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Colleges Building Community: USciences Joins With Three PA Institutions in Service Partnership
Service coming from the heart can touch a life for an hour or a day – but when caring
is powered by data and analytics, it can transform entire communities. That’s the
thinking behind a multi-partner initiative that engages the academic prowess of four
institutions of higher learning with partner agencies already engaged in service from
the heart.
The program, dubbed Colleges Building Community, brings Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) together with Keystone College, Lackawanna College and University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (USciences) to design “living case
studies” that place students at the center of data-driven service projects.
The first such project will take place on Thursday, Aug. 23 at GCSOM. On that day,
more than 220 students from the four institutions will assemble 10,000 meals on behalf
of Scranton nonprofit, Here For A Reason, which will then deliver them to students
at three Scranton School District elementary schools, where as many as 85 percent
of the students live at or near poverty level. Educational activities begin at noon
with the actual packaging event commencing at 2 p.m.
“Every year at this time, the Scranton area experiences a huge influx of young people
pursuing higher education – that’s also a huge influx of intellectual curiosity, idealism
and energy. Our idea is to seize the great opportunity teaching provides us to apply
science and academic rigor to things that might be considered ‘service projects’ in
a way that will transform our communities,” said Scott Koerwer, EdD, GCSOM vice dean for graduate studies and vice president of strategy, planning
and communication. “In effect, our projects become living laboratories to test and
measure the impact of things we do to address issues like food insecurity that are
harming the health and wellbeing of our neighbors.”
Rather than duplicate efforts already underway, Colleges Building Community intends
to work with partner agencies to bolster and expand existing services. For the Aug.
23 event, students will work with Here For A Reason.
“After packaging meals last fall, Here For A Reason began distributing those meals
in the spring,” said Mike Hauser, director of Here For A Reason. “McNichols Plaza, Adams and Bancroft were the pilot
schools for our program. These were identified by the school district administration
as schools where many families struggle with food insecurity. Each family was offered
the opportunity to opt in to our meal delivery. Distributed by the teachers on Fridays,
right before the weekend, the packages we provide have everything necessary to make
a healthy, nutritious meal for everyone in the student’s family.”
Here For A Reason found several local donors willing to fund the project, but the
focus was necessarily on the immediate need to feed hungry people, not on measuring
impact or using metrics to shape future projects. "Partnering with academia will provide
the information we need to know how to serve the community more effectively going
forward,” Hauser said.
“We are incredibly proud to be a founding partner of this service and research project.
Because the Scranton community – and in particular, our school district -- suffer
overwhelming consequences of poverty and all that comes with it - food insecurity
and lack of proper nutrition - academics are often not first on the priority list.
Making this project a living case study will allow us to understand the opportunity
for a profound impact to our community. As members of the higher education community
in our area, we have a responsibility to do something and not just talk about this
problem, but take action together to help solve the issues of poverty in our region,”
said Jill A. Murray, Ph.D., executive vice president and chief innovation officer, Lackawanna College.
Brian Ebersole, senior director, Geisinger’s Springboard Health, said it is important to get the
community active and involved in addressing issues like food insecurity that affect
everyone – regardless of socioeconomic status. “When all children are well fed and
able to focus on academics, the entire community is better off – everyone wins,” he
said. “That’s why an engaged community is so important. College and university students
are an important part of that engagement. Mobilizing them to learn about and help
solve pressing problems in our neighborhoods is a welcome development.”
“Service is an integral part of the USciences student experience as so many are preparing
for careers in the healthcare and science fields, so we are proud to partner with
Colleges Building Community to amplify the impact of our students,” said Patti Vanston, vice president for business development and enrollment management at USciences.
“This partnership will help put service into perspective by taking our students out
of the labs, classrooms, and clinics to redirect their analytical skill toward finding
solutions to the real problems impacting families in our region every day. We look
forward to the evolution of this partnership and the opportunity to support many more
communities in the years to come.”
Dr. Koerwer agreed, saying that students are not just packaging meals. They will learn
about the problem of food insecurity from multiple perspectives and the impact that
delivering meals to families provides. Follow on projects are planned to continue
to the experiment. Impact will be measured and tracked over time to create a “living
case study” based upon Colleges Building Communities’ community interactions.
“Colleges Building Community brings together four outstanding educational institutions
for a common purpose to help young people and their families enjoy much-needed healthy
and nutritious meals they otherwise may not receive,” said Fran Calpin, Keystone College senior director of college relations. “The project also teaches
Keystone students, and all students involved, the importance of helping those in the
community. Finally, the data that’s collected and analyzed will help with future community
projects. Keystone College is honored to be involved with Colleges Building Community.”
About Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine
Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (Geisinger Commonwealth) is a member of the Geisinger family. Geisinger Commonwealth offers a community-based model of medical education with campuses in Danville, Doylestown, Scranton, Sayre and Wilkes-Barre. Geisinger Commonwealth offers Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Master of Biomedical Sciences (MBS) degrees. The school’s innovative curriculum, focused on caring for people in the context of their lives and their community, attracts the next generation of physicians and scientists from within its region in northeastern and central Pennsylvania, as well as from across the state and the nation. The school also has over 440 graduate medical students in 24 residency programs and 19 accredited fellowships. Geisinger Commonwealth is committed to non-discrimination in all employment and educational opportunities. For more information, visit www.geisinger.edu/gcsom, or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.
Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (Geisinger Commonwealth) is a member of the Geisinger family. Geisinger Commonwealth offers a community-based model of medical education with campuses in Danville, Doylestown, Scranton, Sayre and Wilkes-Barre. Geisinger Commonwealth offers Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Master of Biomedical Sciences (MBS) degrees. The school’s innovative curriculum, focused on caring for people in the context of their lives and their community, attracts the next generation of physicians and scientists from within its region in northeastern and central Pennsylvania, as well as from across the state and the nation. The school also has over 440 graduate medical students in 24 residency programs and 19 accredited fellowships. Geisinger Commonwealth is committed to non-discrimination in all employment and educational opportunities. For more information, visit www.geisinger.edu/gcsom, or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.
Categories: News, USciences, Community, Students, Community Service, Student Life