Engage Community Newsletter

Chris Skrable,
Service-Learning Coordinator

In this month’s edition of Engage, we are joining the broader Loyola, Chicago, and national communities in their commemoration of Earth Day, focusing on various Loyola efforts on behalf of our environment. The key word in most all of these efforts is “sustainability.” That is, everyone is asking how we as individuals and as a society might change our way of living so as to minimize our (negative) impact on the environment…or to phrase it more positively, how we might live so as to fully respect the rights of others (other human persons; other species; other generations) to live as well, both now and in the future.

The idea of sustainability presumes an underlying worldview that I find very useful when conceptualizing the work done through the various service-learning classes here at Loyola. Most importantly, this worldview—which we can describe as ecological—stubbornly rejects any form of individualism, understanding that all of us are interconnected with all other living beings, and that the decisions we make are always shaped by and inevitably have consequences not only for ourselves but also for all of the world. When this principle is applied to epistemology (the philosophical study of our knowing), it reminds us that all our learning is contextual: that is, what and how we learn is always shaped by where and when we do that learning. And once we remember this fact, it makes perfect sense that we should seek to learn as much as we can, not only in the classroom, but also in and through explorations and experiences in the broader community.

But the ecological worldview also highlights the ethical implications of our learning and knowing. Because we are so interconnected, all our actions—including our thought and speech acts, our learning acts!—have consequences for the broader community of living beings. We need to consider what we do as taking part in a complex web of rights and responsibilities that we either uphold and fulfill or violate and ignore. In this light, it makes sense that we would ask, not merely “What do I know?” but also “What can I do with what I know?”…and still more specifically, “How can I serve with what I know?”

Finally, the ecological worldview explicitly addresses the longitudinal implications of our acting and learning. It recognizes that actions have consequences, not merely for us-here-today, but also for those-here-tomorrow: for future generations. The best community-engaged coursework does the same, asking not only what can be done today, but also considering what new projects today’s actions will empower in the future. The community-based projects I feel best about—the ones that most energize me to do my job—are those that carry on from semester to semester, sometimes moving from class to class as (for example) School of Communications students develop a public service campaign to address the health care disparities identified in a previous semester by Health Systems Management students…one of whom continues to guide their efforts as a student intern or undergraduate research fellow. In this way, working semester by semester, bit by bit, Loyola students and faculty can collectively make significant and lasting contributions to problems that can seem, on their face, overwhelmingly complicated and even irremediable.

Perhaps Archbishop Romero put it best in his oft-quoted prayer: “This is what we are about: We plant the seeds that will one day grow. We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. […] We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker. We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs. We are prophets of a future not our own.”

Thanks, and enjoy this month’s newsletter inspired by our beautiful earth.

By Chris Skrable
Service-Learning Coordinator

This year, Loyola inaugurated its first-ever Green Living & Learning Community. Twelve students shared space in Simpson LLC…and more importantly, participated in intentional “experiments in green living,” tracking their consumption of resources and working together to discover ways to co-exist more sustainably while exploring other ecological and environmental efforts on campus and around the city. Rising sophomore Keith Langston shared some personal reflections on his first-year experience in “the GC.”

Chris Skrable :How did the residential aspect of the Green Living & Learning Community affect your experience of learning about sustainability issues? How was this experience different than, say, taking a regular class about environmental activism or living in a regular residence hall?

Keith Langston:Living near the other members of the GC (which is how we all refer to the green community) was really fun. We were the smallest community out of them all, so we all became very close. We hang out all the time and have had wonderful bonding experiences joking about our days in the GC.

CS:Has being a part of the GC affected your academic or career plans? If so, how?

KLWell, after the classes for the GC I have decided to minor in Environmental Leadership. If you have ever taken environmental classes, they are SUPER depressing, but they are needed because they teach you about what you are actually doing to the world around you.

CS: Of all the things you did as a community this year, of what are you most proud, and why?

KL: I am most proud of many things actually. The first is when Aramark (a horrid corporation headed by Satan himself) came to our GC class to talk to us about what a great and loving company they were and we totally told them how they are actually a disgusting company that took advantage of all of us students at Loyola by feeding us horrible food and charging thousands for it. My favorite thing they said was (talking about how sustainable the company was)… “We at Aramark use reusable dishware in 2 of our 3 dining halls!” Alright, so here’s the deal with that little remark: I would hope they use real dishware and not plastic disposable ones. And also they said 2 out of 3….so not even all our dinning halls use real dishware which they should be ashamed of, not flaunting!

CS: What advice might you offer to an incoming first year student who is thinking about participating in one of the Living and Learning Communities?

KL: I would tell a first year student thinking about joining an Living Learning Community to DO IT! SIMPSON is the only dorm with co-ed floors!!!! Also, you get lots of cool free stuff, and as corny as it’s gonna sound, you will learn a lot and have tons of fun!

CS: You’ve had the opportunity to work with a number of different staff persons and divisions of Loyola University Chicago over the past year. Any reflections on the people you’ve met and the work they do?

KL: All I can say about the staff I have worked with is that it has been one comical ride! Brian Johnson (who works in Res-Life and helped us in our GC class) is the total southern nurturing parent. He’s like the kind of person who would take you fishing and then give you cool southern insights as to how the world works. Gina [Lettiere, of the Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy]… Gina, Gina, Gina. The most amazing person at this school! She has boundless knowledge and resources and really knows how to get a job done. She has helped us accomplish SO many green efforts around campus. Mike, the RD (who actually lives in Simpson with us…on our floor) is like that older brother who teaches you how to not get caught doing something bad. We had some hilarious times dealing with the group of staff, but they were great.

CS: You’ve also engaged the broader community through your work with the GC. How has that affected your sense of yourself as a part of Chicago?

KL: I think the GC has given us a MUCH MUCH MUCH broader sense of the Chicago community. Our first field trip was to the Center for Green Technology, which was off the California stop on the Green Line. Our other field trip was to Bubbly Creek, which was by the Ashland orange line stop. We even went to Gina’s house for a sustainability dinner!! It was so much fun because 3-4 of us GC kids brought all the food, so were down Morse with bags of groceries and stuff looking for Gina’s house. At all of these events we met some very interesting people and learned a lot of stuff about the environment and Chicago’s history.

By Joanna Buchmeyer
Community based Federal work-study coordinator

Like many college students with dreams of changing the world, Emily Wilk is what you’d call an idealist. But unlike many college students, Emily, along with her equally minded friends, have put their idealism into action.

Wilk, Anna Springer, Cindy Cook, Erin Stanley, Kelsey McManus, and Lauren DeVeau all attended a retreat put on by Evoke, a campus mission and ministry office, in the fall of 2006. On the car ride home, the six women passionately discussed all of the ideas that the retreat had stirred up inside them. An underlying theme in all of their observations was a lack in a sense of community between Rogers Park and Loyola.

“I once asked a community member at a meeting what they saw Loyola in Rogers Park as,” said Emily. “And they replied ‘like a canary in a ceramic shop’. I think sometimes we don’t know what to do with each other.”

This response reinforced what the six had initially started dialogging about. Since that turning point in the fall of 2006, the group has become involved with Biz Arts meetings, bi-weekly meetings of local artists and business owners which foster building community and networking, two members intern at DevCorps North, an economic and community development organization and have participated in aldermanic campaigns.

With the addition of two friends, Amy Walsh and Chelsea Spenser, the now eight strong corps, with time to better understand their own needs as well as Rogers Park’s, finally decided on a project to meet their objectives.

“I’m frustrated it has taken so long, but we’ve made a lot of strides,” said Wilk.

Funded by the McCormick Foundation’s Raise Your Voice Fellowship, from Illinois Campus Compact, the group’s project titled Peace by Piece CTA: Community Transforming ART will be a mural at the Loyola redline stop to transform the shared public transportation platform into an expression of our community through collaborative art. The mural was painted and the individual hand-prints were added by students and community members on April 23rd. The mural is set to go up by early May.

“It’s a project that can’t be done without the community-residents and students alike,” said corps member Erin Stanley. “Also, it’s a great way for a diverse group of students (not just administrators, researchers, or special interest groups) to interact with the dynamic community in which we all resided.”

By Joanna Buchmeyer
Community-Based Federal Work-Study

Catching some rays on a rooftop at the corner of Devon and Glenwood was not where I imagined myself on a Thursday morning of work. Surrounded by EarthBoxes, wooden planter boxes about the size of an extra large shoebox used as an ultra efficient way to irrigate and stimulate plant growth, and large planter boxes that span the rooftop, I could almost taste the juicy tomatoes that will soon enough be sprouting, topping one of Uncommon Ground’s delicious plates. As the first certified organic rooftop farm in the United States, this rooftop space yielded 300 lbs of produce during 1/3 of a last year’s growing season, has solar panels that heat up to 70 percent of the water used to wash dishes in the restaurant, contains two beehives that produced 50 lbs of honey and serves as a conversation piece and model for food activism in Chicago.

“We went over the top so we could evaluate what works and what doesn’t,” said Natalie Pfister, Uncommon Ground’s rooftop farm coordinator. “The building was bought in 2007, with the rooftop farm plans in mind. The basement was dug down an additional five feet, reinforcing the foundation of the entire building with cement underpinnings & footings and the old wooden support beams were reinforced with steel beams.”

Pfister, who grew up in rural Colorado, was inspired by her mom’s farmed backyard and got into the food scene by volunteering at organic farms, working in fine dining and just an overall love of food. Pfister was hired on as the farm coordinator not to just work with the growing itself, but to manage and recruit volunteers for volunteer gardening days, create an internship program and to connect this project further with the community. Currently, plans are in the works to turn the farm into a not-for-profit organization.

“We want the ability to do more programming and partner with schools to implement urban agriculture and teach others about the things we are passionate about,” said Pfister. “The owners, Mike and Helen, look at it as ‘we’re lucky to have successful restaurants, so what can we do to give back?’ We all talk about alternative forms of energy and the food system. It’s like you gotta do something!”

Students from the Chicago Waldorf School helping out

<—-Indoor green house created by the Chicago Waldorf’s third grade class

Currently Breanna Dahl, a graduate student in Loyola’s Social Justice Program, is working with obtaining the 501 C3 status that is needed to make the farm a non-profit. She is also working with reaching out to the local Waldorf School on Loyola Ave as well as connecting Loyola students to the opportunities to get active.

So far people have been excited and receptive to getting involved with the rooftop farm. I attended a volunteer day on Friday April 17th and met a diverse group of people, all with their own unique interests and talents, joining together to help and share work. And there is no shortage of student involvement. A new internship program that will start this summer attracted nine applicants and five of them are Loyola students according to Pfister. Also, ten Loyola service-learning students in Professor Paul Ott’s Environmental Ethics course chose to do their service hours to learn about urban agriculture at the rooftop farm.

“In order to farm in Chicago, you need to be progressive,” said Pfister.

And in order to be progressive, you need to work as a community. Although the weather hasn’t fully permitted yet, this rooftop not only promises mounds of fresh produce and lush green scenery in the middle of Chicago’s urban landscape, but a chance to revolutionize how we think and participate with our food.

By Ashley Kehoe
LUROP Coordinator

Spotlight on a Student Fellow
Evelyn Salazar, Provost Fellowship, Student Fellow

As an undergraduate student part of the Loyola Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (LUROP), Evelyn Salazar has been able to find connections between her passions, academic interests, and co-curricular research. To put it in terms that would resonate with her, Evelyn has found beauty in the educational experience. Evelyn was awarded Provost Fellowships during both the Summer 2008 and Academic Year 2008-2009 sessions to engage in research on cultural perspectives of beauty. Under the mentorship of Dr. Dan Vaillancourt of the Philosophy Department, Evelyn has read hundreds of articles and translated work, with the ultimate goal of contributing to the publication of a book titled Beauty: The Sources. As Evelyn describes, “My responsibility was finding all the research, doing all the research, and leaving nothing out. We found hundreds of articles. My duty was to go through each one and pull out what I thought was essential.”

Evelyn has found ways to extend her research beyond Loyola University Chicago, and has had proposals accepted to present at the 6th International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities and the prestigious 2009 Council on Undergraduate Research Posters on the Hill event in Washington, D.C. According to Evelyn, however, this experience has been more about the relationship she has built with her mentors than anything. She explains, “They invested their time and effort into me, not only as a student, but as a person. They cared about me as an individual and helped me see the world in a different way.” Her experience with undergraduate research has demonstrated the power of learning by doing: “I always knew I wanted to do service: What really pushed me was my research. It helped me want to apply this to something that would be beneficial to others. I think there is a real connection between learning from the experience and applying it to helping.” After graduating in May 2009, Evelyn will do a year-of-service through the Teach for America program, and hopes to put what she has learned about mentorship and beauty into practice with her own students.

Spotlight on a Faculty Mentor
Dr. F. Bryan Pickett, Mulcahy Scholars Program, Faculty Mentor

According to Dr. F. Bryan Pickett, a long-time Faculty Mentor through the Mulcahy Scholars Program, “It is inspiring to me as a scientist to see the next generation of frontier thinkers emerge in front of my eyes at Loyola everyday.”

In the past thirteen years, the Pickett Lab has trained forty-one undergraduate researchers, who have gone on to enter graduate programs from at Northwestern University, Duke University, the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, the University of Reading in the United Kingdom, the University of Missouri, and the National Institute of Health’s Intramural program. Several others have propelled undergraduate research experience into careers as research technicians at laboratories and hospitals across the United States.

In reflecting on his experience as a Faculty Mentor, Dr. Pickett recalls students not only by name, but by academic discipline, research interests, and often, is able to describe where students are today, demonstrating the long-term relationship-building that can result from undergraduate research experience. Dr. Pickett identifies time as the most important element in research, and explains of the undergraduate research experience, “Truly meaningful work only comes when students have the times-pace to become fully immersed in their work. I always tell my students that the one thing they need to succeed in science is the ability to develop facultative maniacal focus so that the many hours required to get difficult experiments to work become a joy, rather than a burden. The Mulcahy Scholars Program helps my students fully become scientists in this way.”

By Patrick Green
Director of the Center for Experiential Learning
Video by: Kristine Breganio, Steven Tran, Phil Siwinski, Nicole Nikolic, Kristin Kandrac

Standing in the front of the room at a Mercy Housing Lakefront supportive housing community in the South Loop of Chicago, Loyola junior, Steven Tran wiped a few drops of sweat from his brow as he made sure the computer projector worked for the video and PowerPoint presentation. As he worked with his group of fellow Loyola students, over 30 tenants in the housing complex assembled in the room anxious to hear about the community research project that the Loyola students did with the community members. The research project was completed in conjunction with tenant leaders of the Mercy Housing complex who served as community researchers. Together, they interviewed residents to conduct a community mapping project to learn about the talents and strengths of the community members who lived in this South Loop complex. “I enjoyed this project and learning about the talents of my neighbors,” mentioned Jason, one of the community researchers. “Now the question is: ‘What are we going to do with all of this information?’” asked Aubrey, another community researcher.

During the Spring 2009 semester, 35 Loyola students enrolled in the course, Seminar in Community-based Research and Leadership (UNIV 291), and worked in groups with six different community organizations on research-based projects. Each of the research projects were organized and defined by the community members in advance of the class. The six different student groups consisted of 5 – 7 students and worked all over the Chicago-land area, from the South Loop to Uptown, and from West Rogers Park to Little Village. The Loyola students facilitated the community-based research projects with the following community organizations:

Good News Community Kitchen (off of Howard St.): Loyola students compiled a community asset map to identify partnerships and association, as well as to plan for advocacy campaigns.

(left) Roman Garcia, Chris Kaczmerczyk, Heather Urness, Cindy Bush (Director of Organizing, GNCK) Katya Shcherbakov, Josh Jansen, and Heather Urness

Jordan Community School (near Howard St.): Loyola students conducted a survey-focused project assessing school community attitudes regarding the school-wide dress code and an initiative to address dress code policy with the local school board.

(left) Ania Nowak, Shivali Raav, (back row) Chris Fox, Saathvik Alety, Daniel Hayek (front row) Cyntha Zucker (Assistant Principal), Roshni Desai

Lakeside Community Development Corporation (West Rogers Park): Loyola students compiled data from the West Rogers Park Community Council and conducted surveys to develop a land-use map to better focus organizational advocacy efforts on behalf of affordable housing in Chicago’s North-East side neighborhoods.

(left) Michael Wilson, Conrad Ziembinski, Yi Lin, Brian White (Executive Director, Lakeside CDC), Jackie Sullivan, Kathryn Fitzgibbons, Brandon McPartlin

Mercy Housing Lakefront (South Loop): Loyola students conducted capacity interviews for a community asset mapping project for residents of a supportive housing community as preparation for new resident-driven programming initiatives.

(back row) Phil Siwinski, Nicole Nikolic, Jason Shively (Community Researcher) Michael Kennedy, Kristin Kandrac, (front row) Beth Tumeil (Community Organizer, Mercy Housing) Kristine Breganio, Steven Tran

National Student Partnerships (Uptown): Loyola students assessed the resources already available to low-income residents of two Chicago neighborhoods (Pilsen and Hyde Park) into which NSP is considering expanding their efforts in the future.

(left, back row) Steven Monroy (NSP), Eddie Barm, Mike Donahue, Josh Jagust, George Papadakis, and Nick Lefere; (front row) Jonnie Powers, David McNelly (NSP) Rebecca Prendergast (NSP), Sheida Ahmadzadeh

Taller de Jose (Little Village): Loyola students analyzed patterns and trends of the clientele utilizing the services of Taller de Jose, and, based on the data and trends of need, compiled a resources/referrals directory so as to better connect clients with area services.

(left) Mallory Clifford, Yelena Khavkhalyuk, Lisa Monnot (Assistant Director, Taller de Jose), Sr. Kathy Brazda (Director, Taller de Jose), Mirinda James, Katie Kujava, and Talissa Loleng.

The students presented their final community-based research projects to the community partners at the end of April and provided the community organizations with valuable data. Each research project consisted of a written report with data collected and organized in spreadsheets or community maps. Some student groups utilized campus resources, such as the Digital Media Lab to produce wall-size asset maps for the organization. Other students connected with David Treering, the GIS Specialist in the Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy, to produce GIS maps for the community organization. Still another group produced a video of the research project, in order to encourage the community members to continue the research and to mobilize for action.

Join us for the second annual Lake Shore Earth Day Celebration!
Saturday April 25
9AM-4:30

Morning Address – Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky
Afternoon Address – State Senator Heather Steans
Workshops

Confirmed speakers include:

Stephen Anderson, Foreign Exchange Services of Illinois
Nancy Benjamin, Master Gardener
Helen Cameron, co-owner, Uncommon Ground
Jennifer Clark, Loyola University Chicago
Shawna Coronado, Columnist, “The Casual Gardener”
Rick Davis, Heifer International
Rick Dimaio, Professor and Meteorologist, Loyola University Chicago
Sarah Dinges, Andersonville Development Corporation
Marshall Eames, Sustainability Director, Loyola University Chicago
Christine Escobar, Green Parent Chicago
Manda Aufochs Gillespie, The Green Mama
Antonio Giron, President, Loyola University Bike Club
Nevin Hedlund
Aldolfo Hernandez, Director of Advocacy, Active Transportation Alliance
Jason Jenkins, Active Transportation Alliance
Jason Leichty, Office of Commissioner Mike Quigley
Peter Locke, TerraLocke Sustainability Consultants
Suzanne Keers, Local First
Don McLaughlan
Rae Mindock, 46th Ward
Barbara Moore, 49th Ward Green Corp
Ellen Shepard, Executive Director, Andersonville Chamber of Commerce
Jennifer Walling, Chief of Staff, State Senator Heather Steans
Elfriede Wedam, Professor of Sociology, Loyola University Chicago

To view the full schedule of events, click here.

This year there will be six pavilions in the following areas:

Food, Transportation, Energy, Commerce, Community and Shelter

Children aged 4-12 can participate in the Harry Osterman Kids Corner. Planned events include:

Seed planting, native creature study, Garbage Gab, personalized Earth Day “Green Tees,” nature boxes, prayer flag making, eating organic, paper-making, green parenting, Getting Around Green, Water Matters, Kid’s Yoga, nature dramatic exercise, worm composting, collaborative collage, sustainable tech video, Stellar Science Projects, face painting and composting stations.

For the full schedule of children’s activities, click here.
Activities

Neighborhood Bike Rides with free bike rentals, Tour of Information Commons, Childrens Circus, and Bricolage at Foster art project.

Delicious FREE Food Available:

Breakfast and lunch will be provided through generous donations by local businesses. Food will include organic and vegan fare. Food will be served using reuseable dishware. Guests are encouraged to bring their own!