Her other experiences include completing two AmeriCorps programs while working on various other projects from building houses to coordinating community gardens. Johnson says her experiences with AmeriCorps provided her the opportunity to develop interest in working at an academic level. Her interests also include social issues like anti-poverty programs, hunger and disenfranchisement. She received her B.S. in sociology from Boise State and received her masters of public administration and nonprofit management from the University of Colorado.

“I’m looking forward to working closely with students and with the wonderful staff here at the Center.  The Center has a very important role at Virginia Tech. I am honored to take on the responsibility and excited to reach more students and do great things for this community,” Johnson says. She will focus on programs within the center such as VT-ENGAGE and events related to the Seasons of Service Initiative. Started in 2010, the initiative is designed to help students, faculty and staff incorporate service into their lives all year long.

“I know there are students, faculty and staff on the Virginia Tech campus who are passionate about service, have great ideas, and just need some support to make those ideas a reality.  I’m looking forward to providing that support.  I also hope to help in developing additional Remembrance Programs and maintaining those that are already established.”

Johnson says she is looking forward to becoming more involved in the community and at Virginia Tech and sees Blacksburg as a very tight-knit and welcoming community. She lives in Blacksburg with her husband, Derick, and Manx cat, Finley.

Article From:

Outreach and International Affairs

http://www.outreach.vt.edu/Story.aspx?StoryID=202

Virginia Tech students are working with 20 local daycare managers to map out a work plan with the cosmetic needs of each daycare. The students are afforded a $100 budget by the Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships with help from a grant from the North Carolina Campus Compact and the Corporation for National Community Service.
Starting in November, Virginia Tech students signed up to recruit teams of 10 friends and peers to join them on the day of the event.  On that day, teams will work from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at their project sites to help with cleaning, painting, and minor repairs.

The festivities start on Jan. 21 at 5 p.m. with a private dinner to provide a place for reflection on Martin Luther King’s legacy of service for the student leaders. The dinner will be held at the Blacksburg Community Center. The keynote speaker will be Wayne Muhammad, business manager of the Christiansburg Institute.

At 10 a.m. Jan. 22, student leaders and their teams will gather in Litton-Reaves and then head to their project sites.

“It’s amazing, as with any group, to see how much work a group of committed students can do. It’s amazing how much those small cosmetic changes can communicate care,” says Jake Grohs, assistant director of the Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships.
Participating daycares include Rainbow Riders Childcare, Bright Beginnings Childcare, Blacksburg Daycare Center, Children’s Nest Child Care, Valley Interfaith Child Care, Kids Heaven Child Care, Blacksburg United Methodist Church Preschool, Kids and Co. Child Development Center, Tender Lovin’ Care Child Center, Radford Child Care Center, Eckman YMCA Child Care Center, Busy B’s Daycare Center, R.O.C.K. Club, Dublin United Methodist Learning Center, Milestones Child Care, Blacksburg Head Start, Christiansburg Head Start, Pulaski Head Start, and Radford Head Start.

Through Jan. 31, Martin Luther King Jr. poster contest winning posters will be on display in downtown Blacksburg locations.

Jan. 22 at 10 a.m., the Martin Luther King Jr. Daycare Facelift Project will take place. Project leaders and teams will meet at Litton-Reaves Hall then head to the project sites. Registration is required. For more information or to register contact the Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships at (540) 231-0485.

Jan. 22 at 6:30 p.m., there will be a Community Meal at Fieldstone United Methodist Church in Christiansburg. For more information or to register contact the Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships at (540) 231-0691.

The celebration is supported by several campus and community organizations including Virginia Tech’s Office of the President, Office of the Provost, Pamplin College of Business, Vice President of Administrative Services, Vice President and Dean for Graduate Education, Vice President of Finance, Dean of Students, Vice President for Research, Vice President for Student Affairs, The Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships, Vice President for Undergraduate Education, Vice President for Development and University Relations, Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion, Women in Leadership and Philanthropy Lecture Fund, Multicultural Programs and Services, the Montgomery County-Radford City-Floyd County Chapter of the NAACP, Black Student Alliance, Black Organizations Council, Alpha Phi Alpha Inc., and The Center of Dance Academy.

Article from:

Outreach and International Affairs

http://www.outreach.vt.edu/Story.aspx?StoryID=202

For those of you in need of volunteers, no worries; you can post your event in only a few minutes.

Check it out!

http://tinyurl.com/386394c

One morning, while drinking coffee and beginning my day’s e-mail, I listened to an NPR segment on the upcoming midterm election. Several young people of voting age were interviewed.

They were disappointed so little had changed since the 2008 election, which brought President Barack Obama and a majority of members from the Democratic party to Washington.

They then said because of their disappointment, they were no longer “into politics” and will not be voting in this upcoming election.

The position that little has changed, while arguable, is understandable. Making changes or changing course in a country as large as the United States is not easy.

And, given the number of winds and gales that have been blowing (or were blowing even prior to the last election), I find it amazing we’ve had change at all.

But rather than argue as we have (I’ll refer readers to a recent interview in Rolling Stone with Obama, in which he says he has accomplished 70 percent of his promises), I want to comment on these young voters’ decision to refrain from voting and link it to our university’s motto of “Ut Prosim.” My hopes are, at least, to generate a discussion around this issue and make potential consequences clear.

Voting is probably the single most significant act of citizenship. By voting, you choose to participate in our democratic process. You fulfill your obligation to share your thoughts and your voice. I can already hear the other side, so I’ll be clear and acknowledge that yes, not voting is an act too.

Make no mistake; by choosing to abstain, even though you are “acting,” you are not participating. You are silencing your voice, and the impact has no upside.

I have four children and a stepson. All of my children are college age or just a bit older; my stepson is 17. I know they have strong opinions, and I know I don’t agree with all of them.

Yet, when we talk, I listen carefully to what they say and weigh it, realizing their comments and perspectives are important and valuable. Occasionally I change my position based on what I hear or learn during our conversations.

If they remained silent because I didn’t change my position every time, I’d learn little and nothing would change.

By not voting, the odds are more in favor of things not changing or, perhaps, of things returning to what was the status quo.

Those who have money or influence find it easier to rally people who will support their positions and “take back” what they lost.

They take the helm and guide our ship to whatever shores promise the biggest returns. A select few truly benefit.

But will you? Your parents? Your friends and neighbors? Hard to imagine a “yes” answer given high unemployment rates and stagnant wages.

In his book on servant leadership, Robert Greenleaf explains, “If a better society is to be built, one that is more just and more loving, … then the most open course is to raise both the capacity to serve and the very performance as servant of existing major institutions by new regenerative forces operating within them.”

We are the “regenerative forces” Greenleaf describes, and we can counter a powerful negative force in our culture, one that actually smiles or applauds when you step aside and do not speak (or vote).

Whether or not you agree with me, I sense you believe Virginia Tech’s motto is not just about “service” in some menial or diminished way. Rather it about service that helps create a better society.

Our education relies upon inquiry and deliberative discourse — to put it simply, it relies on thinking, reflecting and sharing ideas with one another.

Such an education, as Martha Nussbaum says, “equips a citizen for genuine choice of a way of life … and the ability to contrast alternatives.” Such a society asks each member to be a citizen of the world.

It “recognizes in people what is especially fundamental about them, most worthy of reverence and acknowledgement, namely their aspirations to justice and goodness and their capacities for reasoning.”

And how better to demonstrate your capacities for reasoning and your ability to contrast alternatives than take a position and vote?

For more information, see the Grant Announcement.

Students will need to fill out the application survey by October 30th to be eligible for grant funding this cycle.

See the story of Emily Barry, a Social Entrepreneur who built a program by starting with this grant!

Left: Jessica, a previous grant winner

I went to El Porvenir to practice speaking Spanish and volunteer in 2008, but upon my return to campus, my volunteer experience turned into something bigger than just a one-time trip. I ended up creating a student-run, credit-bearing, university-funded experiential learning class that is working in partnership with community groups in El Porvenir to build capacity in Honduran social programs. The class has given numerous Virginia Tech students the opportunity to learn about international development related to their field of study and reinforce this learning through on-the-ground work with El Porvenir community partners.

You might be wondering how was I able to create a university academic program from a cool summer experience. Or perhaps you are pondering how I was able to make a student idea grow enough to deserve university support.

Both answers stem from the four contributors of my project that were able to bind Virginia Tech’s motto of “Ut Prosim” with Tech’s tagline of “Invent the Future.” The four contributors that made this union possible were my personal drive and determination, helpful and supportive faculty mentors, an institutional setting to connect service to academic work, and the availability of seed funding to get this program started.

You might be reading this and saying to yourself, “Hey! I’ve got the dedicated and driven thing down! I know of an issue or have an idea that could possibly turn into a phenomenal research or service project that would give back to my local, university, or world community. How do I go about getting faculty support and mentors, finding a university-sponsored way to connect service and academic work, and finding funding to actually get my idea rolling?“

Well, I’ve got answers for you! First, if you are looking for some funding opportunities, you should check out the VT Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships (CSECP) website (www.vtserves.vt.edu). We are in the process of putting information up about our social entrepreneurship grant application due October 30^th and also about other funding opportunities.

However, the most exciting and comprehensive answer I have for you is a new program that the VT CSECP is looking to pilot next semester. This program, which I call the “The ‘Ut Prosim’ International Scholars Program,” will be a curricular program for driven and dedicated students. During this spring semester, students will learn about social justice and international development related to their field of study. They will also plan an international research and/or experiential learning program. In the summer, students will pursue their program at an exciting international location they choose. When students return to campus in the fall, they will reflect on their experience and bring it back to the Virginia Tech community through VT conference presentations and publications, the creation of new student groups on campus, awareness events, etc.

This three-course sequence will give students the academic, institutional, and financial support to make their innovative, service-related ideas become university-supported, academic, tangible projects. Also, it will give communities and nonprofits abroad a way to concretely benefit from a connection with Virginia Tech. Additionally, it will be a way for students to bring international learning experiences back to the Virginia Tech community. Finally, the Ut Prosim International Scholars program will be an attempt to bridge the gap between service and innovative undergraduate research here at Virginia Tech.

Are you a student, community, or faculty member who would like to become involved in this program or other CSECP initiatives?  Feel free to email me at emilybar@vt.edu or check out the VT CSECP website for information about other innovative programs we facilitate.

Those Fighting Gravity guys left Virginia Tech early to fulfill their dreams, but for the rest of us that are still here on campus, there’s a lot of work to be done. Going to classes, working a part-time job, logging hours with an internship, participating in clubs, trying to have something of a social life–that probably sounds like your typical schedule, give or take, so what do you think about this: In a non-scientific poll conducted in front of D-2, a little more than half of students asked said that they were interested in volunteering. But with all the different things we have to do in our lives, like school and jobs, where does volunteering fit in?

I’m not talking about playing with puppies or braiding your best friend’s hair or the other extreme: feeling like you have to save the world one food pantry at a time. Volunteering isn’t what it used to be back in the day either, like when women had to tend to wounded soldiers and carry bricks across large fields. Not sure why they were carrying bricks, but moving on.

What I’m trying to say is that the face of volunteering is changing. If there is something you’re interested in, you can volunteer for it. If there is something you’re good at, there’s a way to volunteer. You can make a difference by using the skills you are strengthening while you’re here at school.

Landscapers, engineers, accountants, your skills are needed! If you are good at bookkeeping and are willing to help a struggling non-profit, it can mean the difference between an organization tanking or staying afloat.

Graphic designers are in high demand. You digital geniuses could charge out the wazoo for your services, but volunteering an hour of your time a week to help a food pantry with advertising could get them the money to expand their pantry and feed more families in need.

The easiest way to start thinking about incorporating volunteering into your life is to think about how much of your time you have to spare to help. Once you find out your availability, take your pick, you have about a gazillion, billion choices for where to volunteer.

For a ton of ways to volunteer, even if it’s just for an hour or two, visit www.vtserves.vt.edu and click on the link that says “Want to Volunteer? Click here.” For those of you that are hesitating, this is not in any way a scam. It’s a reputable campus website that makes it really easy to volunteer.

The thing about volunteering that sets it apart from all of the other things we do to beef up our resumes is that volunteering shows you care about something bigger than yourself. It’s not about gain. It shows employers that you like to take the time to help others, which isn’t something that most part-time jobs or required internships can do.

So think about what you’re good at, even if your major is basket-weaving and your hobby is beer pong. Get off the couch and call around until you find a place that can use you and your skills; and trust me, it won’t take long.

The Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships can help place you with an organization that matches your interests. Just send an email to engage@vt.edu.

The San Jose de Bocay community in an area torn by war, and suffering from endemic poverty. Since 1991 the Blacksburg Committee working with its Nicaragua partners built the town’s elementary school, has provided athletic equipment for school teams, and supplied computers and computer training for the students and teachers.

The Blacksburg Sister City Committee, working with its partner community, San Jose de Bocay, Nicaragua since 1989, is hosting a delegation. From January 2-14, 2011, this group, with the help of “Trees, Water & People” will build fuel-efficient wood stoves for low-income families in the forested region of Northern Nicaragua. In the last 15 years, they have built over 35,000 of these stoves, which in addition to venting the fumes and smoke from the living area, reducing respiratory disease, and improving air quality, also use 70% less wood to cook a meal, thus, lowering the pressure on forests to produce wood.

Each member of the delegation needs $1,700 by October 10, 2010, to provide the support this community. You make these efforts possible by contributing, even in small amounts.

Make tax-deductible checks out to Coalition for Justice/Blacksburg Sister City, and mail them to: Clark Webb, PO Box 863, Blacksburg VA 24063

To learn more about “Trees, Water & People,” visit their website at http://treeswaterpeople.org/

Blacksburg, Va.- How often do you think about where your food comes from?  How do we address the fact that one in seven people in the world today is hungry?  For three days, community members can join with students, faculty, and staff on and off Virginia Tech’s campus to explore ways that local food can be used for sustainable solutions to global hunger.

Thursday, Sept. 30 through Saturday, Oct. 2 ‘Local Food, Global Hunger: Learning, Sharing, Serving’ will shed light on issues pertaining to hunger relief and how efforts made on a local level can help with global change. Sustainable Agriculture for the Common Good, Local Foods and Hunger Relief, and The Fall Day of Service comprise the three day event.

Local Food, Global Hunger: Learning, Sharing, Serving is organized by the Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships in cooperation with Virginia Tech’s Center for the Arts, Residence Life, Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Community Foundation of the New River Valley, the YMCA at Virginia Tech, the New River Valley Local Food Coalition, NRV Food Share, and faith communities of Blacksburg.

The kick-off starts Thursday, Sept. 30 on the Drill Field from 12-4 p.m. The event entitled ‘Sustainable Agriculture for the Common Good’ will feature hands-on workshops where students will make connections between concepts in the campus Common Book ‘Animal, Vegetable Miracle’ and local food projects. Workshops on the day of the event will address topics such as container gardening, canning and food sustainability.

The weekend will be headlined by hunger activist and musician Jen Chapin and her band on Thursday, Sept. 30 at 7:30 p.m. at The Lyric Theatre, 135 College Avenue. The concert is presented by the Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech, the university’s Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships (CSECP), and Office of Continuing and Professional Education.  Tickets are $10 for students and $20 for the public; seating is general admission. To purchase tickets, call (540) 951-1772, go to www.thelyric.com, or go to The Lyric Theatre box office.

On Friday, Oct. 1, the events take the shape of a regional forum where area hunger relief agencies and advocates for a local food movement will meet and share resources at the NRV Competitiveness Center in Radford. The all-day event starts at 9 a.m. and runs until 3 p.m.

On Saturday, Oct. 2, more than 2,000 students, faculty, staff, and community members will work in shifts at the Commonwealth Ballroom inside Squires Student Center to package over one million meals as part of a Haitian hunger relief effort. Virginia Tech’s Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships is teaming with international food relief organization Stop Hunger Now to organize what is being called the ‘Fall Day of Service.’ For more information or to volunteer for the Fall Day of Service, click here.

The Fall Day of Service isn’t just a one day event. It’s part of an initiative called ‘Seasons of Service,’ that looks to change the way people in Blacksburg and the New River Valley think about volunteering.

“Good work–needed work–will occur more readily if people join hands.  I’m not talking about singing songs around a campfire, although there are good reasons to sing together.  I’m talking about sharing power and knowledge and, in so doing, increasing our ability to love and help one another and our brothers and sisters in need,” Jim Dubinsky, director of CSECP, says.

Were you one of the thousands of people who traveled through the Squires parking lot, surrounding streets, and campus sidewalks last week for the third annual Gobblerfest and this year’s Seasons of Service kickoff?

If you were, you no doubt took advantage of the countless freebies, coupons and food giveaways that flooded the streets. You also connected with fellow Hokies and the wonderful community members of Blacksburg, enjoyed the music and shared in the many exciting events sponsored by UUSA and the Gobblerfest team.

Did you have an opportunity to visit the VT-ENGAGE tent? This booth held the registration where 490 people signed up to volunteer their time for “32 for 32,” a student-led initiative where Hokies pledged 32 hours of community service in memory of the April 16, 2007, victims.

Those service hours should be completed by April 16, thus demonstrating that Hokies truly do have a heart for service. If you have any doubts, look around campus for those who pledged more than 14,000 hours of service; they may be seen sporting their “Hokies have a Heart for Service” T-shirts.

You may have also signed up for the “Fall Day of Service” on Saturday, Oct. 2, in the Squires Commonwealth Ballroom; a collaborative community-university project with Stop Hunger Now, a national non-profit organization.

If you are one of those people, then you already know that you will be a part of history, as you will be sharing in the packing of more than one million meals that will travel directly from Hokies to Haiti. It will be the second-largest packing exercise in the history of Stop Hunger Now.

If you missed the Stop Hunger Now/Blacksburg United Methodist Church or VT–ENGAGE booths, that’s not a problem. You can still participate in both events.

The Fall Day of Service needs 2,000 volunteers to be successful in packaging all of the food and loading the entire 53-foot shipping container. Register in advance to be sure that you get the best time slot for your schedule.

There are several packing times, as well as setup and cleanup events that will need willing workers. Bring your friends so you can all watch the Hokies face off with North Carolina State University on a big screen. If you’re not sure how you would like to help with the project, you can find more information and then register online by going to www.Engage.vt.edu/StopHungerNow.

What do you mean you didn’t make it to Gobblerfest?

Have no fear, VT-ENGAGE is here. Simply go to Engage.vt.edu and log on to create a pledge of service hours. You can still participate in the “32 for 32” initiative as well. When you have completed some of your hours, return to the page, and record your service. Any form of community service counts toward

VT-ENGAGE: class service requirements, sorority/fraternity/club volunteer activities, special church happenings and Seasons of Service events.

If you want to talk about ideas or just meet some of the staff, visit us at The Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships.

We are the force behind VT-ENGAGE and the Seasons of Service events. Our role is to provide opportunities for students who have brilliant ideas, positive attitudes, strong work ethics and hearts for service.

Follow us on Facebook and get updates about Seasons of Service, VT-ENGAGE and other projects and events. Visit our website, VTServes.vt.edu, and see what programs are available for you. Better yet, stop by our offices on the first floor of Litton-Reaves and see us in person. We will be happy to answer your questions and help you find a place where you can build a relationship with your school and community through service.