Community Service Initiatives Inspire Thousands of Volunteer Hours
August 19, 2009
The Emmanuel community has kept busy this past year, contributing thousands of hours of volunteer work in Boston and beyond. Students and alumni participated in separate initiatives set forth by the College to increase service to the community, the Community Service Challenge and 90K...It's All About Time, respectively.
During the 2008-2009 academic year, Vice President of Student Affairs Patricia Rissmeyer put forth the Community Service Challenge to student organizations, clubs, athletic teams and residence halls, with the objective of each respective group performing as many community service hours as possible. The end result was 1,643 hours of volunteer work contributed by Emmanuel students.
"The Sisters of Notre Dame and Sister Janet are deeply committed to service, so this year I wanted to try something a little bit different that might inspire more students to volunteer," said Rissmeyer, who is also the Director of the Jean Yawkey Center for Community Leadership. "I think that it increased the participation levels of students in the community because it approached service in a different way."
"Serving the community is a part of the mission and vision of the Sisters of Notre Dame," added Associate Director of Community Service and Service Learning Deirdre Bradley-Turner. "It is a part of the vision of the college that the students will be contributing members of the community. The challenge is integral to what an Emmanuel education is all about."
Emmanuel College alumni, family and friends from around the world recently completed their own yearlong community service initiative, 90K...It's All About Time. The program was launched to celebrate Emmanuel College's 90th anniversary this fall and engage members of the extended Emmanuel community in volunteerism. Close to 800 alumni from 35 states and several countries participated in the program, completing more than 137,000 hours of community service.
The initiative ran from July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009 with the goal of completing 90,000 hours of service. Emmanuel College alumni responded with great enthusiasm, coming together to easily surpassing the objective. No matter where they were in the world, alumni were able to log their community service hours on the Emmanuel College web site, as well as learn of volunteer opportunities in their communities and share their experiences with fellow alumni. Overall, 90K provided a valuable opportunity for alumni to reconnect to the College, while reinforcing an important connection to Emmanuel's mission.
"Emmanuel has a long tradition of community service," said Jennifer Puccetti '89, Chair of 90K...It's All About Time. "What better way to celebrate our 90th anniversary and to bring the alumni community together than through giving back to our communities."
