Welcome back!

Welcome to another year of service learning at Oakton Community College. There is a lot going on as we get started afresh. This summer we were awarded a grant from the American Association of Community Colleges/Broadening Horizons Through Service Learning. We excited to be partnering with The Talking Farm, a local non-profit devoted to education and action around sustainable urban agriculture. Over the year we will be exploring ways in which we can integrate material on local food systems and urban agriculture into our curriculum at the same time we get students involved in some of the work that The Talking Farm is doing in our district.

This year the local OCC agency directory is available online! I have posted the directory on my OCC homepage. If you here to search for volunteer opportunities at sites across our district and region. Other resources for service learning students can by found by clicking here.

Short service projects

Are you someone who would like to get involved in your community, but between work, school and personal responsibilities it is often hard to find the time to make a regular commitment? Why not give a couple hours to one of these upcoming community events? They can really use some help from you to make them a success!

1. The OCC Ecology Club will be working to prepare the new community garden site at the Des Plaines campus on Earth Day, April 22 between 10:00 a.m. and 3 p.m. Interested volunteers should meet near building exits 31 and 32 (near classroom 1469).


2. The Oakton Helping Others Club will be collecting donations for Misericordia during its annual Candy Days drive on April 23. If you are interested in helping, contact Princess Escudero in the Ray Hartstein Campus Office of Student Life (847-635-1443). If that's too much, then volunteer to collect donations that day for a couple of hours right on the Des Plaines campus. Contact Krissie Harris in the Des Plaines Office of Student Life (847-635-1699).


3. The Green Committee will be working on getting the community garden at the Skokie campus ready for planting on Friday, April 30 from 9:00-3:00. Meet at the garden site behind the main entrance to the building.


4. Help out with a "Paper for the Pantry" drive on Saturday, May 1. This event benefits the Self-Help Closet and Pantry of Des Plaines. Volunteers will be handing out flyers at selected grocery stores and collecting donations of paper products. The drive runs from 9:00-12:00. Volunteers can choose between earlier (9:00-10:30) or later (10:30-12:00) shifts. For information call the City of Des Plaines Health and Human Services Department, 847-391-5480.

Even a few hours of your time will make a hugh difference in someone's life.

Volunteers Wanted: Misericordia Jelly Bean Candy Days

If you're still in search of a service project -- or just looking for an opportunity to help out in the community -- why not join with other OCC students and participate in the annual Misericordia Jelly Bean Candy Days. This fundraiser raises money for the many different programs and services Misericordia provides to children and adults with developmental disabilities.

On April 23 and/or April 24, you could be one of 12,000 volunteers throughout the metro region who pass out candy and informational tags in exchange for donations of any size. Working the streets, sidewalks, and store fronts in the city and suburbs, you will be helping Misericordia in its mission and giving something back yourself.

If you are interested and think you can give a minimum of 2 hours on either Friday or Saturday, then you should contact Princess Escudero in the Student Life office in Skokie before April 1. Her telephone number is 847-635-1443 and her email is princess@oakton.edu.

The deadline for signing up is April 1.

Giving New Life to Old Shoes -- Part 2

As mentioned in a previous blog entry, the OCC Green Committee's current campus-wide campaign to collect gently-used shoes is in partnership with Nike's Reuse a Shoe and Soles4Souls. Here's a bit more information about those organizations and what's going to happen to the shoes YOU donate.

The shoes collected through Nike's Reuse a Shoe program will be processed in order to obtain high-quality ground rubber, foam, and fiber. These“Nike Grind” materials are then used for surfacing tracks, gym floors, outdoor basketball and tennis courts and indoor wood courts in more than 300 sport and playground surfacing projects around the world. Since 1990 this global effort has resulted in more than 25 million shoes being recycled and reused.

The Soles4Souls slogan is “changing the world -- one pair at a time.” This Nashville-based charity collects shoes from the warehouses of footwear companies and the closets of generous individuals and families. These are then donated free of charge to people in need, regardless of race, religion, class, or any other criteria. Some of the shoes collected for Soles4Souls at OCC will be sent to Haiti.

Get involved in this green initiative. Spread the word, donate shoes, and donate some time to make this a success.

National Volunteer Week

National Volunteer Week is scheduled to run from from April 18 to April 24. Sponsored by the Points of Light Institute and HandsOn Network, this year's theme is CELEBRATING PEOPLE IN ACTION. This point of celebrating this week is to recognize the invaluable contributions made by thousands of individuals every day of the year. Together, their actions make our communities better places to live.

The OCC Service Learning progam and the Office of Student Life are planning a week's worth of activities and events in connection with National Volunteer Week. We want to call attention to the many different ways that our students, faculty, staff and administration are making a difference in the lives of others. Watch for the schedule in the weeks to come!

Shining a spotlight on Everyday Heroes

For the past four years, OCC accounting instructor Jody Padar has partnered with Ladder Up, a non-profit organization in Chicago that is helping hardworking families climb above the poverty line. Students enrolled in her Income Tax Accounting class (ACC244) apply what they learn in class by helping low-income families prepare their annual tax returns. The number of students involved in this project has grown over the years as the word has spread and this year fellow accounting instructor Janet Thullen has gotten her students involved too. All told the total number of volunteers this year stands at 90.

There is no question that these OCC students are providing a valuable service to others in the community. Last year, with 29 OCC students involved, Ladder Up estimated the economic impact of the students’ work at $239,030, mostly through the earned income tax credits that low-income families received. From the beginning of February until mid-April, students spend their Saturday mornings at sites across Chicago and the suburbs. Each volunteer typically serves about five families over the course of one session, with family receiving about $1,300 in refunds.

What do the students take away from this experience? For one, they get the satisfaction of knowing that they are making a huge difference in the lives of low-income families. Second, they get a chance to apply what they learn in the tax accounting class to the real world – not only strengthening the learning that goes on, but gaining an experience that they can put on their resumes. Finally, they get a chance to network with accountants from leading firms across the region. On any given Saturday they are likely to meet volunteers from companies like Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, J.P. Morgan Chase, or Ernst & Young. Down the road, the connections they make on these Saturday mornings could pay off in terms of their professional advancement.

Hats off to this wonderful group of everyday heroes!

Giving New Life to Old Shoes

Perhaps you’ve noticed a cardboard collection box outside the Division III office in Des Plaines and the Faculty Support Office in Skokie. They are part of a great project being sponsored by the OCC Green Committee this spring. The Committee has partnered with two non-profit organizations, Nike's Reuse a Shoe and Soles4Souls, to collect and recycle gently-used shoes.

Throughout the month of March collection boxes will also be placed by the information desk and early childhood areas on both campuses as well as in each division office. The collection boxes will remain outside the Division III office in Des Plaines and the Faculty Support Office in Skokie until the end of the semester.

Are you an OCC faculty member looking for a project for your students or an OCC student looking for a way to get involved? The Green Committee would be thrilled to welcome any support students would care to provide! Students can help out in several different ways. They can develop and distribute publicity targeted to the students and their immediate families. They can give the word out by getting information to student clubs on campus and/or going to classes to do presentations. They can help with sorting and preparing the shoes and assist with delivery.

Interested students could contact any of the following:
Bunny Lynn - lynn@oakton.edu, X1713
Maria Haske - mhaske@oakton.edu, x1952
Robin Nash - rnash@oakton.edu, x1971