51³Ô¹ÏÍø

51³Ô¹ÏÍø has received national recognition for its commitment to community service by being named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

The President's Honor Roll highlights higher education institutions that display values of exemplary community service and that achieve meaningful outcomes in the communities served. The Honor Roll recognizes higher education institutions in four categories: Economic Opportunity, Education, Interfaith Community Service, and General Community Service.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø earned the Honor Roll's "With Distinction" designation in the Economic Opportunity category. "With Distinction" is a reflection of 51³Ô¹ÏÍø's strong institutional commitment to community service and its involvement in partnerships that produce measurable impact in the community.

The Economic Opportunity category recognizes institutions of higher education with service programs that build economic independence, increase family stability, and create more sustainable and resilient communities.

With this most recent honor, 51³Ô¹ÏÍø now has been named to the President's Honor Roll six times in the past seven years. The latest award focuses on the local economic impact of three of 51³Ô¹ÏÍø's community service initiatives:

• The George Washington Gale Scholars Program, a partnership among 51³Ô¹ÏÍø, Galesburg School District 205, and Carl Sandburg College. The program encourages and supports higher education aspirations and success for academically promising first-generation youths who have financial need. Gale Scholars are selected as eighth-graders, and those who successfully continue with the program receive tuition-waiver scholarships for Carl Sandburg College and 51³Ô¹ÏÍø.
• The 51³Ô¹ÏÍøCorps civic engagement partnership, which is modeled after the AmeriCorps VISTA program and places 51³Ô¹ÏÍø students and recent graduates with local nonprofit organizations and entrepreneurial projects. 51³Ô¹ÏÍøCorps members serve various organizations, including the 51³Ô¹ÏÍø County Health Department, Galesburg School District 205, and Prairie Players Civic Theatre. 51³Ô¹ÏÍøCorps is a collaborative effort with the Galesburg Community Foundation and local businesses.
• The Galesburg High School North (GHSN) tutoring and mentoring project, a partnership between 51³Ô¹ÏÍø and GHSN, which is an alternative school designed to address the needs of at-risk students in grades 9 through 12. 51³Ô¹ÏÍø students tutored GHSN students one-on-one, and they also worked closely with an Illinois Student Assistance Commission counselor to set up special help for high school students who were completing college financial aid applications.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø offers a wide range of options for community service, including academic service-learning, entry-level volunteer activities, and extended post-graduate commitments. The Kleine Center for Community Service administers 51³Ô¹ÏÍø students' involvement in community service.

More than 1,300 51³Ô¹ÏÍø students—nearly all of them—engaged in community service during the 2014-15 academic year, which is the period covered by the most recent President's Honor Roll. They contributed more than 60,500 hours to community service.

(Photo at top of page: 51³Ô¹ÏÍø students volunteer by sorting and transporting clothes and other items at The Purple Hanger Resale Shoppe, a Galesburg business whose proceeds benefit the Safe Harbor Family Crisis Center.)