S E R V I C E
L E S S O N S
“This experience has challenged me to think about every aspect of service deeper than I ever had before.” M e g a n
W O R D S : K E L LY W I N D H A M • P H O T O S : J E F F F I T L O W
Houston is a city unlike any other — a city that has become a symbol of innovation, progress and globalization. At the heart of that city, Rice University stands as a testament to the hard work and revolutionary thought upon which the city thrives. But to leave the story there is to tell a halftruth, to paint a partial portrait of a city whose identity is swathed in layers of success and strife.
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rban Immersion, a Rice Community Involvement Center (CIC) program, has introduced incoming freshmen and transfer students to the “reality” of Houston for more than a decade. The program is an intensive, service-learning experience that provides students with a better understanding of the urban issues, social needs and cultural diversity that are so often ignored or misunderstood both within the city limits and beyond. Each summer, two sessions hosting a total of 48 incoming students are facilitated by six Rice undergraduate students and supported by two staff members. Urban Immersion connects with 20 service agencies around the metro area that focus on issues ranging from homelessness and hunger to workers’ rights, addiction recovery, education disparities, habitat conservation, urban pollution and domestic abuse. At each agency, the team is given an orientation that outlines the problem, the impact that problem has on both a personal and societal level, and the measures by which the agency is attempting to overcome the issue — from root causes to sustainable solutions. Each day, students take part in direct service projects and, in doing so, gain a greater understanding of both the issue and the world of nonprofit and service-driven organizations. Students learn to see service not as penance but as a mutually beneficial and rewarding experience crucial to their development as active citizens and invested members of a global city. Continued on Page 22
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Community Family Centers