On Thursday, Oct. 20, at the UCF Arena in Orlando, Rollins received triple honors at the Florida Campus Compact (FL|CC) 20th Anniversary Awards Gala for its drive and commitment to service-learning and engaged scholarship. This marks the fifth consecutive year that a Rollins faculty or staff member received such recognition from the organization.
FL|CC is a membership organization of over 50 college and university presidents committed to helping students develop the values and skills of active citizenship through participation in public and community service. Each year, the organization recognizes various staff, faculty, community members and campuses for their achievements in community service.
Not only were Assistant Director of Community Engagement Meredith Hein and Associate Professor of History Julian Chambliss recognized
at the event, but the school as a whole was recognized with a surprise, special 20th Anniversary Engaged Campus Award for its exemplary commitment to engagement.
Hein was recognized with the Community Engagement Educator Award. This award is given to one outstanding individual for his or her contributions to community engagement by inspiring a vision for service on the campus while supporting faculty, students and campus-community partnerships.
“During the five and a half years I have been a member of the Rollins community, I’ve understood the importance of being both a teacher and a learner,” said Hein. “My role has helped me learn, develop and grow as an educator. I am honored to receive the Engaged Educator award, as it reiterates how lucky I am to put my passions into action every day.”
Chambliss was awarded the Service-Learning Faculty Award for contributing to the integration of service-learning into the curriculum through innovative approaches to it, engaged-scholarship and institutional impact based on the Principles of Good Practice for Service-Learning Pedagogy.
Chambliss admits that he did not win this award on his own. “I received a lot of support from the Office of Community Engagement (OCE), my department and my colleagues related to service-learning,” he said. “Things have changed on campus as a whole. These types of activities are not outliers anymore. It is a testament to how far this institution has gone in embracing service-learning.” At the end of the gala, FL|CC said “Rollins was in a class of its own” as the only Florida school to garner the highest federal recognition a college can receive for its commitment to community service with its place on the 2010 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.
“This recognition is a testament to the hard work of the dedicated staff in the Office of Community Engagement and the students, faculty and staff who bring service learning to life and make a positive difference in the communities we serve,” said President Lewis Duncan.
Director of Community Engagement Micki Meyer is proud of Rollins’ achievements and growth in community engagement over the years. “The reason a college or university wins an Engaged Campus award is because so many areas of the campus are engaged in service work. It is not an individual office or its work, it is a collective effort of many people focused on creating progress and change,” she said.
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