October 19, 2020

IN THIS ISSUE

• Campus Democracy Project Leaders Make Final Push to Get Out the Student Vote
• This Thursday’s Deliberative Dialogue Puts Spotlight on Impact of COVID-19 on Minority Population Groups
• Community Impact is One of Seven Categories of Awards for Community Engagement
• Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship to Meet November 5
• Fact Sheets on Various Community Engagement Topics Available from CCSI

Campus Democracy Project Leaders Make Final Push To Get Out The Student Vote

President Allen Affirms Barry’s Commitment To Promoting Full Student Voter Participation

By Glenn Bowen

With Election Day fast approaching, the leaders of Barry’s Campus Democracy Project (CDP) are making a final push to get out the student vote. In the face of the coronavirus pandemic, they hope to see a large student voter turnout in the elections.

“This is an opportunity to make your voice heard,” CDP Committee Co-chair Isaly Ortiz is reminding her fellow students. “Don’t miss your opportunity to contribute to our democracy.”

Meanwhile, Barry President Dr. Mike Allen has affirmed the university’s commitment to promoting full student voter participation and is also encouraging students to “become responsible and engaged participants in the democratic process.” 

Ortiz said: “We are less than a month away from the 2020 Election. This is an opportunity to make your voice heard by exercising your right to vote. If you are unable to vote in the upcoming election, encourage your friends that can vote to do so. … If you are registered [to vote], you are halfway there. Make a plan to vote, and stick to it. This election is so important; don’t miss your opportunity to contribute to our democracy.”

President Allen recently signed the Higher Education Presidents’ Commitment to Full Student Voter Participation.

“Over 260 colleges and universities have committed to working toward 100% student voter registration and turnout,” Allen noted. “I am proud to say that Barry University is one of them. We are part of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, encouraging our students to become responsible and engaged participants in the democratic process.” 

Barry has been participating in the ALL IN Challenge since 2018, the organizers note. Students have been urged to take the pledge to vote.

The CDP is a nonpartisan project of the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI), designed to promote civic learning and democratic engagement through voter registration, education, and mobilization.

The CDP Committee met last Friday, and members came away with heightened enthusiasm for assisting students with getting to the polls. The committee wants to make sure students know where to vote and what to take to the polling place. Much of the information is available at the CDP website.

“We are planning a Walk to the Polls,” said Dr. Sean Foreman, professor of political science and co-chair of the CDP Committee. “Residential students on our main campus, joined by faculty and staff, will walk together to Sibley [School],” the nearest polling place. 

This Saturday (Oct. 24), dubbed Vote Early Day, is the last day to request a vote-by-mail ballot in Florida for the November 3 election.

At a National Voter Registration Day event last month, Barry alumna Dominique McMillan urged students to register to vote and to follow though by voting this year. A former Barry Service Corps Fellow, McMillan is the program coordinator for ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge—a national, nonpartisan initiative that assists colleges and universities in their work to improve civic learning, political engagement, and voter participation.

Earlier this month, the CDP Committee hosted Barry’s Florida 2020 Ballot Forum to help students and other voters make informed choices in this year’s local and state elections. Ricardo “Rick” Ibarria, a political activist associated with Rise Up Florida!, a grassroots group, outlined and commented on the proposed amendments to the Florida Constitution. He also fielded questions from forum attendees.

The CDP is implemented with support from the Campus Election Engagement Project (CEEP), the Students Learn Students Vote Coalition (SLSV), Ask Every Student, and ALL IN.

CEEP has provided a voter guide for students, focused on issues and positions taken by the two candidates for U.S. president. Issues covered in the guide include the Affordable Care Act, climate change, courts, COVID-19, gun control, immigration, and social security. 

“Nonpartisan Candidate Guide: United States President” is available in both English and Spanish. 

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This Thursday’s Deliberative Dialogue Puts Spotlight On Impact Of Covid-19 On Minority Population Groups

The second forum in the “Race Matters” Deliberative Dialogue Series this Thursday will examine the intersection of race and health and will put the spotlight on the health impact of the coronavirus, COVID-19. 

“The Impact of COVID-19 on Black and Brown Communities: Did So Many Have to Die?” is title of the forum organized by the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) and scheduled for 4 to 5:30 as a remote event. 

Among the forum participants will be a small group of panelists, who will contribute to the exploration of the topic from the standpoints of preventive health strategies, access to health care, government support of vulnerable populations, and the rights of essential workers.

Nurse practitioner Denise Lundy will be on the panel to provide a health worker’s perspective on the disproportionate effects of COVID-19 on communities of color. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers and Urban GreenWorks will be represented on the panel. 

The forum facilitators will be CCSI Associate Director Courtney and Sonique Sailsman, assistant professor of nursing.

The academic year’s series of four forums—two in the fall semester and two in the spring—“engages representatives of diverse social groups in productive and respectful dialogue about race,” Berrien explained.

The public forum will be held remotely (on Zoom, the video conferencing cloud platform) and will be streamed to Facebook Live, the real-time video broadcast system.

More than 150 students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members attended the first forum titled “Why Race Matters.” It provided opportunities for cross-generational and cross-cultural dialogue about race in the United States.

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Community Impact Is One Of Seven Categories Of Awards For Community Engagement

Community Impact is one of seven categories of community engagement awards in which nominations are being accepted. The nomination deadline is January 29. 

The Community Impact Award is presented to individual students and student organizations for exemplary civic engagement—including service, research, and advocacy—that has a measurable impact on the community. Individual winners (current or previous) who are freshmen, sophomores, and juniors are eligible for selection by the university president as Barry’s nominee for Campus Compact’s Newman Civic Fellowship.

The award winners in the Community Impact category in 2020 include the Chemistry Club, based in the Department of Physical Sciences. The club demonstrated outstanding civic engagement through presentations at Miami area schools and in the campus lab. Club members’ chemistry demonstrations and hands-on experiments have fascinated scores of second- to fifth-grade students regarding the utility and possibilities of science. Children in elementary and middle have been inspired to consider careers in STEM, particularly in chemistry.

The other categories of awards are Community Partnership, Community-Based Research, Community-Engaged Scholarship, Community Engagement Educator, Service-Learning Faculty, and Engaged Department. 

The Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) has issued a call for nominations for the 2021 Community Engagement Awards. Students, faculty, and staff members, as well as community partners, are invited to submit nominations by the deadline. 

The CCSI will host Barry’s eighth annual Community Engagement Awards Ceremony on March 31, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. It is likely that the 2021 event will be held remotely, the organizers say.

The nomination forms are available at the CCSI website. For additional information, contact the CCSI at service@barry.edu.

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Faculty Learning Community For Engaged Scholarship To Meet November 5

The Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship (FLC) will have only meeting for the fall semester on November 5 from noon to 2:00 p.m.

The FLC facilitates professional development and reflective practice in community-engaged teaching, research, and service. Organized by the CCSI, the FLC is open to all faculty members.

All FLC members and prospective members are urged to attend the November 5 meeting, which will be held remotely. 

For additional information on the FLC, contact any of the facilitators— Drs. Laura Finley, Pamela Hall, and Celeste Landeros—or the CCSI.

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Fact Sheets On Various Community Engagement Topics Available From Ccsi

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Contact Brittney Morales, Barry Service Corps program facilitator, at BriMorales@barry.edu.

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