Nearly 700 students contributed 43,361 hours of community service in 2008-09 to earn University of Lynchburg a place on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for 2009.
LC, which was also on the honor roll in 2006 and 2008, was one of only 16 colleges and universities in Virginia to make the list. In addition, Emory & Henry College received one of the top six presidential awards, while The College of William and Mary made the presidential honor roll with distinction.
“One of the eight core values adopted by the University of Lynchburg Board of Trustees is ‘community,'” President Kenneth R. Garren said. “We honor this value through teaching its fundamental importance to our students; we embrace this value by faculty, staff, and students laboring together in service to a community centered in the City of Lynchburg that radiates to our brothers and sisters across the globe.”
LC was recognized for its service to the Greater Lynchburg community and beyond. General community service projects included: international justice awareness and fundraising for Uganda, monthly service projects, and campus community collections for basic living needs.
Special focus area projects included: College Hill Neighborhood School music project (Lynchburg, Va.), St. Lucia International Service Learning, and Ygyrls Mentoring and Tutoring Program in local high schools.
The Honor Roll, launched in 2006, recognizes more than 700 colleges and universities nationwide that support innovative and effective community service and service-learning programs. The Honor Roll’s Presidential Award, given each year to only a handful of institutions, is the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning, and civic engagement.
College students make a significant contribution to the volunteer sector; in 2009, 3.16 million students performed more than 300 million hours of service, according to the Volunteering in America study released by the Corporation. Each year, the Corporation invests more than $150 million in fostering a culture of service on college campuses through grants awarded by its programs; the education awards that AmeriCorps members receive at the conclusion of their term of service to pay for college; and through support of training, research, recognition, and other initiatives to spur college service.
The Corporation oversees the Honor Roll in collaboration with the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Campus Compact and the American Council on Education. For the complete Honor Roll list, check http://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/honor-roll.
For more information, contact Chris Gibbons, director of Office of Community Involvement, LC’s volunteer program, at 434.544.8640.