Local Service Fair kicks off a year of student service with 60 participating groups

From tutoring to book and food donations, from home construction to mentoring, the Bennett Campus Center and Bison Square was full of opportunities for Lipscomb students to give back to their community on Tuesday, Sept. 14.

 

The Local Service Fair brought 60 local nonprofit groups (the highest number ever) to campus in hopes of luring Lipscomb University students to volunteer for their various causes. Book’ Em, the YMCA of Middle Tennessee, Big Brother Big Sisters, the Nashville Public Library and Habitat for Humanity are just a handful of the organizations who hope to recruit student volunteers.

 

For a complete list of Local Service Fair participants click here.

 

“With one of our largest freshmen classes ever this year, it’s important that all students realize the wealth of service opportunities out there in our community,” said Christin Shatzer, director of the SALT (Serving and Learning Together) program, which coordinated the service fair along with Student Missions. “Lipscomb has a reputation for responding quickly and overwhelmingly to the community’s need. So organizations are excited to have the chance to share their service opportunities with the students.”

 

It shouldn’t be that hard a sell. Lipscomb’s students put in about 121,910 hours of community service during the 2008-09 school year, thanks in part to university programs such as missions, campus ministry and SALT.

 

Every student attending Lipscomb must fulfill specific service-learning requirements and SALT oversees that process by matching up students with appropriate service opportunities and enhancing classroom instruction with service projects.

 

Building on Lipscomb’s long tradition of community service, SALT has enhanced student volunteerism even more, resulting in Lipscomb’s selection in the 2009 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, recognizing colleges and universities nationwide “for exemplary, innovative and effective community service programs.”

 

In addition, Lipscomb was recently ranked at 65th nationwide among master’s universities in the Washington Monthly College Guide, an annual ranking that recognizes universities’ efforts to give back to their communities and their nation. Lipscomb ranked higher in the master’s category than any other Tennessee university and was the only Nashville university listed among the top 100.

 

Lipscomb’s high ranking was due in large part to Lipscomb’s large number of student service hours, which was ranked the third highest in the nation in the master’s category.

 

“Instead of asking what a college could do for you, we asked, ‘What are colleges doing for the country?’” wrote the editors in the 2010 guide, which ranks master’s universities for the first time. “Is it laying the foundation for the kind of nation we want to become?”

 

“Selfless service is ingrained in Lipscomb students from the first week they are on campus. Before classes even begin, students are asked to participate in a service day during freshman orientation,” Shatzer said. “And before the SALT program has even been fully implemented, Lipscomb has produced 11 SALT scholars, who voluntarily work long hours to complete a service-learning capstone project before graduation.”

 

For more information on SALT and service learning at Lipscomb click here.