Southeastern named to President's Honor Roll for Community Service for third consecutive year
Contact: Rene Abadie
Date: March 15, 2013 
SERVICE WORK RECOGNIZED -- Southeastern Louisiana University students lay sod and plant azaleas on campus as part of The Big Event, a major community service activity that attracted more than 800 student volunteers working on campus and in the area communities. Southeastern was placed on the President's Higher Education Honor Roll for Community Service for the third consecutive year.
HAMMOND – Southeastern Louisiana University has been recognized for its spirit of community
service by being named to a national honors list for the third consecutive year.
The university was listed again this year on the President's Higher Education
Honor Roll for Community Service, which recognizes institutions that reflect the values
of exemplary community service and achieve meaningful outcomes in their communities.
The honor cites the work of more than 5,300 Southeastern students who provided
approximately 133,000 hours of voluntary service to national and area non-profit agencies
and other organizations. The estimated value of this work is $3.1 million.
"Southeastern is proud to again be listed on the national President's Higher
Education Honor Roll for Community Service," said Southeastern President John L. Crain.
"Our students, faculty and staff over the years have demonstrated a strong spirit
of volunteerism. Their willingness to give back to the communities in which we live
and work is evident and is highly valued."
Tena Golding, director of the Center for Faculty Excellence, which oversees service-learning
projects at the university, said the culture of service at Southeastern is evident
in the growth of student-led projects.
"The Big Event, a Student Government Association-sponsored initiative, recently
completed its third service day, attracting about 800 students who worked at 40 job
sites in the area, doing painting, landscaping, trash pickup and other jobs," she
said. "Nursing students provided more than 1,700 hours of health services, while teacher
candidates tutored hundreds of at-risk students through programs like the After School
Achievement Program, Project Step Up and Reach Out and Read."
The university was recognized for both its community service activities – general
service projects not linked to any specific course work – and its service-learning
projects.
Golding explained that service-learning projects are integrated with academic
courses and strongly tied to course objectives. Through service-learning, the academic
theories and principles of the classroom are used in real world applications. Examples,
she said, include teacher candidates presenting an anti-bullying campaign for local
PreK-third grade students to gain a better perspective of the impact bullying can
have on young children's self-esteem and learning; and sociology students analyzing
community-based research and applying their knowledge of social organizations and
sustainable food systems to promote the local food economy.
"Community service projects and service-learning are both highly valuable and
commendable," she said. "Both contribute to helping students become motivated, experienced
leaders and citizens, who are cognizant of society's needs.
According to Southeastern's report, in 2011-12, service-learning activities were
incorporated into 67 academic course sections involving more than 1,700 students.
In general community service activities, Golding said fraternities and sororities
alone documented more than 22,700 service hours and donated nearly $69,500 to non-profit
agencies.
The report also noted contributions of Southeastern faculty and staff members
who logged more than 12,200 hours of service, and participated in campus-wide fundraising
campaigns for organizations such as the United Way, the American Cancer Society and
the American Heart Association.
