Molly Mead, the Director of the CCE, described its opening as "momentous" and "inspiring." Since then, the CCE has seen tremendous growth and has been met with approval from members of the College community.
The CCE, located near the entrance on the main level of Keefe Campus Center, opened following a $13-million philanthropic investment from the Argosy Foundation, which was founded by John Abele '59.
The CCE has initiated several innovative programs to help students reach out to area communities and beyond. Previously, students had no reliable structure to realize their ideas, but the CCE is striving to answer this need by offering a Community Engagement Fund for innovative student projects.
The idea for the fund, however, is not new; it was the brainchild of Mandy Vincent '08, when she helped to coordinate a Habitat for Humanity trip to Biloxi, Miss. last Spring Break.
Mead expects the application process for funds to occur twice in both the fall and spring, with the first round starting on the CCE Web site this week.
She hopes students will step forward with more creative suggestions now that this fund is available for their use. She expressed her excitement for the many creative engagement ideas from the student body, notably a collaborative project with Nicaraguan women. In this project, campus organizations will cooperate with the women in T-shirt silk screening, with the intention of ensuring the women receive adequate incomes.
Tierra Allen '09, leader of Girls, Inc., a tutoring program aimed at girls in Holyoke, Mass., shared Mead's enthusiasm for the funds. She noted that funding was decentralized and inaccessible before the advent of the CCE.
Another new program hosted by the CCE is the President's Community Engagement Fellows, in which 20 student leaders meet the President twice a month to discuss engagement ideas. In addition, the program brings well-known speakers to campus.
In yet another program, the Community Engagement Leadership Program, Director of Student Leadership and Engagement Karen Lee will work closely with 16 student leaders. These students are matched with community service agencies and receive appropriate training.
Furthermore, faculty members and agency leaders have become involved in the CCE's development. Professors realize the relevance of community service to academic life and hope to integrate service learning into coursework. Agency leaders have voiced their thoughts of what they would like Amherst students to do in the community.
Since the inauguration of the CCE, Mead has noted the diversity and energy of active students. Comprising half of the Amherst student body, these leaders hail from all parts of the socio-economic spectrum.
During Orientation, the Community Outreach Orientation Trip enabled about 60 first-years to work in Holyoke for two days, while the Community Engagement Fair boasted about 100 opportunities for interested students. These initial activities further enhanced the visibility of community service on campus.
Mead has stressed the importance of improving the quality of students' community service over increasing the number of students involved. According to Mead, community service should move from charity work to social change.
The CCE also expects further improvements in the near future. It hopes to create a student conference space and a summer program through which high school students in the area will work alongside Amherst students in community service projects.
Feedback from students emphasizes the importance of the CCE in providing funding and counseling. According to Phuong Vuong '09, leader of El Arco Iris, a Holyoke tutoring program, "The CCE impacts El Arco Iris most through finances. We're still in the process of determining how the CCE will fund engagement projects and its community partnership organizations (like Arco), but I hope that the CCE will ease the fundraising pressures these types of organizations feel."
Allen acknowledged the help Karen Lee gave her and other leaders in accomplishing their goals thus far. Allen hopes the CCE will help sustain a five-year partnership between Girls, Inc. and the College.
When asked what further improvements she would like to see, Vuong said she wanted the CCE to "continue to listen to student concerns and ideas."