NEWS RELEASE

Contact: David West (west@nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466

12/06/2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATCHITOCHES - Northwestern State University will be able to expand its community service and volunteerism in the Natchitoches area through a $15,000 grant from the University of Louisiana System.

The grant, "Can You Handle It?: NSU Service Week," was awarded under the first phase of a three-year, $1.2 million initiative called "ULS Serves" to increase service learning at the system's eight campuses. Funding is made possible by Learn and Serve America, a division of the Corporation for National and Community Service in Washington, D.C.

NSU will match the grant on a one to one basis. A total of 29 projects worth more than $600,000 received funding.

"The caliber of projects being funded is a testament to the leadership of our university presidents and the commitment of their faculty to make service learning a priority," said Sally Clausen, UL System president. "It is a significant step toward our goal for all students to have a meaningful service-learning experience before they graduate."

Northwestern's Division of Student Affairs will use the funding to expand its Service Week program. The initial Service Week was held in November and included community service, service learning, volunteerism and education on civic engagement.

"We learned quite a bit during our inaugural Service Week," said Northwestern Director of Wellness and Recreation Patric DuBois, who will oversee next year's Service Week. "We plan to utilize these funds to expand our ability to serve more in the community and expand our base of NSU participants in Service Learning."

The objective is to double the number of partnerships with local agencies and invite local organizations to submit special needs which can be solved by student involvement in service. The university also hopes to increase the number of partnerships between the Division of Student Affairs and academic units of the university to provide true service-learning opportunities for students.

"Students who connect to their communities through service become better citizens," said UL System Board Chair Jimmy Long of Natchitoches. "The potential impact of such a wide variety of projects and experiences bodes well for Louisiana's future."

Approximately 300 students, faculty and staff took part in NSU's first Service Week, which took place on the Northwestern campus and throughout Natchitoches Parish.

Activities included canned food drives, campus and cemetery cleanups, serving lunch and providing entertainment for senior citizens and raising money for area charities.

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