WORCESTER, Mass. – The College of the Holy Cross has been named to the 2008 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.
Community service has been long-standing tradition at Holy Cross. Students come together into the community through a variety of services, including Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD), a community service student organization with more than 800 active student members and 40 program sites, community work study, service learning, and volunteerism. In recent years, the College has established new institutional initiatives in Worcester, the Gulf Coast region for hurricane relief, and other nations globally. More than 2,200 students engage with the community each year and last year 124,900 hours of community service was performed by students.
“In these trying economic times when service organizations are seeing their budgets depleted by cutbacks in core philanthropic and public dollars, students have been able to provide critical staffing so the demand for services can continue to be met,” said Kathy Robertson, special assistant to the president and organizer of the College’s application. “Our students also serve as tutors and mentors, providing positive role models for Worcester school children.”
Several volunteer programs cited in the application included:
- South Worcester Neighborhood Center
- Nativity School of Worcester
- Junior Achievement Academy
- The Refugee and Immigrant Assistance Corporation
- Centro Las Americas
- Big Brothers/Big Sisters
- Greater Worcester Land Trust
The application also highlighted student work at Abby’s House, which serves abused women and their children. Holy Cross has been involved with the agency since its inception in 1976, and currently SPUD volunteers, work study, and community-based service learning students provide the core staffing for around-the-clock services.
“At Holy Cross, [our] commitment extends from the athletic department and student clubs to the highest levels of the administration,” Robertson continued. “Social justice is a big part of who we are; it is critical to our mission and to our Jesuit identity.”
Twenty-two Massachusetts schools were named to the Honor Roll, including Holy Cross, Clark University, and Worcester State College in Worcester.
Launched in 2006, the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll recognizes universities and colleges across the nation that encourage and support creative and effective community service and service-learning programs. The Honor Roll is part of the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the program is sponsored by the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation, the U.S. Departments of Education and Housing and Urban Development. This is the second time that Holy Cross has received this award.