UMass Dartmouth earns top 20 national ranking for civic engagement for fourth straight year

University earns national finalist designation for economic opportunity initiatives,
and national distinction for general community service, education, and interfaith
efforts

WASHINGTON, D.C. — For the fourth straight year UMass Dartmouth has earned a
national top 20 ranking on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor
Roll. A total of 766 institutions of thousands nationwide received rankings by the
Corporation for National Community Service (CNCS).

UMass Dartmouth was one of four higher education institutions in the nation to be
designated a finalist in the economic opportunity category, one of four categories
established by the CNCS. UMass Dartmouth was also awarded national distinction
status in the general community service, education, and interfaith efforts. UMass
Dartmouth is one of only two New England institutions to achieve a top 20 ranking.

“Civic engagement is integral to the teaching, learning, and research that occurs
here at UMass Dartmouth,” said interim Chancellor Peyton R. Helm . “Not only do
these initiatives help strengthen the economic, cultural and social fabric of the
community, they create life-changing opportunities for our students to develop the
skills and knowledge that every citizen needs.”

UMass Dartmouth students annually perform more than 230,000 hours of community
service, valued at nearly $7 million.

Dr. Matt Roy, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Civic Engagement, added: “From
harvesting crops for regional food pantries to creating marketing plans for
non-profits to providing low-cost legal assistance for people at risk, our students
and faculty are having an enormous impact on the quality of life beyond the campus.”

Since 2009, the number of students exposed to a service learning experience (a
credit-bearing course where community-based service is embedded in the class), has
grown from 3,378 per semester to 6,333. The number of faculty teaching service
learning classes has grown from 96 to 159. Now over 80% of UMass Dartmouth graduates
have at least one service-learning experience.

A sample of UMass Dartmouth’s civic engagement activity includes:

AmericaREADS and Counts : Last year, more than 200 students provided more than
24,000 hours of tutoring and mentoring to at-risk elementary school students in New
Bedford and Fall River.

Sharing the Harvest : The Graduate Senate Student and the Leduc Center for Civic
Engagement helped harvest thousands of pounds of produce at the Dartmouth YMCA Farm
to be sent to area food pantries.

The annual Leduc Center for Civic Engagement Youth Summit teaches hundreds of area
high school and middle school students how to effectively engage in the community.
The Summit also includes an effort to distribute food to thousands of people
worldwide.

MLK Day of Service – More than 500 students and residents served more than 1,500
hours in an interfaith day of service at Gifts to Give, where surplus clothing,
books, and toys are recycled, re-purposed and gifted to children and families in
need.

The South Coast Development Partnership is a UMass Dartmouth-based coalition of
education, business and civic leaders working to foster area innovation and
entrepreneurship.

The School for Marine Science and Technology (SMAST) in New Bedford, focuses its
research on sustainable fisheries, coastal protection, and climate change.

The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship helps early-stage companies grow and
mature. More than 20 such companies are now located at the incubator.

The College of Visual and Performing Arts has a major facility in downtown New
Bedford, attracting $90 million of investment to the area and serving as a creative
economy catalyst.

The School of Law’s Justice Bridge program has established legal service incubators
in New Bedford and Boston to provide legal help to people who cannot afford such
help.

Alternative Spring Break programs sent students to local area organizations for
interfaith service activities, to North Carolina to build homes for people in need,
and to Guatemala improve water systems last year.

The College of Nursing Bridging the Atlantic program exchanges students and faculty
with the Azores to focus on community health issues.

The School of Education has multiple programs focused on developing school leaders
and improving educational attainment in the region.

At the Center for Rehabilitation Engineering , students and faculty create custom
technical solutions for clients with physical challenges.