Students’ community work to be honored

By Jason Meholick

On Dec 5th students, faculty and community partners will be honored by the Buffalo State Volunteer Service Learning Center for the work they have done in the community in a ceremony during Bengal Pause. The ceremony is called the celebration of service and will be held in the Burchfield-Penney Art Center.

Students can fill out a nomination form for the awards up until Nov 27th, with the winner’s chosen by a five-person committee on Nov. 28th.

Committee members:

  • VSLC Coordinator Laura Hill Rao

  • a previous student winner

  • a non-affiliated faculty member

  • a community partner who currently has no service partner

  • Lisa August, the associate director of the Career Development Center

There are six awards giving out at this ceremony. They are (spring 2006 winners in parentheses):

Dr Fredrick C. Howe Outstanding Student Volunteer Award: (Susan White)

Presented to the student who provided exceptional service to a community agency as a volunteer, not though a service learning course.

Outstanding Community Work-Study Student: (Katherine Johnson)

Presented to the student who provided exceptional service as a community work study participant at a partner agency.

Outstanding Service-Learning Course: (MED 309, teaching math to middle school) Presented to the class that provided exceptional community service through a service-learning course.

Award 1: 14 hours or less

Award 2: 15 hours or more

Outstanding Student Community Service in a Service-Learning Course: (Christina Pagano and Gina Patrone) presented to the student who provided exceptional community service through a service-learning course.

Award 1: 14 hours or less

Award 2: 15 hours or more

Outstanding Service-Learning Community Partners: (Amherst Middle School and Little Portion Friary) presented to the community agency, group or institution that demonstrated excellence in a collaborative work with Buffalo State College students, resulting in a positive difference for the community.

Outstanding Faculty Commitment to Service-Learning: (Dr. Richard Herdlein) presented to a faculty member who demonstrated outstanding achievement in connecting learning with community service, along with developing leadership and citizenship skills among students.

The winners will receive plaques with their name and the award they won on them, except for the winner of the course award. For that, each student will get a certificate with one plaque going to the teacher because the VSLC does not have the funds to make plaques for a whole class.

Deb Bechtel, administrative assistant of the VSLC says: “Everyone likes to be recognized for their efforts, this is why we have this ceremony.”

Students who participated in the program and who do not win an award will also receive a certificate for their participation in the service-learning program.

Jason Meholick can be contacted at ChipMcMelo@verizon.net

http://www.buffalostate.edu/offices/cdc/faculty.html

http://www.buffalostate.edu/offices/cdc/vslc/slinfo.html

http://www.buffalostate.edu/offices/cdc/vslc/courses.html