For the third consecutive year, the Corporation for National and Community Service has named Montgomery County Community College to the 2009 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. The honor roll is the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning and civic engagement.
In 2009, 1,110 Montgomery County Community College students and 180 faculty and staff engaged in over 8,904 hours of curricular and co-curricular service learning initiatives, including 34 students and staff who engaged in 288 hours of service over the College’s spring break.
Some of the varied projects throughout the year included service during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, “Think Pink” for Breast Cancer, and National Campus Sustainability Day.
Students in the College’s Health Sciences programs provided uninsured members of the community with free medical screenings, children’s dental programs and health and wellness education as a service learning component to their academic programs.
Student clubs and organizations spent 3,900 hours of service, and contributed thousands in monetary and item-based donations to 35 community partners, including the Pottstown YMCA, American Red Cross, Montgomery County Women’s Center, AIDS Fund of Philadelphia, the Salvation Army, Impact Thrift Stores, Habitat for Humanity, Manna on Main Street, and ACLAMO Family Services.
Funding and support from Learn and Serve grants through PHENND and partnerships with the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation have further enabled the College to expand its involvement in service-learning related opportunities.
According to the Corporation for National and Community Service, college students make a significant contribution to the volunteer sector. In 2009, 3.16 million students performed more than 300 million hours of service.
The Corporation oversees the Honor Roll in collaboration with the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Campus Compact and the American Council on Education.
