is embedded in the curriculum, the school’s commitment to long-term campus-community partnerships, and measurable community outcomes as a result of the service. The 2010 Honor Roll received applications from 851 institutions, a nine percent increase over last year.

CNCS oversees the Honor Roll in collaboration with the U.S. Departments of Education and Housing and Urban Development, Campus Compact, and the American Council on Education. For a full list of recipients and descriptions of their service, visitwww.NationalService.gov/HonorRoll.

 

Billy  Gomila 
LSU Media Relations
225-578-3867