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Determined to participate in the national effort to give back to the community in honor of Dr. King’s legacy despite the fact that spring semester classes don’t begin until Jan. 18, Occidental schedules its day of service one week later, explained Ella Turenne, assistant dean for civic engagement.

“Community service is a hallmark of an Occidental education, and this gives us the opportunity not only to be of service to our community partners but to kick off the semester with a very public reminder of our shared commitment to the larger community of which we are a part,” Turenne said.

While many of the Occidental volunteers will be working at public schools, churches, and community centers in Eagle Rock, others will be working in Glendale, Pasadena, downtown Los Angeles, and as far afield as the Wildlife Waystation in Tujunga and Daniel Freeman Elementary School in Inglewood. In many cases, volunteers will be resturning to the same sites they supported last year.

Organizers worked with current community partners, Councilmember Jose Huizar’s office, and The Eagle Rock Association to identify groups to work with, Turenne said. “Our goal was to stay local and to work with organizations that we can build a long-term relationship with.”

Rafael Gonzales, chief service officer for the city of Los Angeles, Huizar, and Occidental President Jonathan Veitch will address the volunteers in Thorne Hall at 9 a.m. on Saturday. Volunteers will return to campus by 5 p.m. for a community dinner and to reflect on the day’s events.

Supported by its Center for Community Based Learning and the campus-wide Civic Engagement Task Force, service learning has been fully integrated into Occidental’s curriculum. Last year, almost half of Occidental students participated in service learning or community service, including 37 service-learning courses offered by 14 academic departments. Occidental has been designated a community engagement institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and named to the President’s Higher Education and Community Service Honor Roll for five consecutive years.

 

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