September 17, 2018 |
University to Mark Constitution Day with Forum and Film Focused on Student Activism Faculty, Staff, and Students Selected for Campus Democracy Project Committee Saturdays of Service to Support Refugees, Promote Environmental Stewardship Thursday’s Deliberative Dialogue Forum Focuses on Florida Felons’ Right to Vote Community Engagement Fair Includes Assessment Workshop for Community Partners Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship to Meet September 24 Course Instructors Invited to Apply for Service-Learning Designation Community-Based Research Incentives Available for 2018–2019 Academic Year Alternative Breaks Information Session Scheduled for September 27
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University to Mark Constitution Day with Forum and Film Focused on Student Activism
Barry University will mark Constitution Day with a student forum and a film. The organizers have invited students, faculty, and staff to celebrate the signing of the U.S. Constitution and to learn how student activists have upheld and challenged its provisions.
Today is Constitution Day, the 231st anniversary of the signing of the document on September 17, 1787.
The forum, on “Student Activism in Florida,” will be held in Room 112 of the Andreas Building from noon to 1:30 p.m.
“The forum will feature current and former student activists who have advocated and agitated in order to achieve change in the areas of immigration reform, gender equality, worker rights, and human rights,” the organizers say.
“Freedom Summer,” the 2014 American documentary film, will be screened in Dominican Hall, beginning at 7 p.m.
The film narrates the events of the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Summer, which involved more than 700 student activists who took segregated Mississippi by storm in response to the systematic exclusion of African Americans from the political process. Written, produced, and directed by Stanley Nelson Jr., the 113-minute film won the Best Documentary award at the 2014 Pan African Film Festival.
The Constitution Day events are organized as part of Barry’s Campus Democracy Project with special support from the Student Government Association and the Department of History and Political Science.
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Faculty, Staff, and Students Selected for Campus Democracy Project Committee
A 15-member group of faculty, staff, and students has been selected to serve on the organizing committee for the Campus Democracy Project, or CDP.
Courtney Berrien (Center for Community Service Initiatives) and Dr. Fabio Naranjo (School of Social Work) are the committee co-chairs. Dr. Sean Foreman (Department of History and Political Science) serves on the committee in his capacity as Barry’s Campus Election Engagement Project liaison.
Other members of the CDP Committee are Mona Burrows (Campus Election Engagement Project), Dr. Paula Dias (Office of Mission Engagement), Guia Ferguson (Student Government Association), Savrae Garnett (Office of Student Life), Mateo Gomez (Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida), Dr. Jalane Maloun (School of Professional and Career Education), Dr. Sheila McMahon (School of Social Work), Jasmine McKee (Up to Us Net Impact), Isaly Ortiz (Barry University College Democrats), Larry Perez (Office of Student Life), Carolina Rios (Center for Human Rights and Social Justice), Antonio Rodriguez (Florida College Democrats), Karen Stalnaker (Campus Ministry), Dr. Manuel Tejeda (School of Business), and Judisha Williams (Housing and Residence Life).
The CDP Committee coordinates a nonpartisan initiative, promoting civic learning and democratic engagement through get-out-the-vote activities, including voter registration, education, and mobilization.
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Saturdays of Service to Support Refugees, Promote Environmental Stewardship
Four Saturdays of Service are on this academic year’s community engagement calendar. Two are being organized to support refugee resettlement; the two others are designed to promote environmental stewardship.
The Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) is organizing the Saturdays of Service supporting refugee resettlement in collaboration with Church World Service. October 20 and February 9 will be Church World Service Family Days at Barry.
Barry’s sponsors, the Adrian Dominican Sisters, have taken a corporate stance on immigration and similar issues. The congregation welcomes immigrants and refugees, as do its sponsored institutions.
When Prioress Sister Patricia Siemen, O.P., spoke at Barry’s Opening Assembly last month, she emphasized support for immigrants. Welcoming immigrants, she said, is “not a political issue; it is one of the very foundations of our faith tradition.”
On November 3, Barry Alumni Day of Service, volunteers will help to create the Barry Urban Garden. Other volunteers are expected to take part in a “Sustainability Saturday” project on April 13. Both the garden project and “Sustainability Saturday” are aimed at encouraging environmental stewardship – the responsible use and protection of the natural environment through conservation and sustainable practices.
Saturdays of Service complement major days of service coordinated by the CCSI with support from the campus-wide Major Days of Service Committee.
For further information on the Church World Service Family Days, contact Experiential Learning Coordinator Liz James (ljames@barry.edu). Details of the “Sustainability Saturday” project are available from CCSI Program Coordinator Asha Starks (astarks@barry.edu).
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Thursday’s Deliberative Dialogue Forum Focuses on Florida Felons’ Right to Vote
The 2018–2019 Deliberative Dialogue Series will begin this Thursday with a forum focused on the proposed Florida Amendment 4, Voting Rights Restoration for Felons Initiative (2018). The 90-minute forum will be held in the Andreas 112 conference room, beginning at 4 p.m.
The Voting Rights Restoration for Felons Initiative is on this November’s ballot in Florida as an initiated constitutional amendment.
A “yes" vote supports this amendment to automatically restore the right to vote for people with prior felony convictions, except those convicted of murder or a felony sexual offense, upon completion of their sentences, including prison, parole, and probation. A "no" vote opposes this amendment.
In Florida, a constitutional amendment requires a 60 percent affirmative vote to be approved.
Florida is one of four states – the three others being Iowa, Kentucky, and Virginia – where convicted felons do not regain the right to vote, “until and unless a state officer or board restores an individual's voting rights.” If Amendment 4 passes, Florida would join 19 other states that restore the right to vote after the completion of prison time, parole, and probation.
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Community Engagement Fair Includes Assessment Workshop for Community Partners
A workshop for community partners will be held during the first segment of the Community Engagement Fair on September 26. “Community Engagement Assessment and Evaluation” is the topic.
The workshop, from 9:30 to 10:50 a.m. in the Landon Events Room, will precede the showcase segment of the fair.
From 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the atrium of the Landon Student Union, community partners will showcase the programs and services offered by the organizations they represent. The community partners are expected to provide students, faculty, and staff with information on opportunities for volunteer work, service-learning and community-based research projects, and community-focused internships.
The Community Engagement Fair supports the implementation of Barry’s Quality Enhancement Plan, or QEP. For additional information on the fair, contact the CCSI at service@barry.edu or 305-899-3696.
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Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship to Meet September 24
The Faculty Learning Community for Engaged Scholarship will have its first meeting for the academic year next Monday, September 24, from 1:00 to 2:15 p.m. The CCSI will host the meeting in Adrian Hall, Room 208.
All FLC members and prospective members are urged to attend.
The FLC is a cross-disciplinary group of faculty members who participate in a collaborative program focused on the scholarship of engagement, or community-engaged scholarship. The FLC provides an intellectual venue in which faculty members exchange ideas with an academically diverse group and learn from one another’s experiences.
FLC members attend engaged scholarship seminars and other professional development activities, and they become familiar with the tools and resources needed for engaged scholarship.
For further information, contact any of the FLC facilitators, Dr. Laura Finley (lfinley@barry.edu), Dr. Pamela Hall (phall@barry.edu), or Dr. Celeste Landeros (clanderos@barry.edu).
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Course Instructors Invited to Apply for Service-Learning Designation
The Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) is inviting faculty members whose courses include a service-learning component to apply for the service-learning designation.
Sections of courses, internships, practicum assignments, field education, capstones, community-based research, and similar community-focused or community-based work also may be designated as service-learning.
“Designating courses as service-learning promotes deep integration of thoughtfully organized community service into the curriculum and high standards of service-learning practice,” said Dr. Glenn Bowen, the CCSI’s executive director. “Service-learning courses demonstrate the value of applied learning, student engagement with the community, and critical reflection.”
According to Bowen, the service-learning notation in the course schedule also confirms that Barry University is using the curriculum to meet its commitment to collaborative service in community settings.
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Community-Based Research Incentives Available for 2018–2019 Academic Year
The Center for Community Service Initiatives has issued a call for proposals for its Community-Based Research Incentive Program. The program supports the development and implementation of CBR projects through small-scale funding as well as other forms of support.
CBR incentives are awarded through a competitive process to full-time faculty members who teach undergraduate and/or graduate courses. Up to three CBR awards are usually available each year. Applicants may request $500–$1,000.
Community-based research is a collaborative process of critical inquiry into problems or issues faced by a community. Faculty (and sometimes staff) members and students collaborate with community partners on applied research projects that address specific problems or issues and simultaneously promote social change. Research questions emerge from the needs of the community. The goal of the research is to produce and disseminate information that will benefit community members or agencies serving the community.
Through CBR, students learn research design, data collection, data analysis, and reporting.
A CBR project may be conducted by an entire class, or by a group or team. Each team must include at least one student, a faculty member (as co-investigator and/or mentor), and a community partner. Staff members may be included on the research team.
The assessment of proposals is based on six criteria, with categories including Community Rationale, Community Partnerships,Student Participation, and Budget. A document with a detailed description of the program, the application form, and the rubric used by the Review Committee for assessing applications are available in CEMS (the Community Engagement Management System).
CBR proposals may be submitted at any time this semester. For further information, contact Dr. Glenn Bowen in the CCSI at gbowen@barry.edu.
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Alternative Breaks Information Session Scheduled for September 27
Alternative Breaks executive board members will host an information session for students interested in this academic year’s fall and spring break trips. The information session will be held on September 27, from 6 to 7 p.m., in the De Porres Center, Thompson Hall.
This year’s trips will include Immokalee (Florida), Port-de-Paix (Haiti), and McAllen (Texas) as destinations. In addition, the AB board will discuss the possibility of a trip to Tallahassee (Florida) and Montgomery (Alabama).
A co-curricular civic engagement program, Alternative Breaks provides students with community-based immersion experiences designed to build awareness of social, political, and environmental issues through instruction, reflection, and service that benefits diverse populations.
During the information session, students who have participated in AB trips will provide information about fundraising opportunities and what to expect on such trips.
Both undergraduates and graduate students are encouraged to attend the information session.
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