OCCE WELCOMES 106 FRESHMEN TO WFU WITH PRE-ORIENTATION
At the start of each school year, the OCCE invites first-year students to experience first-hand some of the core ideals of Wake Forest: leadership, tradition, and of course, Pro Humanitate. This fall the OCCE hosted 106 students, with the help of 36 upperclassmen as student leaders throughout pre-orientation.
In the days leading up to New Deac Week, freshmen had the chance to participate in either of the programs offered by the OCCE: Deacon Camp - which provides students a behind-the-scenes experience of the story of Wake Forest - and SPARC (Students Promoting Action and Responsibility in the Community), which allows students the opportunity to volunteer with various community organizations and learn about the issues impacting Winston-Salem.
VIRTUAL TUTORING PROGRAM CONTINUES TO IMPACT LOCAL K-12 CHILDREN
Although the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School System (WSFCS) resumed full-time, in-person learning for the 2021-22 school year, the OCCE's virtual tutoring program remained intact. The program - launched in April 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic - pairs WFU undergraduate and graduate student tutors with K-12 students for free, one-hour, weekly sessions that match the tutor's area of expertise with the student's area of academic need.
In all, 177 Wake Forest students volunteered each week throughout the fall semester to tutor 189 local WSFCS K-12 students from 40 different schools, recording 1,700 hours of volunteer service.
On December 2, tutors gathered in person for an end-of-semester celebration at the Benson University Center where they were recognized for their volunteer service. Six awards were distributed to outstanding virtual tutors:
- Outstanding New Tutor: Ashleigh Hampson
- Outstanding Returning Tutor: Ian Davis-Huie
- Outstanding Elementary School Tutor: Annie Russell
- Outstanding Middle School Tutor: Kate Heaney
- Outstanding High School Tutor: Sabrina Guan
- Outstanding Team Lead: Rebekah Lassiter
HIT THE BRICKS RAISES $202,787.85, BREAKS FUNDRAISING RECORD FOR SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR
Hit The Bricks, the annual campus tradition which raises money for the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund, had a record-breaking day on Sept. 30, setting a new record for participants (1,693) and total money raised ($202,787.85). The milestone marked the first time the event surpassed $200,000 in annual funds raised since it began in 2003 and comes just a year after the event surpassed the $100,000 fundraising feat for the first time in 2020.
Together, members of the Wake Forest community, including students, alumni, faculty, and staff circled Hearn Plaza for 22,789 laps or just under 5,700 miles.
Funds raised from Hit The Bricks support the Comprehensive Cancer Center at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. Given this year’s total, Hit The Bricks and other student-led initiatives have raised nearly $5 million for the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund.
STUDENT VOTING SKYROCKETS AT WFU, DEACS RECOGNIZED FOR VOTER ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS FOLLOWING 2020 ELECTION
In the midst of a global pandemic and remote learning environment, Deacs Decide designed innovative programs to engage student voters. The OCCE and Deacs Decide partnered to host voter registration drives and March to the Polls events. The hard work paid off, and Wake Forest was recognized for record-breaking registration and turnout.
A year after the 2020 election, Wake Forest students were awarded for their efforts, receiving a gold seal by organizers of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, a national nonpartisan initiative of Civic Nation. There are five seal levels, and WFU was one of 195 that received the second-highest recognition, celebrating campuses with a voter participation of 70%-79% or higher in the 2020 Presidential Election. In 2020, 78.2% of eligible WFU students voted, surpassing the national rate of 66%.
After seeing a 29.9% voter turnout increase from 2016 — when just 48.3% of eligible WFU students cast their ballots — WFU was also recognized at both the state and athletic conference level, earning the Most Improved Voter Turnout Award during the North Carolina Campus Voting Challenge Award Ceremony and DemocrACCy Athletic Conference Voting Challenge, respectively.
WFU NAMED AMONG AMERICA'S BEST COLLEGES FOR STUDENT VOTING SECOND YEAR IN A ROW
Following the 2020 presidential election, Wake Forest University has been recognized as one of “America’s Best Colleges for Student Voting in 2021” by Washington Monthly. Universities that demonstrated a high level of commitment in encouraging students to vote were selected for the annual honor roll list.
The recognition marks WFU’s second time being named to the list, now in its sixth year, after first making the list in 2020. Wake Forest joins seven other schools from the state of North Carolina and was one of 205 schools selected from across the country.
HARVEST TABLE BUILDING COMMUNITY DAY
On September 23, 2021, the Office of Civic & Community Engagement partnered with Harvest Table Culinary Group and the United Way of Forsyth County for Harvest Table’s annual Building Community Day of Service.
Together, volunteers assisted with a home rehabilitation project and helped pack welcome home kits for 35 new residents who are moving into the community. At the end of the day, Harvest Table provided a community meal for the surrounding residents and volunteers to share.
The overall goal of the project is to create affordable housing under a fair market rate for individuals matched to a housing program, create job skills through mentorship and apprenticeship programs, and build a community center that will provide support and wrap-around services to improve the overall lives of its residents.
PROJECT PUMPKIN BRINGS FESTIVE FUN TO THE COMMUNITY
After Wake Forest's oldest philanthropic event was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Project Pumpkin returned in 2021 with a re-envisioned format.
This year, in partnership with the City of Winston-Salem's Fall Festival, the event was moved from its traditional location on the Reynolda campus to existing events at four local community centers. In addition, two separate school-based events were held throughout the afternoon for students enrolled in both the Kimberly Park Elementary and Speas Elementary after-school programs.
In all, 113 Wake Forest student volunteers came together to set up booths, run activities, hand out candy, and more, interacting with over 400 local children throughout the evening.
CAMPUS KITCHEN CELEBRATES 15 YEARS at wake forest
For 15 years, The Campus Kitchen at Wake Forest University has repurposed food that would have otherwise gone to waste, back into the Winston-Salem community. By partnering with a network of civic, non-profit, and private organizations the Kitchen has helped develop innovative solutions to reduce food insecurity in our community.
Officially opening its doors in 2006, The Kitchen has continued to grow every year since. Its operation consists of nearly 20 weekly shifts where students cook and deliver hot meals, and sort and redistribute produce across the greater Winston-Salem area. Since it first began, The Kitchen has recovered 566,377 pounds of food, served 137,937 meals to the Winston-Salem community, engaged 13,154 volunteers for 44,256 hours of service, and partnered with 29 local organizations.
TURKEYPALOOZA FEEDS 601 COMMUNITY MEMBERS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
Every November, Campus Kitchen celebrates TurkeyPalooza by preparing scratch-made turkey dinners for its community partners in celebration of the Thanksgiving Holiday. After scaling back in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, TurkeyPalooza celebrated its biggest accomplishment to date in 2021, delivering over 601 meals throughout Winston-Salem. With the help of 104 Campus Kitchen volunteers and over 170 volunteer hours spent cooking and delivering food, Wake Forest students made 501 meals that were delivered to 14 different community partners throughout Winston-Salem.
This year, Harvest Table Culinary Group, the University’s on-campus food service provider, prepared an additional 100 meals for Morning Star Church, that were delivered in partnership with Campus Kitchen volunteers.
OCCE WELCOMES NEW COHORT OF ACE FELLOWS
This fall, nine Wake Forest University faculty began a two-year fellowship to deepen their community-engaged work. Through the Office of Civic & Community Engagement’s Academic Community Engaged (ACE) Fellows program these faculty create projects and partnerships that connect their teaching and research to the Winston-Salem community.
The 2021-2023 cohort includes:
- Alexandra Brewer, Assistant Professor, Sociology
- Erin Brinkley, Associate Professor, Counseling/School Counseling Program Coordinator
- Brian Calhoun, Associate Professor of the Practice, Education
- Courtney Di Vittorio, Assistant Professor, Engineering
- Andrea Gómez-Cervantes, Assistant Professor, Sociology
- Hannah Harrison, Assistant Teaching Professor, Writing
- Lauren Miller, Assistant Teaching Professor, Spanish
- Ryan Shirey, Associate Professor, Writing/Director, WFU Writing Center
- Mir Yarfitz, Associate Professor, History
16 AMERICORPS*VISTA MEMBERS JOIN THE WINSTON-SALEM COMMUNITY ACTION COALITION
Wake Forest University is home to the largest AmeriCorps Volunteers in Service To America (VISTA) project in the state of North Carolina. This fall, the Winston-Salem Community Action Coalition welcomed 16 new members. VISTA members are placed in full-time, capacity-building roles with community organizations throughout Winston-Salem. Focused on poverty alleviation, members work in the areas of educational equity, economic empowerment, and health and food justice.
- Jesalyn Bolduc, Lead Girls of NC
- Lee Bowser ('21), Twin City Harm Reduction Collective
- Elliot Copeland ('21), Winston-Salem MIXXER
- Aurora Fulp, The Forsyth Promise
- Robert Gifford, HandsOn NWNC
- Katie Hilderbrand, VISTA Leader
- Crystal Jones, Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina
- Natalie Lunsford, Piedmont Environmental Alliance
- Maya McCoy, Boston Thurmond Community Network
- Cierra Palmer, The Campus Kitchen at Wake Forest University
- Sabrina Pratt, Latino Community Services
- Molly Sohn ('20), Crosby Scholars
- Ben Tellefsen ('20), Office of Civic & Community Engagement - Education Equity
- Beniamin Twardowski-Bentkowski, Neighbors for Better Neighborhoods
- Joy Williams, Office of Civic & Community Engagement - Health Equity
- D'Andre Winston, ABC of NC
WINTER FOOD AND COAT DRIVE HELPS WINSTON-SALEM COMMUNITY
As the holidays grew closer and temperatures dropped, the Office of Civic & Community Engagement joined forces with local organizations and the campus community to provide holiday meals and winter clothing to Winston-Salem residents. In all, 260 holiday meal kits, 107 coats, 80 blankets, 80 pairs of warm socks, and 48 winter hats were distributed to the community through the winter food and coat drive.
The initiative was made possible thanks to a partnership with the Harvest Table Culinary Group - WFU's food service provider, a $2,000 grant from the Alliance for Strong Families, $1,000 in monetary donations, and a generous donation of an additional 150 meal kits from Food Lion.
