Last modified: Thursday, October 18, 2007
IU Advocates for Community Engagement (ACE) liaisons named
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 17, 2007
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- This fall the Indiana University Advocates for Community Engagement (ACE) Program welcomes 13 new and nine returning students charged with serving as liaisons between local non-profit agencies and IU service-learning courses.
IU Bloomington student and ACE Donnie Morgan works with the Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington executive director, Jeffrey P. Baldwin
Since the program's inception in 2000 by Community Outreach and Partnerships in Service-Learning (COPSL), the ACE program has grown significantly from its start with just three students. COPSL now offers 22 service-learning leadership positions for IUB undergraduate students with a commitment to service and social justice.
The types of activities that students have been involved in can vary greatly, capitalizing on individual ACE talents and interests.
- Deanna Elkins helps to coordinate students from the Service-Learning in Chemistry class who teach basic chemistry concepts through hands-on, child-centered pedagogy -- with a focus of having fun while learning -- to the kids at the Banneker Center.
- Katelyn Holsclaw helps to coordinate students from the Service-Learning French Teaching Project where students create elementary textbooks in French. They use the customized books, along with other materials, to teach French language and culture classes in local elementary schools -- schools that would not normally have an opportunity to have a foreign language taught.
- Donnie Morgan works with the Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington executive director, Jeffrey P. Baldwin (in photo), creating policies and procedures for volunteers. Morgan said he believes that students have a responsibility to be proactive in helping to address issues of poverty in the community.
- ACE Emily Prifogle works with students at Templeton Elementary School and says that "becoming an ACE has transformed my college experience and who I am as a person. It has brought me closer to the community in which I live and has deepened my understanding of how non-profits work within a community."
IUB's new general education requirements' focus on enriching educational experiences elevates the importance of the ACE program. ACEs serve as an integral component of service-learning at IU -- developing, nurturing and sustaining academic links between the university and nonprofits. The ACEs coordinate, orient and train service-learners and volunteers, helping students make connections between their coursework and the service they're providing outside of the classroom. ACE community partner agencies address a myriad of social issues, including domestic violence, the environment, prison systems, education and poverty -- offering students multiple opportunities to apply their knowledge in the real world.
In addition to advocating for local non-profits, coordinating service-learning opportunities and assisting their fellow students to become more civically engaged, ACEs also participate in professional and leadership development opportunities. Many attend and present at national conferences, ultimately raising the visibility of the program on a national level and providing assistance to other colleges and universities interested in creating programs similar to the IUB ACE Program.
Advocates for Community Engagement (ACEs) and their community partners:
- Lauren Berman -- Monroe County Public Library
- Kelsey Botne -- City of Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department
- Matt Careskey -- Boys and Girls Club, Crestmont Club
- Heydi Correa-Encarnacion -- Monroe County Community School Corp. English as a Second Language Office
- Joseph Dodson -- Indiana University Division of Recreational Sports
- Deanna Elkins -- Benjamin Banneker Community Center
- Ashley Flora -- Girls, Inc.
- Kathryn Goodwin -- Monroe County Community School Corp. Literacy Services
- Katelyn Holsclaw -- Fairview Elementary
- Jessica Johnson -- Mother Hubbard's Cupboard
- Natalie Kianoff -- Head Start
- Anita Mazkoori -- Midwest Pages to Prisoners Project
- Donnie Morgan -- Boys and Girls Club, Main Club
- Emily Prifogle -- Templeton Elementary
- Anna Remenschneider -- Big Brothers Big Sisters
- Brittany Shepherd -- Shalom Community Center
- Travis Smith -- Family Resource Center at Edgewood Primary School
- Daniel Watts -- Indiana Forest Alliance and The Caldwell Center for Culture and Ecology
- Jorge Wellman -- The Rise of Middle Way House
- Bryce Wininger -- Volunteers In Medicine
- Chelsey Wininger -- Stonebelt Inc.
To learn more about the ACE program, visit https://www.indiana.edu/~copsl/aces.shtml.
