OACS Update

Posted by Eileen Remley on Monday, May 1, 2017 in News Blurbs.

The Office of Active Citizenship and Service received 64 applications to join the Local OACS DIVE cohorts launching Fall 2017. Thank you to all our DOS partners for helping spread the word about these opportunities. DIVE (Design as an Immersive Vanderbilt Experience) is a new, innovative university program with both curricular and co-curricular components that expands access to design thinking methodologies to students, faculty and staff. DIVE participants will learn human-centered design skills in order to solve complex, real-world problems, working in multidisciplinary teams on immersive, mentored projects. Local OACS DIVE cohorts will include direct service with local community partners and the opportunity to apply the human-centered design process to support community-identified challenges, all through the lens of critical service-learning

The Local OACS Dive Experience will include:

• DIVE Boot Camp ideally before, but possibly during, their co-curricular project
• Opportunity to partner with a variety of campus offices, including OACS, the Wond’ry, the Curb Center, and the Jean and Alexander Heard Library (depending on the available projects)
• Multidisciplinary project teams working with local community organizations and members to solve real-world challenges over the course of a semester around themes similar to the ones below:
  • The experience of displaced persons living in Nashville
  • Food waste
  • Affordable housing
• Participation in an end-of-the-year showcase to share findings

Local OACS DIVE programs provide students a unique opportunity to work together with local non-profit organizations to address community-identified challenges in innovative ways using the processes of Human-Centered Design. Throughout the semester-long experience, Local OACS DIVE programs will include a theme-focused seminar series, service with a non-profit organization addressing the cohort theme, and hands-on experience applying human-centered design to address community-identified need. Applicants accepted to a Local OACS DIVE program will be invited to join a specific theme-based cohort. Selection will be based on a review of applicant theme interest, major, and skills to strengthen cohort diversity and the learning experience. To learn more about the DIVE program, visit the website.

Thank You Melissa Looby!

After a two year Assistantship in OACS, Melissa Looby will complete her M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration next month. OACS extends a huge thank you to Melissa for her dedication and tireless work in our office, around our campus, and in the communities of Nashville. A brief, incomplete listing of the work Melissa accomplished includes the development and implementation of the Cultivating Roots Program, coordinating the Weekend of Service, advising seven student service organizations, crafting the Nichols Humanitarian Fund’s annual report, and leading Vanderbilt’s submission to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. Melissa, from everyone at OACS, we thank you!

2016/17 Student Participation in Service Organizations

OACS extends a warm thank you to all the student service organizations affiliated with our office. The 2016/17 academic year saw approximately 80 service orgs expand their reach in/around Nashville, and OACS was proud to advise these students as they critically engaged with meaningful projects impacting thousands of people. This year saw 3,916 students enrolled in one of the service organizations OACS advises. This represents 58% of the undergraduate student body (an increase of 4% from last year). To learn more about the service orgs advised through OACS, please visit the website.

William Aaron Pathfinder Award Winner: Kelly Perry

Congratulations to Kelly Perry, the 2017 recipient of the William Aaron Pathfinder Award! Kelly has been a leader in service at Vanderbilt since her arrival. She is the president of VU Circle K International, a member of the OACS Student Advisory Board, a participant in Alternative Spring Break, and a recipient of the Nichols Humanitarian Fund. Kelly founded the Our Village, Our Family project for rural women in Chiang Mai, Thailand to receive medical treatment in the form of mammogram screenings. She is also Vice President of the Multicultural Leadership Council and VUcept, and is a staff writer for The Vanderbilt Review. Kelly is studying for her degrees in Creative Writing, Neuroscience, and Medicine, Health & Society.

The William Aaron Pathfinder Award recognizes juniors and seniors whose uncommon community service efforts and leadership skills demonstrate vision, creativity, and innovation. Named in recognition of William Aaron (Class of ’89), whose own path finding led to the creation of the Office of Volunteer Activities–now the Office of Active Citizenship and Service–this award celebrates Vanderbilt University’s extraordinary history of service to the community.

Thank You Search Committee!

OACS would like to thank our DOS partners for your involvement in the search committee for our new Program Coordinator. This committee, chaired by Nadine De La Rosa, was instrumental in finalizing the list of applicants down to three candidates, who will come to campus for interviews next week. The new PC will replace Meagan Smith, who was promoted to Assistant Director of OACS in February.

Global Service Programs

OACS celebrated our four global service cohorts on Sunday the 23^rd with our final seminar and a party in the Rand Skylight Lounge. Dr. Mitchell Korn from the Blair School of Music delivered the keynote lecture and Mr. and Mrs. Nichols were on hand to meet the 2017 recipients of the Nichols Humanitarian Fund. We now say bon voyage to these students as they begin the immersive component of their programs. This summer will see 55 students participating in the 6-week service immersion experiences between May and August. For more information about Global OACS, please visit the webpage.

VIEW

Congressman Jim Cooper shared with students enrolled in the Vanderbilt Internship Experience in Washington, D.C. (VIEW) program on April 18th about his career journey in public service. VIEW students were also able to ask the Congressman questions about how to prepare for a summer internship in D.C., books he recommends future public servants read, how the landscape of public service is changing, and more. We are very grateful for Congressman Cooper’s continued support of the VIEW program!

Immediately following Congressman Cooper’s talk, current VIEW students had the opportunity to hear from members of the 2015 and 2016 cohorts about the summer portion of their VIEW experiences. Former VIEW students shared about how to navigate the city, build meaningful relationships, and stand out as an intern in D.C. Many thanks to Liz Menard, Mary Marshal Anderson, Crystal Liu, Emma Stewart, Olivia Solow-Niederman, and Kevin Munoz for sharing your experiences with the VIEW 2017 cohort – we appreciate you!

OACS Service Vehicle Statistics

The students using OACS service vehicles have again made a substantial impact this semester. As vehicle usage statistics come in, we see that 122 students made a vehicle reservation this spring, contributing 3,564 hours of service in/around Nashville. More than 1,300 reservations were logged from January 2nd – April 25th, with education/mentoring the most common service area. OACS thanks our students for using these vehicles so efficiently and encourages the campus to discover how you can take advantage of the OACS service vehicle program.