CCU Named to Presidential Honor Roll for Community Service
The Corporation for National and Community Service honored Colorado Christian University this month with a place on the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. Launched in 2006, the Honor Roll is the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for its commitment to service-learning and civic engagement. Honorees for the award were chosen based on a series of factors including scope and innovation of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which a school offers academic service-learning courses.
Recent studies have underlined the importance of service-learning and volunteering to college students. According to the Corporation's Volunteering in America 2007 study, 2.8 million college students gave more than 297 million hours of volunteer service in 2006.
As part of the graduation requirements at CCU, traditional undergraduate students must complete a minimum of 180 service hours during their four years at the University. On average, however, many students go beyond this requirement while participating in community service projects, tutoring initiatives for underprivileged children, ministries and humanitarian work throughout the Denver Metro area, and CCU's annual short-term mission trips that, across the last decade, have sent more than 100 teams throughout the United States and to approximately 20 countries. It is estimated that CCU's students log more than 45,000 combined volunteer hours each year.
"In this time of economic distress, we need volunteers more than ever. College students represent an enormous pool of idealism and energy to help tackle some of our toughest challenges," said Stephen Goldsmith, vice chair of the board of directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service, which oversees the Honor Roll. "We salute Colorado Christian University for making community service a campus priority, and we thank the millions of college students who are helping renew America through service to others."
The Corporation for National and Community Service oversees the Honor Roll in collaboration with the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation. Awards are presented during the annual conference of the American Council on Education. To learn more, visit www.nationalservice.gov.