Student development
Center for Civic Engagement
Binghamton University Students “Ditch the Dumpster”
Students at Binghamton University “Ditched the Dumpster” this spring as they moved off campus for the summer. Collection bins were placed in each residential community on campus for students who wished to donate unwanted electronics, household items and non-perishable food.
“In the past we have had multiple year-end collection initiatives on campus, including a Student E-waste Drive and the Center for Civic Engagement’s (CCE) Room Clean-Out Collection,” said Dali Lu, a December 2014 graduate from the School of Management. “This year we combined multiple year-end drives and promoted them with a more cohesive theme.”
Lu has spearheaded the organization of multiple e-waste drives on campus, and this semester she worked with CCE intern Sarah Connelly, a graduate student in the College of Community and Public Affairs, to coordinate the Ditch the Dumpster initiative. Lu and Connelly worked closely with the CCE, as well as with other departments on campus including Residential Life and Physical Facilities, to make the event successful.
“Even though everyone had their own role in this project, it was great to see how well the various on- and off-campus partners worked together to achieve common goals and help Ditch the Dumpster be as successful as possible,” said Connelly.
Last year the CCE’s Room Clean-Out Collection resulted in over 18,300 pounds of household items and electronics.
This year, that number grew by about 50 percent. In addition to collecting almost 22,000 pounds of household items, students donated 2,480 pounds of electronic waste, which will be either refurbished by students participating in Bridging the Digital Divide Program for use in community computer literacy classes or responsibly recycled by Geodis Wilson, a local firm specializing in the safe disposal of electronic waste.
More than 3,320 pounds of nonperishable food items were also collected and donated to the Community Hunger Outreach Warehouse.
“Ditch the Dumpster has a twofold positive impact on our community,” said Allison Alden, CCE director. “The collection of these items prevents thousands of pounds of waste from entering our landfills, and our students are able to directly help those in need in our community.”
President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll
Binghamton University has once again received the distinction of being named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, which recognizes institutional commitment to volunteering, service-learning and civic engagement. The University’s Road Map to Premier strategic plan includes “enhancing the University’s economic, social and cultural impact through engagement from the local to the global level” as one of its top priorities. This goal is realized through numerous forms of engagement across campus, including the work of groups like the student-run Student Volunteer Center, faculty who teach academic service-learning classes and conduct community-based research, and other programs and initiatives run by departments such as the Center for Civic Engagement.
Being named to the President’s Honor Roll is the highest federal recognition an institution of higher education can receive for its community service work. The Corporation for National and Community Service, who administers the Honor Roll process, is a federal agency that engages more than 5 million Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund and the Volunteer Generation Fund, and leads the President’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve. Binghamton University has been named to the President’s Honor Roll every year since its inception in 2006.
Services for Students with Disabilities
Binghamton University has long been recognized for its commitment to equitable access for students with disabilities and its collaborative approach to supporting the talented students who enroll here. Most recent examples of the ways in which we share our expertise beyond the campus include the following outreach activities by Services for Students with Disabilities:
• hosting a meeting in April by a regional consortium of college and university disability service providers
• presentations in June by professional staff at a SUNY Informational Technology Conference, the New York State Disability Services Council Conference and a regional Transition Support Group Meeting of high school personnel and ACCES-VR Counselors at a local BOCES.
Topics addressed by staff included:
• Higher education responsibilities and approaches to providing information access by students with disabilities through technology.
• Facilitating university-wide responses and partnerships in the promotion of access and success by students with disabilities.
• Supporting students with Autism Spectrum Disorder by providing a framework to facilitate their initiation and development of campus and community connections that nurture their growth, academically and socially, and foster their sense of community and career preparation.
• Preparing students with disabilities for a successful transition from high school to higher education.