Holy Cross Receives National Recognition for Community Service

WORCESTER, Mass. – The College of the Holy Cross 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.  Holy Cross is one of only 115 colleges nationwide to receive the honor “with distinction.”

Social justice and community service are long-standing traditions at Holy Cross.  Last year, more than 2,200 students (out of a total population of 2,900) dedicated 128,908 hours to working with community organizations.

“Holy Cross students have a deep-rooted commitment to being actively engaged in the life of the greater Worcester community.  Whether staffing summer camps; tutoring in the public schools; working with ex-prisoners or helping victims of domestic violence, their commitment is far reaching and life changing” says Katherine Robertson, special assistant to the president for community affairs at the College.  “Service is knit into every facet of a Holy Cross education, from athletics and spiritual life to academic programming.   Our students do not give lip service to the Jesuit principles of service and social justice; they live it.”

Holy Cross students come together into the community through a variety of programs including Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD), the College’s 30 year old community service student organization with more than 800 active student members and 40 program sites.

In addition, the College has developed multi-faceted collaborations with many local organizations to leverage a variety of College-based resources to assist partners achieve their missions and better serve their constituencies.  Among the partnerships highlighted in the application were:  Boys & Girls Club of Worcester; Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Mass.; the Nativity School of Worcester, the South Worcester Neighborhood Improvement Corporation, and Abby’s House.

The Honor Roll includes six colleges and universities that are recognized as Presidential Awardees, with an additional 115 named to the Distinction List, including Holy Cross.  Another 621 schools were named as Honor Roll members including local schools; Assumption College, Clark University, Worcester State College and Mount Wachusett Community College.  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.

Launched in 2006, the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll recognizes universities and colleges across the nation that encourage and support creative and effective community service and service-learning programs. The Honor Roll is part of the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the program is sponsored by the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation, the U.S. Departments of Education and Housing and Urban Development. This is the third time Holy Cross has been named to the Honor Roll, and the first time it has been recognized “with distinction.”