CCSI Newsletter

In This Issue:

African American History Workshop Series Ends on Celebratory Note

CCSI Receives Recognition for Community Education

Seventh Annual Move-Out Drive Underway

Staff and Faculty Urged to Support Box Tops Drive

Community Engagement Fact Sheets Available

African American History Workshop Series Ends on Celebratory Note

The series of workshops on African American History and Culture in Hollywood,Fla., ended last Tuesday, April 28, on a celebratory note. The final workshop, which focused on African American music and dance, was interspersed with eight renditions by community members.

Barry University faculty members Dionisio Camacho, an adjunct professor of music, and Yvonne Goodridge, an assistant professor of dance, conducted that workshop. In addition to song and dance items, there was a rendition of poetry thanking African American luminaries for their exemplary work over the years.

The City of Hollywood’s African American Advisory Council later thanked BarryUniversity’s Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) for coordinating the workshops. The council also presented a number of awards to community members.

City of Hollywood Vice Mayor Kevin D. Biederman and Commissioner Richard S. Blattner were in attendance. The director of community and economic development, Davon Barbour, was one of the dance performers.

Launched on Feb. 10, the six-part workshop series was designed primarily to increase knowledge of African American history and culture and to promote positive self-identity among African Americans in the local community. Among the topics were “The Black Church and the Civil Rights Movement,” “African American Educators and Social Reform,” and “African Americans in the Workplace.”

The series featured presentations by 10 Barry faculty members: Dr. Walter Pierce and Dr. Terrell Brown (Social Work), Dr. Paula Delpech (Nursing), Dr. Nickesia Gordon (Communication), Dr. Pamela Hall Psychology), Dr. Evelyn Cartright (English and Foreign Languages), Dr. Glenn Bowen (CCSI), Dr. Victor Romano (Sociology and Criminology), and Dionisio Camacho and Yvonne Goodridge (Fine Arts).

CCSI Receives Recognition for Community Education

The City of Hollywood’s African American Advisory Council has publicly recognized BarryUniversity’s Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) for its role in community education.

Last Tuesday, the council presented the Esau Jenkins Community Educator Award to CCSI Director Dr. Glenn Bowen “in recognition of your dedication to the education of the overall community.”

In presenting the award, Anthony Grisby, the City of Hollywood’s community development administrator, noted that Esau Jenkins was a civil rights leader who created organizations that supported the economic, cultural, and political improvement of African Americans. A founder of the South’s first Citizenship School, Jenkins used his skills as an educator “to make significant change to the socioeconomic landscape of the African American community,” Grisby said.

Grisby, who serves as the city’s liaison with the African American Advisory Council, thanked the CCSI director for organizing a team of Barry faculty to present workshops on African American history and culture. He said the workshops would “be of exponential benefit to the City of Hollywood.” 

Shannon “Peppy” Bennett, chairperson of the African American Advisory Council, also thanked the CCSI for its support.

In response to a request from the council, the CCSI coordinated a series of six workshops aimed at increasing awareness of African American history and culture among residents of Hollywood and its environs. The workshops were held on the second and fourth Tuesdays of February, March, and April at the Hollywood City Hall.

Seventh Annual Move-Out Drive Underway

The seventh annual Move-Out Drive is underway on Barry’s main campus in Miami Shores. The drive will continue through next week.

“We hope to collect a variety of items, which will be donated to local community organizations,” said Caitlin Geis, a Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI) staff member, who is helping to coordinate the project formerly known as Dorm Drive.

Project partners are the CCSI, Facilities Management, Housing and Residence Life, Mission Engagement, and Public Safety.

Students are asked to drop off donations at designated sites in the residence halls and elsewhere on campus. Faculty and staff are also encouraged to participate in the project by donating unwanted items or by signing up for a volunteer assignment.

For further information, contact Caitlin Geis at cgeis@barry.edu or 305-899-5465.

Staff and Faculty Urged to Support Box Tops Drive

Barry staff and faculty members are urged to support the Box Tops for Education Collection Drive organized by the Minority Association of Pre-health Students (MAPS) in association with the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI).

Donations should be dropped in boxes at various locations on the Miami Shores campus or sent to MAPS Advisor Dr. Stephanie Bingham in the Department of Biology (NHS 309).

Box-top coupons may be cut from a variety of products and submitted as donations. A list of products is available at http://www.boxtops4education.com/-/media/BoxTops/FlyersAndDownloads/Participating-Products-Flyer.pdf.

Community Engagement Fact Sheets Available

Nineteen fact sheets on community engagement are available from the Center for Community Service Initiatives (CCSI). Among the topics of fact sheets are Community Engagement, Service-Learning, Community-Based Research, Community-Engaged Scholarship, Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Publications, Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Conferences, and Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Organizations.

To obtain copies of any of the fact sheets, contact the CCSI via email at service@barry.edu.