Category: News

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Announcements News

Engage Dallas publishes fall 2021 executive summary

Engage Dallas is a place-based community engagement initiative via SMU’s Residential Commons to address community needs focusing on South and West Dallas which launched in October 2020.  

Engage Dallas published a 4-page summary of fall 2021 accomplishments and spring 2022 goals. Accomplishments included: 735 students attended Engage Dallas events in the fall semester, #1Day4Dallas service day included 7 service sites with 105 participants, and 16 new community partners announced.  

Explore the executive summary for yourself:  

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Announcements News

Engage Dallas announces 16 new community partners

Engage Dallas is excited to announce our newest community partners as we continue our work to address community needs in South and West Dallas via SMU’s Residential Commons.

In Fall 2021, the Engage Dallas Offsite and Risk Management Committee noticed that as Engage Dallas grew, the needs of our students and community partners started to vary. Engage Dallas strives to facilitate a mutually beneficial relationship between the campus and SMU community. To ensure that community partners have volunteer support at various times and that students had opportunities to serve outside of their class schedules, the need to expand our network of community partners surfaced.

Audryanna Reed, Offsite and Risk Management Committee co-chair, shared “interviewing and onboarding new community partners has been an exciting process. Our new partners are energetic and are anticipating serving our students. I think expanding our number of community partners was a great idea so that our students can have consistent opportunities to serve throughout the community.”

Our community partners offer a combination of monthly, group volunteer opportunities and individual opportunities such as solo service, individual pathways, and internships for SMU students. Service opportunities for the spring semester will kick off in February 2022 with monthly, group service through the RC and solo service to support community partners with limited volunteer capacity.

Jin Ae, Volunteer and Operations Association for Readers 2 Leaders, noted that “Readers 2 Leaders is so grateful to partner with Engage Dallas and have SMU students serve with us to support student learning, especially during this challenging time. As an SMU Embrey Human Rights Program alumna, I am so inspired to see the university taking an active approach in connecting with and serving the Dallas community.”

SMU is excited to announce the following organizations as the Spring 2022 community partner cohort for Engage Dallas. Each Residential Commons is listed with its chosen community need and new partner(s).

Armstrong Commons | Homelessness

  • The Stewpot

Boaz Commons | Food Insecurity

  • CitySquare
  • Mission Oak Cliff

Cockrell-McIntosh Commons| College Access & Preparation

  • LNESC
  • Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas

Crum Commons |Arts as Social Impact

  • Remembering Black Dallas
  • Bishop Arts Theater Center

Kathy Crow Commons | Environmental Injustice

  • Trinity River Audubon Center

Loyd Commons | STEM Education

  • Crowned Scholars
  • Jubilee Park

McElvaney Commons | Community Wellbeing

  • Brother Bill’s Helping Hands

Morrison-McGinnis Commons | Childhood Poverty

  • Vogel Alcove
  • Behind Every Door

Virginia-Snider Commons | Childhood Literacy

  • Readers 2 Leaders

Ware Commons | Community Rebuilding

  • Empowering the Masses
  • Frazier Revitalization

For more information on Engage Dallas partnerships, visit the Engage Dallas website. Inquiries by community organizations or suggestions for partnership can be submitted via the Engage Dallas Community Partner Information Form.

 

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Announcements News

A timeline of some of the rich history of South and West Dallas now available

Engage Dallas proudly present Phase II of the Engage Dallas Resource Libraries. Our Engage Dallas Research Assistants, Shelby Peck and Cristal Mendez have done it again! Back in September we announced Phase I, which encompasses all common-specific social problems and offers a self-paced, deeper learning experience through four different categories.

Mendez, ‘22, a graduate student in the M.Ed. in Higher Education program shares that Phase II differs significantly from Phase I because the focus is truly just South and West Dallas so various local sources had to be researched, evaluated, and synthesized for the creation of Phase II while Phase I was a bit broader. Through this research opportunity, one valuable takeaway for Mendez was the importance of learning  about the history of her community, as she is a resident of West Dallas.

We invite you to journey with us through time. Phase II presents a chronological dive into the history of South and West Dallas. Our trip commences in the year 1865 and we progresses forward until we are back in 2021. We cover topics very familiar like the State Fair of Texas and maybe some that are less familiar, like the contributions of Felix H. Lozada, Jr. As you journey through the timeline, you will be able to read a short highlight about the event and then click into it to learn even more. You may also choose to “hop through history” and follow the timeline of specific events and see how they are connected through history.

Peck ‘21, an undergraduate student studying Public Policy and Political Science, found this research opportunity particularly valuable because she was given the freedom to dive deeper into many diverse subjects in Dallas history, painting a realistic picture of South and West Dallas history as a whole. She was able to draw connections between this research and her future career goals by studying how federal policies and court decisions, like Brown v. Board, were enacted in Dallas, and how individuals were uniquely affected by them.

If asked to leave you with one thought before your journey through time, it would be:

“Learning about the history of South and West Dallas can be difficult because of the inequities that have existed since the beginning. However, our West and South Dallas neighbors possess experiences, skills, and knowledge that contribute to their community’s cultural wealth. I hope you will be inspired by the community advocates that have shaped their communities.”  -Mendez ‘22

“Everywhere you look in Dallas there is a story that has been hidden by Dallas’ ever-changing and developing nature. If you look beyond the beautiful skyline and new construction, you will see even more beauty amongst the unique stories and histories of the individuals that shape our city.” -Peck ‘21

We invite you to spend some time unpacking local Dallas history. We acknowledge that history is steadily unfolding around us as more stories are being told and memories recollected. The resource library is not intended to discuss every historical occurrence of South and West Dallas, as much of their history is still being uncovered and collected. The resource library is a living source and will evolve as more history is discovered.

Get started exploring, here.

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Announcements Armstrong Commons Boaz Commons Cockrell-McIntosh Commons Community Partners Crum Commons Event Kathy Crow Commons Loyd Commons McElvaney Commons MHPS Commons Morrison-McGinnis Commons News Reflections Virginia-Snider Commons Ware Commons

#1Day4Dallas a success in inaugural year

Engage Dallas hosted its inaugural Residential Commons Fall Day of Service, #1Day4Dallas, on Saturday, October 16th.  

Each of the 11 Residential Commons were represented with over 100 participants serving at 8 different locations around South and West Dallas: Rebuilding Together North Texas, North Texas Food Bank, Heart House, Restorative Farms, SMU College Access Programs, The Senior Source, and Voice of Hope. Collectively, participants contributed over 500 hours of service and engagement during #1Day4Dallas. 

Kirk Thomas, who serves as the Student Director of Ware Commons, was a leader in the planning for #1Day4Dallas. He described the experience of seeing the event come together as a thrill. 

“Seeing 1Day4Dallas come together for the first time in Engage Dallas’s history after weeks of planning was electric, like the feeling of weightlessness on a rollercoaster,” said Thomas. “Not only was it fulfilling being a part of meaningful community service work to help our neighbors in Dallas, but having that feeling amplified knowing that all across Dallas, SMU students were doing projects anywhere from home repairs to planting fresh vegetables in a community garden. Personally, I care because in doing these projects, we are able to create a sustainable cycle of people helping people. The more communities and neighbors we support and build up, the better off they will be not just today, but for tomorrow also.” 

Kirk and his fellow Ware students served with Rebuilding Together North Texas for #1Day4Dallas, where they helped to remove carpet and place wood flooring in the home of a West Dallas resident.

A student participant shared, “It was a wonderful experience to finally volunteer and directly serve another community.” The impact service had on students was tangible throughout the day. Engage Dallas is excited to continue to serve our Dallas neighbors. Students who remained on campus served our community through The Not So Big Event, hosted by SMU Big Event in partnership with Tango Tab.

Thank you to all students, faculty, staff members, and Community Partners for engaging with us through #1Day4Dallas. Please visit our website, www.smu.edu/studentaffairs/engagedallas, to learn more. Contact us at engagedallas@smu.edu. Follow us on Instagram at @smu.engage.dallas. 

 

Engage Dallas is a place-based community engagement initiative via SMU’s Residential Commons to address community needs focusing on South and West Dallas. The initiative is a long-term, university-wide commitment led by students to partner with local residents, organizations, and other leaders to positively impact the community. There is equal emphasis on campus and community impact stemming from the initiative. 

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Announcements News Ware Commons

Ware Commons wins $1,000 donation to community partner, Rebuilding Together NTX, at Gamma Phi’s Moonball sand volleyball tournament

On October 23rd, the Ware Commons Volleyball team played in Gamma Phi’s Moonball sand volleyball tournament at the Dedman Rec Center’s sand volleyball courts. Moonball is SMU’s Gamma Phi Beta‘s signature philanthropy event where their chapter hosts either a kickball, volleyball, or basketball tournament each academic year to raise funds for their philanthropic partner, Girls on the Run.

After winning multiple games undefeated, Ware Commons took 1st place in the tournament, winning a $1,000 donation to a nonprofit of the team’s choice.

Ware Commons choose to donate the $1,000 prize to Rebuilding Together NTX, one of Ware’s nonprofit partners through Engage Dallas. Rebuilding Together is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization working to preserve affordable home ownership and revitalize communities with free home and facility repairs. In Dallas/Ft. Worth, Rebuilding Together has served since 2001 to make critical safety and accessibility improvements to more than 500 homes so their clients may live in safe and accessible homes.

Since the beginning of the partnership between Ware Commons and Rebuilding Together NTX in Fall 2020, Ware residents have already performed over 750 hours of service for Rebuilding Together. Most recently, residents replaced and repaired flooring for a veteran, widow neighbor in South Dallas.