Oglethorpe University Receives National Recognition for Community Service, Named to President’s Honor Roll

ATLANTA, Ga., (March 10, 2010) – Oglethorpe University has been named to the 2009 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning and civic engagement. This is the fourth consecutive year the university has received this honor.

The Corporation for National and Community Service, which administers the annual Honor Roll award, recognized more than 700 colleges and universities for their impact on issues from poverty and homelessness to environmental justice. On campuses across the country, thousands of students joined their faculty to develop innovative programs and projects to meet local needs using the skills gained in their classrooms. Business students served as consultants to budget-strapped nonprofits and businesses, law students volunteered at legal clinics, and dozens of others organized anti-hunger campaigns. 

“Congratulations to Oglethorpe University and its students for their dedication to service and commitment to improving their local communities,” said Patrick Corvington, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service. “Our nation’s students are a critical part of the equation and vital to our efforts to tackle the most persistent challenges we face. They have achieved impactful results and demonstrated the value of putting knowledge into practice to help renew America through service.”

The Honor Roll includes six colleges and universities that are recognized as Presidential Awardees, with an additional 115 named to the Distinction List and 621 schools named as Honor Roll members. Honorees are chosen based on a series of selection factors including the scope and innovation of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses. Click here for a full list of Honor Roll recipients.

Oglethorpe's Center for Civic Engagement has become the leading force in integrating the Oglethorpe educational experience with the community. The Center focuses on four key areas of service: education, environment, health and wellness, and homelessness and hunger. During the 2008-2009 academic year:

· 424 students engaged in community service through OU’s Center for Civic Engagement
· 175 students engaged in 20+ hours of service
· 90 volunteer projects were completed and 5,550 volunteer hours were contributed through CCE projects
· 158 students participated in a service-learning class
· Volunteer projects included a Day of Service at Atlanta’s Grant Park, Hands on Atlanta Day at Cook Elementary, and an Alternative Winter Break to New Orleans with Habitat for Humanity

“Oglethorpe University has a long history of community service,” said President Lawrence Schall. “A commitment to service is an ideal that’s integral to Oglethorpe’s identity as a higher education institution and we strive to embody it every day. In fact, our motto at Oglethorpe is ‘Make a life. Make a living. Make a difference.’”

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.