INDIANAPOLIS ’“ Imagine mobilizing hundreds of students state-wide to communities in need.  Imagine faculty and staff members at universities and colleges throughout Indiana introducing their students to learning by serving.  Imagine organizations that have identified a need in their communities and are successfully partnering with colleges and universities in Indiana to meet those needs.

That is exactly what the members and partners of Indiana Campus Compact (ICC) have been doing this past year.   And ICC is honored to recognize them through its annual awards program. 

Matthew Morrow, IUPUI, is the recipient of the 2009 Richard J. Wood Student Community Commitment Award winner.  Morrow saw a need and he met it.  When he traveled to the Gulf Coast in late 2005, he saw the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina and decided to lead other students back to the region to volunteer for service work.  Thus, Youth Advocating Leadership and Learning (Y’ALL) was born.  Morrow led six subsequent service trips with fellow students to Biloxi, MS and neighboring communities during his undergraduate years at IU Bloomington.   Recognizing the need to continue his work when he began his graduate work at IUPUI, Morrow started a Y’ALL chapter in Indianapolis.  Since 2007 he has led three trips to the Gulf Coast with 72 additional students involved in this valuable program.  Morrow says, ‘As I look forward to my career in health administration, my Y’ALL involvement convinces me I want to keep pursuing public service.’

Judy Gray, Ball State University, is the recipient of the 2009 Brian Hiltunen Faculty Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Scholarship of Engagement.  Twenty years ago service-learning was in its infancy and pioneers like Ernest Boyer began to transform the academy through the Scholarship of Engagement.   Judy Gray was there.  She felt the excitement of a new era as the role of faculty was revised, giving validity to service-learning.  During her time as an associate professor of Social Work at Ball State University, Gray has used that excitement to widen the scope of her work, deepen the commitment of her students, and strengthen her community.  Of her work, Gray says, “The students are a resource to the community, and the community is a resource to the students. Service-learning makes the learning come alive, and it makes teaching more vital and interesting.’

Roger Bingham, Ivy Tech Community College ’“ Columbus, is the recipient 2009 Community Service Director award Honoring Those Who Facilitate and Inspire Service-Learning to Create Campus and Community Connection.  As Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, Bingham stepped into his role of advocate and facilitator for service-learning to become part of the campus culture.  Because of Bingham’s support of alternative spring break trips, they have become a highly respected and attended program.  He traveled with Ivy Tech Columbus students and faculty to Habitat for Humanity builds in Florida where Bingham says the ‘students not only were able to help a community in need, they grew as individuals by working toward a larger goal and reflecting on what that means in their lives.’

Warren Primary Center, South Bend, is the recipient of the 2009 Outstanding Community Partner Award.  Under the leadership of Principal Carla Killelea, Warren Primary Center became engaged with the students, staff, and faculty at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana.  Nominated by Carolyne Call, Director of the Office for Civic and Social Engagement at Saint Mary’s, Warren Primary Center is a Title 1 school whose population has a poverty rate of 68%.   When asked about the collaboration between Saint Mary’s and Warren Primary Center, Call says ‘Despite the fact that Warren is located 30 minutes from campus, Saint Mary’s students feel a devotion and dedication to the school because of the warmth of the staff and the sense of genuine partnership.  We have come to understand the power of partnership to bring about authentic and lasting transformation in the lives of those we serve.”

About Indiana Campus Compact: 

Indiana Campus Compact (ICC) is a network of 45 college campuses that involves students, faculty and staff in service-learning and civic engagement in order to educate citizens, prepare tomorrow’s leaders, and contribute to the quality of life of America’s communities.  ICC supports the integration of service-learning and civic engagement into campus culture by facilitating collaborations, sponsoring programs, sharing best practices and promoting awareness of higher education’s role in graduating well-informed, engaged citizens. 

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