DEEP Service Siena College Academic Community Engagement News Magazine | Spring/Summer 2016
Inside This Issue: ACE Hosts INSPIRE Conference Students Present at Siena Talks: Change MLK Day of Service Economics of Crime Course Alumni Spotlight
DEEP Service
Highlights
Academic Community Engagement News Spring 2016
06 ACE Hosts INSPIRE Conference
515 Loudon Road Loudonville, New York 12211 (518) 782-6886 (main) (518) 786-5080 (fax) ace@siena.edu www.siena.edu/ace
In collaboration with Montclair State University’s Bonner Program, ACE hosts the 2016 INSPIRE Conference.
Published By
08 Students Present at Siena Talks
Center for Academic Community Engagement
Ryan Vyskocil ’17 and Gabrielle Treiling ’17 presented at Siena Talks: Change on the importance of indirect service.
Design Jennifer Hunt Editors
13 Writing Partnership Successes
Jennifer Hunt, Allison J. Schultz
The Writing Partnership sponsors 35 refugee students from the Albany community to attend Bishop Maginn High School.
Contributing Writers Lizandra Cruz ’16, Brittany Drollette ’16, Sarah Ferritto, Kelly Finn ’16, Lauren Grenier ’16, Jessica Guthrie ’16, Julia Hess ’15, Heather Kelly ’16, Cassandra Krom, Erin Lamouret, Kimberly Martell, Billy Mayer ’18, Shae Voorhees ’16, Ryan Vyskocil ’17
18 Community Engaged Course Ashley Provencher, Ph.D., immerses students in the criminal justice system of the Capital Region.
Contributing Photographers Center for Academic Community Engagement students and staff
23 Alumni Spotlight
Printer Silver Griffin Printing and Copying Troy, New York
Former Siena College AmeriCorps VISTA alumna, Megan Lynch, selected to intern in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
On the Cover ACE Summer Service Scholars pose in front of the Stephen & Harriet Myers Residence. Inside Cover An assortment of photos from the Center for Academic Community Engagement 2016 Winter Retreat, an annual event that brings ACE students and postgraduate volunteers together midway through the academic year to reflect on their community engagement experiences.
Departments 04 08 14 18 22
ACE News Undergraduate Stories Postgraduates Stories Community Partnership Highlights ACE Alumni Notes
ACE NEWS
ACE Makes Waves During Summer Gear Up 2015 By Kelly Finn ’16 and Shae Voorhees ’16, Bonner Service Leaders Before the 2015-2016 academic year began, approximately 80 undergraduate students from the Center for Academic Community Engagement gathered on August 24, 2015 for ten days of service, training, and fun to prepare for their upcoming year of service. ACE Summer Gear Up occurs annually and aims to allow students to prepare, reflect, and “gear up” for a full year of service. Students participate in a variety of workshops, service, and social activities to learn more about the community, their fellow ACE members, and themselves. This year’s event was the largest that it has ever been, and successfully introduced students to the Capital Region while challenging them to step outside of their comfort zone. Highlights of Summer Gear Up include our “Capital District Immersion,” which is a chance for students to explore neighborhoods in Albany and Troy, and connect with locals to learn more about the area and the communities in which they will be serving. Students also spent a day at Grafton Lakes State Park playing games while enjoying the warm weather and water! One of the most important aspects of our ten-day program is the opportunity for students to serve. As a center rooted in the Franciscan tradition, one of our primary goals is to serve those who need it most. During Summer Gear Up, we participated in three days of service at a variety of community partners in the area. The students learned more about nonprofit partners in the region, as well as how their efforts positively impact the community. This event is sponsored annually by the Dake Family of Stewart’s Shops. We are grateful for their generosity and their belief in our mission and our students. ACE Summer Gear Up 2015 was an extraordinary success in encouraging students to “gear up” for the academic year and work to make a difference in the Capital Region! We are getting excited for our next ACE Summer Gear Up coming up in August 2016.
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April Backus ’12 Recognized as National Bonner Fellow by the Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Foundation April Backus ’12, Associate Director for Undergraduate Programs at the Center for Academic Community Engagement at Siena College, has been recognized as a National Bonner Fellow for the Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Foundation. The fellowship seeks to leverage and support leadership for civic engagement and campus-community partnerships. Backus has already shared ideas and resources, including models for students’ four-year training and peer mentorship, with the Bonner Foundation’s national network of colleges and universities. Selected from a competitive pool of applicants, Backus will serve in this role for two years. Read the full press release on siena.edu/ace
MLK Day of Service at Siena College By Jessica Guthrie ’16, Bonner Service Leader The MLK Day of Service at Siena College is an opportunity for both Siena and local high school students to serve the communities of the Capital District in the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This year, the 3rd annual MLK Day of Service was held on January 23, 2016. Approximately 100 Siena students and 10 high school students from both Albany Leadership High School and Green Tech Charter School served in the community during this event. Students participated in service projects with local community partners including: 15 Love, the American Red Cross, Capital City Rescue Mission, Catholic Charities, Interfaith Partnership for the Homeless, Parsons Family and Child Center, Pride Center of the Capital Region, Ronald McDonald House, The Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany, and Unity House. The service projects involved tasks such as sorting supplies, painting, cleaning, and cooking meals; the projects reflected the needs of the community partner site where students served.
At the end of the day, all students regrouped at Siena to reflect about the service they completed and how their actions embodied the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. During the reflection session, students discussed the different projects they participated in at the various sites throughout the day and Dr. Paul Murray gave a brief speech about Dr. King and how his legacy lives within the service we participate in with others. At the end of the day, participants felt enlightened through the service they provided the community and the reflection session allowed them to think about their service to others in the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. DEEP SERVICE MAGAZINE
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ACE NEWS
ACE Hosts INSPIRE Conference By Billy Mayer ’18, Bonner Service Leader
INSPIRE. One word. Three days. Months of planning. Huge impact. This year, the INSPIRE Conference was held March 11-13, hosted collaboratively at Siena College by the Siena College Center for Academic Community Engagement and Montclair State University’s Bonner Program. The conference engaged over 120 people from across the Northeast in conversations about many different social justice issues facing our country, and our world today. Our opening day was filled with a lot of positive energy, icebreakers, and excitement as participants prepared to live by the hashtag #justactnow and embrace the weekend. The day ended with karaoke, a movie, and a few board games. On Saturday, the participants had a full day, beginning with a student panel in which students from different colleges spoke about what service 6
means to them and how they are engaged in their community. Then the students participated in workshops facilitated by experts in each field, including professors, advocates and students. The workshops ranged from nonprofit management to LGBTQ rights to the understanding of privilege. Each workshop and discussion group aimed to uncover another segment of social justice. After participants engaged in each of these discussions, they were encouraged to get familiar with the Capital Region through “dinner on your own,� with their respective groups. In the evening, the day was wrapped up with a talent show, where participants showcased their many talents.
The conference engaged over 120 people from across the Northeast in conversations about many different social justice issues facing our country and our world today. On Sunday, the conference ended with discussions around how participants would take what they learned and utilize it in their own communities and on their campuses. Overall, INSPIRE focused on the theme of utilizing the ideals of social justice in every day life, and putting them into attainable action steps, rather than abstract concepts. So, remember to live by the motto of #justactnow in everything you do.�
ACE Welcomes Director of Academic Integration We are proud to welcome Dr. Paul Thurston to the ACE team. Dr. Thurston will serve as the director of academic integration at ACE. He will co-direct the center with Allison J. Schultz, director of programs. Dr. Thurston comes to us with a wide array of experience and knowledge. In the past seven years he has offered nearly thirty sections of community engaged courses serving more than a dozen community partners. Dr. Thurston is an associate professor in the Department of Management at Siena College where he teaches community engaged courses in management principles, organizational strategy, organizational development and change, and management research methods. He received his doctorate in organizational studies from The University at Albany, State University of New York in 2001. His research interests include organizational engagement and effectiveness, mentoring, leadership, business strategy, organizational justice and organizational policies. He is a retired Air Force officer and has recently worked as a director for The Group for Organizational Effectiveness, Inc. Beginning in Summer 2016, Dr. Thurston will work to increase the number of faculty who are actively engaged in community partnerships as well as deepen their level of commitment to community engaged learning experiences.
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UNDERGRADUATE STORIES
Community Policy Institute Fellows Present at Siena Talks: Change By Ryan Vyskocil ’17, Community Policy Institute
Early in the Spring 2016 semester, Ryan Vyskocil ’17 and Gabrielle Treiling ’17 of the Community Policy Institute (CPI) presented at the “Siena Talks: Change” event on the importance of indirect service. The Siena College Damietta Cross-Cultural Center hosted the event during which Ryan and Gabrielle contributed to a series of “change” themed student presentations given on campus. There were two overarching themes of the presentation: homelessness and indirect service. While talking to many members of the Siena community, Gabrielle and Ryan used the homelessness research project that CPI had worked on during the Fall 2015 semester, which exemplifies why it is essential that direct service efforts be coupled with equally strong indirect service efforts. Direct service is an important aspect of ACE’s community-engaged work; it is both educational for the students from the Siena community, as well as beneficial for the members of the community at large. It is equally important for indirect service efforts to strive to address social justice issues at the roots of the problems, largely done through policy change. As Gabrielle Treiling discussed in the presentation, the founding of indirect service programs in the Center for ACE, such as the Community Policy Institute and Nonprofit Excellence and Transformation (NEXT), helps the center become a more holistic service organization, allowing ACE to continue advocating for and working toward sustainable change in the Capital Region. 8
Seniors Present Their Capstone Research Projects at Siena’s Annual Academic Celebration At the end of each academic year, Siena students present their original research at the College’s Academic Excellence Celebration. For the 2015-2016 academic year, eight ACE participants including Bonner Service Leaders and Dake Scholars presented projects highlighting their communityengaged work.
Bonner Service Leaders Kathleen Bender ’16: “The Effects of After School Programming on the Development of At-Risk Girls” Brittany Drollette ’16: “Culturally Relevant Sexual Education and Medical Services for Indigenous Bolivian Youth” Elizabeth Farah ’16: “Promoting Healthy Eating in Food Deserts: A Corner Store Initiative in New York’s Capital Region” Kelly Finn ’16: “Group Psychology within Community Organizing: The Beginning of a Regional Food Assessment” Jessica Guthrie ’16: “Preparing Student Teachers for Teaching in High-Poverty, Urban Schools” Shae-Leigh Paparella-Voorhees ’16: “Urban Culture or Growth of Supermarkets?: The Creation of Food Deserts in Urban Low Income Communities”
Dake Scholars Marybeth Condon ’16: “Creative Placemaking in Arbor Hill and Sheridan Hallow” Nicholas Daly ’16: “The Care Required for Food Recovery”
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UNDERGRADUATE STORIES
Heather Kelly, NEXT Fellow and Team Project Leader, talks about her role in the NEXT Program What is your role in the NEXT Consulting program? I am a team leader in the NEXT program this semester. I am responsible for leading a group of students through a project with a partner-client.
What inspired you to join the program?
Heather Kelly, Siena College Class of 2016, is a marketing major and multimedia minor. She had the opportunity to work with a nonprofit organization during a management course at Siena and would love to continue participating in service with other nonprofits. As she finishes her second semester leading a project team in NEXT, Heather enjoyed working with other members of the NEXT team while also helping the community and local nonprofit organizations. After graduation, Heather looks forward to continuing to gain valuable skills while also taking advantage of the real world experience.
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I had the opportunity to work with a nonprofit organization my sophomore year at Siena through a management course. I wanted to continue to help nonprofits in the Capital Region. This program is also an amazing opportunity to gain hands-on experience and improve professional development skills.
What client issues are you working on? My client focuses on homelessness issues. They are interested in a future partnership and we are currently working with them through the partnership exploration process to fulfill this interest.
What have you learned through the process of being a consultant? As a consultant, I have had the opportunity to improve my public speaking skills during presentations at board meetings in front of clients. I have also gained analytical skills by participating in research projects. I compiled the information we analyzed in a presentation with the rest of my team.
What impact has the NEXT Consulting program had on you? I had the opportunity not only to improve my professional skills, but also to develop close friendships with my NEXT teammates. My confidence in my professional skills has also increased since my involvement began. I am more comfortable in situations where I would have been hesitant prior to joining the program.
Last Summer: Summer Service Scholars Serve the Capital Region By Julia Hess ’15, Siena Marketing and Communications During Summer 2015, twenty-three college students, including fourteen Siena Saints, participated in the Summer Service Scholars. Sponsored by Siena’s Center for Academic Community Engagement, this program brings together students from Siena and other colleges to serve in New York’s Capital Region. Students conduct research or complete an internship during a 9-week, 300-hour term of service. Victoria Freire ’16 worked as the community outreach and youth education coordinator for Centro Civico, a community organization serving hispanics and families in need. Centro Civico promotes selfsufficiency by helping Albany and Montgomery County community members find jobs or a place to live, teaching them English, and helping them to become citizens. Freire coordinated the Center’s Summer Youth Employment Program and the annual Community Health Fair. “Most summers I spend my entire time working a meaningless job. This summer I decided that my time could be better spent gaining experience in a nonprofit sector, which is something I might want to pursue after college,” said Freire, who was able to coordinate the organization’s Summer Youth Employment Program and the annual Community Health Fair. The program also hosted Susannah Berry from
Hobart and William Smith Colleges to serve at the Underground Railroad History Project and Jasmine Thomas from Bard College, who served with the Troy Boys and Girls Club. Siena College is committed to helping students like Berry, Thomas, and Freire bring their passion for service to life and help their communities. “Siena provided me with a vessel to channel my passion. Through the countless opportunities to give back to my community, I have grown personally and professionally,” said Freire. “Having service be a Siena pillar has only provided me with mentors and like-minded people that have helped me combine my major, service, and passion into a future career.” Summer 2016 ACE has expanded the Summer Service Scholars program with the generous support of a grant from Pioneer Bank and our AmeriCorps VISTA grant. The program will host 30 Summer Service Scholars at nearly 20 community partner sites.
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UNDERGRADUATE STORIES
Second Annual College2Kids-Kids2College By Brittany Drollette ’16, Bonner Service Leader If you were on Siena’s campus towards the end of winter break, you might have noticed a bit of a difference in the make-up of the student body. Where college students roamed just a few weeks before, 240 twelve-year-olds from Troy Middle School now stood. On January 13 and 14, ACE welcomed the entire sixth grade class from Troy Middle School as a part of the 2nd annual College2Kids-Kids2College event through Siena’s Center for Academic Community Engagement. From September through January, the students have been completing college access curriculum through their Home and Careers Class, which culminated with a visit to our campus in order to get a better idea of what college life is really like. While at the college, the young students attended class sessions given by Siena professors 12
and ate in the dining hall. Throughout the twoday event, the middle schoolers sported Class of 2026 bracelets and lanyards, as well as Siena cinch backpacks. Looking like little Saints, being at Siena filled the students with excitement about the prospect of attending college. They began to say things like, “I can see myself going here,” or “This place seems really cool.” These comments fueled the ACE volunteers’ energy to keep the busy event going strong, and reinforced for them that they were leading a successful event. Although the days were long, we wouldn’t trade the experience for any other. C2K-K2C is a rewarding way to help youth see higher education as an attainable goal, and that is a cause worth all of the time we can give.
Writing Partnership Sponsors 35 Refugee Students By Lizandra Cruz ’16 and Lauren Grenier ’16, Community Corps Although the journey for the Writing Partnership Inc. has not been an easy one, it has well been worth all the challenges that the team has experienced. Spearheaded by Dr. John Harden, Assistant Director, Office of Student Success and Academic Advising, the program has seen an increase in enthusiasm from its volunteer-based participants in helping Karen refugee students, an ethnic minority from Burma, enhance their conversational reading, writing, and speaking skills. Our weekly sessions promote an increase in literacy skills, communication, empowerment, and the development of relationships that foster a sense of belonging in the community. After battling hardships including a loss of Siena student volunteers with the shifting structure of the First Year Seminar courses, a loss of funding, finding curriculum that would be beneficial to our students, and dealing with last minute challenges that often came our way, the program has prevailed and continues to grow today. In Fall 2014, the program was officially recognized as a Siena club. The student coordinators continued to take the program to higher levels, establishing it as a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization in early 2015. This past year the Writing Partnership continues its success story. As a nonprofit, the Writing Partnership is currently sponsoring 35 refugee students from the Albany community to attend
Bishop Maginn High School. Due to increased Siena student support and participation in the program as volunteers, the Writing Partnership outgrew its space at Albany Public Library and moved to Bishop Maginn High School this academic year where it currently serves seventy participants. With all of these transitions and challenges that our site has faced, our student coordinators have adapted accordingly. Our coordinators successfully
promote a flourishing program using the skills that they have developed through trainings that have been an integral part of Community Corps, a program that not only influences those students involved in service, but also those in the community that they serve.
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POSTGRADUATE STORIES
Serving with Junior Achievement of Northeastern New York By Erin Lamouret, AmeriCorps VISTA Fellow
As an education manager at Junior Achievement of Northeastern New York (JANENY), I am responsible for creating and maintaining our programming needs for elementary schools within the Albany, Troy, Lansingburgh, and Rensselaer school districts. I advertise and assess the demand for our financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship programs, as well as orient teachers, and then recruit, train and place volunteers into the classroom. Additionally, I am also in charge of data entry and registration of all volunteers, schools, and programs in my region. To connect with Siena College, I have forged several partnerships with other community partners, either for volunteers or program requests. Thus far, we have partnered with the Girl Scouts, the Albany Police Athletic League, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany after school programs, and I am working on a partnership with the Capital District YMCA. I have also partnered with Professor Deb Kelly, a professor of management at Siena College, to recruit. Many of my proudest moments are times when I have been successful in re-energizing a school partner that had been inactive for many years. Because all of my schools are considered to have the highest need, every new classroom, teacher, or principal that I am able to re-establish as a partner makes a difference. Even the small amount of knowledge we can provide in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship could make a world of difference. As of yet, my future goals have not been 100% defined, but I would like to spread the joy of learning that I have had all my life to children. If you are passionate about the subject, there are no limits to what you can learn.
I advertise and assess the demand for our financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship programs, as well as orient teachers, and then recruit, train and place volunteers into the classroom. 14
Being a Mentor and Coach to the AmeriCorps VISTA Fellows By Cassandra Krom, AmeriCorps VISTA Leader A VISTA Leader has a wide range of responsibilities, but I would argue that none are more important than the role of coach and mentor to the VISTA team. While there is great value to making connections with community partners and other programs nationally, a well-motivated and developed team is essential. As a VISTA, my leaders played an integral role in coordinating programs that helped me grow both personally and professionally. This was done not only through trainings, but also through monthly one-on-one meetings where we discussed my progress and how to continue on that productive path. These are the things I kept in mind when I accepted the title of VISTA Leader; I hoped that I could motivate and develop the incoming team of new VISTAs and the members of my cohort who chose to serve another year. At the halfway point in our service term, the team is succeeding in doing great work for the Capital Region community. I would never do them the disservice of taking credit for it, but I hope that some of the skills they have used in doing their work were honed during trainings our VISTA Leader team has coordinated or that they were set on their path through guidance our VISTA Leader team provided. My goal during my service term has been to listen to the ideas of our amazing cohort and help make those ideas a reality so they can better serve their sites and the Capital Region as a whole.
VISTA Video Showcase Each year, the Siena VISTA program hosts a VISTA Video Showcase at Siena College to share their films with fellow VISTA members and the community. Each VISTA is tasked with producing a film about their VISTA work or experience being a national service member. The creation of these films gives VISTA Fellows an opportunity to reflect on their service journey, share their voice, as well as learn a new skill. This year, the VISTA Fellows showcased some of the best films since the event’s inception. They touched on important community issues including youth development, homelessness, hunger, college access, and literacy. At the end of the event, particularly well-done films won awards for best soundtrack, best message, best cinematography, and people’s choice. Their months of preparation paid off. Visit the ACE YouTube Channel to view a variety of ACE participant videos about community-engaged projects happening in the Capital Region.
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POSTGRADUATE STORIES
Strengthening Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Initiatives at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany By Kimberly Martell, AmeriCorps VISTA Fellow My VISTA journey began in July of 2015 at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany. I arrived just as the facility was finishing up major renovations and had the opportunity to witness the transformation. As the technology and program resource developer, my role has been to develop and strengthen Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) resources and also programming for my site. Having majored in marine science in college, STEM has been a major passion for me and I deeply understand the need for STEM. One of my main responsibilities is managing the STEM App Inventor Grant that I won from Verizon. Through this grant, I had the opportunity to attend a training in Atlanta, GA where I learned how to effectively teach youth how to code and develop
mobile apps. I used this knowledge to implement pilot programs at several sites including the Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany, Hackett Middle School, and Albany Community Charter School. STEM isn’t emphasized enough in schools, so programs like App Inventor are crucial in giving youth the opportunity to be exposed to these topics. Additionally, like any other nonprofit, I assist with an array of other tasks including marketing and fundraising. My experience at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany has allowed me to gain the skills necessary to make a difference in my community and enact change. While I am unsure of my future career path, I am confident I will strive to make a positive impact!
Icons: P.I. by Mister Pixel from the Noun Project, Atom by To Uyen from the Noun Project, Gear by MĂĄrcio Duarte from the Noun Project, Erlenmeyer Flask by Aneeque Ahmed from the Noun Project
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Coordinating Youth Programs at the Center for Academic Community Engagement By Sarah Ferritto, AmeriCorps VISTA Fellow My service site is Siena’s Center for Academic Community Engagement (ACE) and I started serving in July 2015. I am the coordinator of youth programs so I am responsible for making sure that ACE’s youth programs run smoothly. My role involves attending meetings for the programs and supporting the Siena students who facilitate them. I also coordinate trainings for students several times each semester. One of the things I like most about my position is that there are many built in connections to Siena. All of the people who dedicate time to ACE Youth Programs are Siena students, which ensures sustainability. One of the most rewarding aspects of my work has been seeing the growth of the students. Many of them are in their first year of college or new to their positions. I have noticed how much their professional and leadership skills and their confidence has grown over the course of my first six months. I feel accomplished knowing that I get to be a part of their development. Another thing I am proud of is my improvement in the area of training. Before starting my position, I had never planned or facilitated a training. Now I have completed several and I have learned a very useful skill. In the future, I would like to continue working in the nonprofit industry, preferably with an organization benefiting women or the LGBTQ community. I definitely think my experience as a VISTA will be beneficial as I pursue this career path.
Taylor Booth ’15 Develops PLAY, ACE’s Newest Program PLAY is a student-led initiative that was created in 2014 by women’s soccer player Taylor Booth ’15. After Booth graduated in 2015, she spent a year as a postgraduate Stewart’s Shops/Dake Fellow developing the program. PLAY uses sport as a tool to engage and connect student athletes with youth of the Capital Region. PLAY fosters meaningful relationships while teaching lessons of sport and allowing for development and growth. PLAY is a voluntary program that is initiated by student athletes. A community partner is selected to partner with members from the team for a three-year partnership. Two student athletes from each team volunteer to be team leaders, and are responsible for building curriculum, planning sessions, and acting as a liaison between ACE and the team members. The partnership is active during the student athletes’ off-season and is made up of six sessions followed by a celebration event for the youth and a reflection session for the student athletes.
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COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Economics of Crime: Immersing Students in the Criminal Justice System of the Capital Region By Julia Hess ’15, Siena College Marketing and Communications Ashley Provencher, Ph.D., assistant professor of economics, is teaching her students the ins and outs of the criminal justice system in the Capital Region. Her course, Economics of Crime, has taken Provencher almost a year to put together, offering her students a myriad of guest speakers and firsthand opportunities during the semester long course. In the Fall of 2014, Ashley participated in the Center for Academic Community Engagement’s Faculty Bus Tour and was introduced to the Community Accountability Board (CAB) at the Albany County District Attorney’s Community Justice Outreach Center (CJOC), a satellite office located in Arbor Hill. CAB is a community based, diversionary program that targets first-time, non18
violent offenders. The Bus Tour introduces Siena faculty, like Provencher, with local community programs in hopes of fostering collaboration. These partnerships are not only important for the organizations, but provide an innovative and rigorous academic experience for the Siena students. “What was really wonderful is that, in addition to working with real world data and being able to produce a report that will be useful beyond this semester, the students learned to use a new statistical software program – STATA,” said Provencher. Provencher worked from February to May 2015 with Siena VISTA Leah Godin and CJOC Bureau Chief Amanda Kyle-Sprague to code all of the CJOC’s paper case files. They then worked with the
NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services to match the criminal history records of CAB participants with their case files. Provencher’s students worked to analyze the data during the semester to estimate the recidivism rates of CAB participants and were able to present their findings to Albany County District Attorney David Soares and Bureau Chief Kyle-Sprague. A technical report co-authored by the students and Provencher also will be delivered. “The D.A. is really interested in the work that we’re doing,” said Dylan Keyer ’16. “Not because he thinks it’s great that we care, but because he actually wants to know this information. He will only get the information if we do the analysis and present it to him as a professional technical report. There are not many classes where you get these amazing opportunities.” Provencher wanted her students to understand criminal justice in the Capital Region. To give them the full picture, she brought in restorative justice scholars such as Dr. David Karp of Skidmore College and Duke Fisher; cost-benefit coordinator for the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services Marc Schabses; civil rights advocate Dr. Alice Green; and local police officers. In addition, Provencher and her students traveled to observe CAB case hearings, sentencing at Albany City Court, and incarceration at local and state correctional facilities. “It’s one thing to have someone come in and tell you about what’s going on in disenfranchised neighborhoods. But when you’re able to drive through the city, you realize these aren’t just statistics. You see these people’s lives and the conditions they’re in,” said Keyer. Provencher plans on continuing her work with the CJOC well after the semester ends. Her personal research on program evaluation and criminal justice reform will keep her connected with the program. The Economics of Crime course was supported by a Cross-Cultural Solidarity Experience Grant from the Damietta Cross-Cultural Center. It is also a Community Engagement (ACOM) class supported by ACE’s Community Engaged Teaching and Learning (CETL) program.
“The D.A. is really interested in the work that we’re doing,” said Dylan Keyer ’16. “Not because he thinks it’s great that we care, but because he actually wants to know this information. He will only get the information if we do the analysis and present it to him as a professional technical report. There are not many classes where you get these amazing opportunities.” - Dylan Keyer ’16
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COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Upcoming Partnerships
Homelessness
Education Opportunity
CARES Inc. is working with the Community Policy Institute to develop a series of workshops each focused on a different issues faced by the homeless in the Capital Region. Additionally, ACE will be placing a VISTA Fellow with CARES NY for the 2016-2017 service year. This fellow will be working on the Capital Region Coalition to End Homelessness.
The Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany is growing their VISTA program! They will host two fellows for the 2016-2017 service year. They will continue their current VISTA placement working on coordinating their technology programming and grants, and they will also add another fellow to support their operations and volunteer management.
Housing
The Habitat for Humanity of the Capital District has formed a partnership with ACE. They now have Bonner Service Leaders serving with their organization and coordinating Women’s Build opportunities. Additionally, the Habitat Re-Store will have a VISTA Fellow serving with them for the 2016-2017 service year. This fellow will be working on Habitat communications projects.
Recent Guests on WVCR’s 88.3fm Change Makers WVCR’s weekly radio show Change Makers, organized and hosted by Siena ACE students and postgraduate volunteers, features a wide range of Capital Region nonprofit leaders. Recent guests include Boys and Girls Clubs of Albany Director of Operations, Jimmy Bulmer ’12; and awardwinning artist, community volunteer, and Executive Director of Albany Center Gallery, Tony Iadicicco. Each guest provides valuable insight into key community issues faced by the Capital Region and the Change Makers hosts encourage listeners to get involved. Tune in every Saturday at 10:30 a.m.
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Icon credits: Silverware by Pavel N. from the Noun Project, Home by Edward Boatman from the Noun Project, Children by misirlou from the Noun Project, Tree Hand by Arthur Skripnik from the Noun Project, Globe by Jon Prepeluh from the Noun Project
Health
Community Development
Food Security
The Albany Damien Center and the Center for Academic Community Engagement have formed a partnership. The Damien Center will host a VISTA Fellow for 2016-2017. This fellow will work on their Economic Opportunity and Healthy Futures initiatives to build capacity for the organization.
St. Catherine’s has formed a partnership with ACE this year. St. Catherine’s will host a VISTA Fellow for 2016-2017 service year and they will be hosting Summer Service Scholars in the Summer of 2016. This work will be indirect and focused on supporting St. Catherine’s community development, including access to housing and resources.
Capital Roots is involved with ACE’s Community Engaged Teaching and Learning program on a food access study that includes Siena and other colleges throughout the area. They also will be hosting a VISTA fellow for a new position this upcoming 2016-2017 service year, a Bonner Service Leader team, and multiple Summer Service Scholars.
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ALUMNI NOTES
ACE Alumni Notes Bonner Service Leaders April Backus ’12 was recently recognized as the National Bonner Fellow for the Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Foundation. Francis Butler ’15 recently completed the first year of his Alliance for Catholic Education Teaching Fellowship at Notre Dame University. Claudia Congemi ’14 is a community development specialist at Girl Scouts of Greater New York. Jensen Daniel ’13 recently returned from completing the PeaceCorps in Senegal, West Africa. Brittany Drollete ’16 recently received The ACE Engaged Scholar Award for embodying the integration of service and academics. Upon graduation, she will serve a year in the City Year program in Miami. Elizabeth Farah ’16 received The ACE Life of Service Award for embodying the integration of service and academics into her long-term professional and career goals. After graduation, Liz will be completing a year of service as a college access counselor for inner-city youth in Providence, Rhode Island. Kelly Finn ’16 recently became a postgraduate Bonner fellow with the Siena College Center for Academic Community Engagement. She was also awarded The Nicholas Ramundo ‘14 Award for her enthusiasm and spirit to grow, build, integrate and support the ACE community.
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Jessica Guthrie ’16 recently received The ACE Academic Achievement Award for having the highest grade point average among her graduating class. Shae-Leigh Paparella-Voorhees ’16 received The ACE Life of Service Award for embodying the integration of service and academics into her long-term professional and career goals. After graduation, Shae will be a domestic violence youth services educator for Catholic Charities. Sophia Pierre-Charles ’12 is currently in a clinical psychology program at the American School of Professional Psychology in Arlington, Virginia pursuing a doctorate in clinical psychology with a concentration in forensics. Amanda Simone ’11 is doing a residency in internal medicine at North Shore/LIJ.
AmeriCorps VISTA Fellows and Leaders Emma Bettiol, soon-to-be VISTA Fellow alumna (2015-2016), has signed on for a second year of service with ACE. Tarsis Gotay, soon-to-be Siena VISTA Fellow alumna (2015-2016), plans to attend University at Buffalo School of Social Work program to obtain a master’s degree in social work. Jennifer Hunt (Simek), former Siena VISTA Fellow and VISTA Leader (2009-2012), graduated from the University of Southern California with a master’s degree in communication management.
Terence Parker, soon-to-be VISTA Fellow alumnus (2015-2016), plans to attend law school at the University of Notre Dame. Marissa Peck, soon-to-be VISTA Fellow alumna (2015-2016), has been hired as the Greater Capital Region food system assessment coordinator at Capital Roots.
Stewart’s Shops/Dake Fellows Taylor Booth ’15 recently accepted a position at New York University and her involvement in developing and leading ACE’s Partnering Leaders and Youth (PLAY) program played a significant role in her obtaining the position. Conor Quinn ’15 completed his first year of graduate school at Rockefeller College.
NEXT Consulting Samuel Ash ’16 is currently working for a digital marketing agency in Saratoga Springs. He plans on getting a few years of experience before going back for his master’s degree in business administration. Caroline Bertholf ’15 completed her NEXT Postgraduate Fellow year and will begin law school at Syracuse University this fall. Anna Brooks ’16 has accepted a position as a Consultant at NYSTEC. Anna also plans on attending graduate school to obtain her master’s degree in data analytics in the near future. Heather Kelly ’16 plans on getting a job in the marketing field and attending graduate school.
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Photos by Nuala Purcell
Megan Lynch Selected to Intern in Belfast, Ireland By Jennifer Hunt, AmeriCorps VISTA Alumni Former Siena College AmeriCorps Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) alumna, Megan Lynch, was recently selected among a competitive pool of candidates for an internship at KRW LLP, a human rights law firm in Belfast. This summer, she will be working in the legacy litigation unit representing families in civil claims for allegations of collusion by state agencies and paramilitaries during the Troubles conflict in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Reflecting on how she got to where she is today, Lynch said “VISTA prepared me for PeacePlayers which in turn provided the foundation for my selection to intern in Belfast this summer.” From 2011 to 2012, Lynch served as the volunteer coordinator at Unity House in Troy. During her year of service, she reached out to stakeholders, developed a volunteer orientation and appreciation event, and created training and evaluation tools. After VISTA she moved to Belfast in Northern
Ireland to work for PeacePlayers International, an organization that unites communities in conflict through sport. As an international fellow, she coordinated and facilitated cross-community programs bringing together children and youth. Upon completing her two-year fellowship, she returned to New York to attend CUNY Law School, the public law school in New York City dedicated to public interest work. Following her first year of law school, she received a summer fellowship through the Sorensen Center for International Peace and Justice to travel to Bogotá, Colombia and intern with Women’s Link Worldwide, an organization that uses the law as a tool for social change by advocating for the rights of women and girls. Currently, she is a legal intern at the Economic Justice Project representing students that receive public assistance in administrative hearings. In her final year she plans to take part in the Human Rights and Gender Justice clinic. DEEP SERVICE MAGAZINE
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