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Community partners announced to address community needs in South and West Dallas

Pre COVID-19 service photo of SMU students staffing community event
Pre-COVID-19 service photo of SMU students staffing community event

Engage Dallas is excited to announce our community partners as we work to address community needs via the SMU Residential Commons (RC) and their 2,600+ residents. After an extensive research process by faculty, staff, and students to identify expressed community needs in South and West Dallas, each Residential Commons student leadership team adopted a long-term cause they were committed to addressing via Engage Dallas. 

In Fall 2020, the Engage Dallas Offsite and Risk Management Committee began to identify community organizations already well-positioned, who are addressing the RC-chosen community needs. Throughout this intentional pairing process involving conversations with non-profit leaders, the committee focused on identifying community organizations whose missions aligns with the RC-chosen community need with which SMU could assist, and who — in the era of COVID-19 — offered virtual opportunities for our students. 

Matt Nadler, Residential Community Director and Offsite and Risk Management co-chair, shared, “Getting to know the various Engage Dallas community organizations has been a highlight of my semester. I’m excited for our students to begin volunteering and getting involved with their various community needs.” 

This semester, SMU students will put the online education and training they received into practice to begin volunteering remotely and may have direct-service opportunities as early as March. The Engage Dallas Student Director for each Residential Commons met with their partner organization liaison to organize virtual service opportunities for the spring semester. 

Melanie Wright, Engage Dallas Student Director for Boaz Commons, exclaimed, “There is nothing I’m more passionate about than engaging with my community and helping those around me. My excitement about Engage Dallas has been growing ever since getting to know Boaz’s community organization, North Texas Food Bank, and so I’m excited to encourage everyone to participate in Engage Dallas this semester.” 

Amber Martin, External Relations Manager for Reading Partners of North Texas, remarked, “I appreciate Engage Dallas and Eduardo [Engage Dallas student director for Virginia-Snider Commons] for the willingness to help within the community. The services Engage Dallas is providing North Texas will make a tremendous impact. Thank you for choosing Reading Partners to be one of Engage Dallas’ community partners.” 

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

Armstrong Commons | Homelessness 

  • Partnering organizations 

Boaz Commons | Food Insecurity 

  • Partnering organizations 

Cockrell-McIntosh Commons| College Access & Preparation 

  • Partnering organizations 

Crum Commons |Arts as Social Impact 

  • Partnering organizations 

Kathy Crow Commons | Environmental Injustice 

  • Partnering organizations 

Loyd Commons | STEM Education 

  • Partnering organizations 

Mary Hay, Peyton, Shuttles (MHPS) Commons | Immigration & Refugee Support 

  • Partnering organizations 

McElvaney Commons | Community Wellbeing 

  • Partnering organizations 

Morrison-McGinnis Commons | Childhood Poverty 

  • Partnering organizations 

Virginia-Snider Commons | Childhood Literacy 

  • Partnering organizations 

Ware Commons | Community Rebuilding 

  • Partnering organizations 

“We look forward to what we will be able to accomplish together,” concluded Nadler. For more information or to suggest an organization, visit the Engage Dallas website. Inquires by community organizations can be directed to Staphany C. López-Coronado, Assistant Director for the Office of Social Change and Intercultural Engagement (sclopez@smu.edu; 214-768-4582). 

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Announcements News

Engage Dallas launches for SMU students

Engage Dallas launched for SMU students on October 9. SMU students are now able to enroll in the initiative and complete getting started tasks to prepare for direct service experiences.

Erica Zamora, director of the Office of Social Change and Intercultural Engagement shared “we are grateful for the intentional work our student, faculty and staff implementation team for creating thoughtful and engaging content for students as they prepare for service in South and West Dallas.” Zamora mentioned the initial education and training sessions now available to students include an overview of the initiative, elements of personal reflection, and context building for service in Dallas.

Students wishing to enroll in the initiative can do so from the Engage Dallas website by following the getting started instructions.

A unique feature of Engage Dallas is SMU students are able to fulfill the Common Curriculum’s Community Engagement Proficiency and Experience requirement for graduation. Students can reach out to their Residential Commons’ Engage Dallas student director with questions or for assistance. 

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Announcements News

Engage Dallas participates in Interdisciplinary Institute research cluster

During the 2020-21 academic year, the Dedman College Interdisciplinary Institute (DCII) is sponsoring 25 Research Clusters exploring a varied and exciting range of topics. Engage Dallas will be participating in a research cluster entitled “At the Intersection of Nonprofits, Higher Education and Community Engagement.”

Led by Drs. Sondra N. Barringer, B. Kathleen Gallagher, and Alicia C. Schortgen, the cluster seeks to focus on the intersection of nonprofits, public administration, higher education, and sociology. The research cluster seek to expand understanding of the relationships between higher education institutions and nonprofit organizations in the DFW metroplex.

Engage Dallas is “excited by the possibility of expanding our SMU network and what that can mean for informing our work in South and West Dallas”, said Dr. Dustin Grabsch. Grabsch is co-lead of Engage Dallas’ Assessment and Research sub-team. Engage Dallas implementation team members will participate in planned activities this academic year.

Planned activities include four working group meetings and a symposium with a guest speaker.

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Announcements Armstrong Commons Boaz Commons Cockrell-McIntosh Commons Crum Commons Kathy Crow Commons Loyd Commons McElvaney Commons MHPS Commons Morrison-McGinnis Commons Virginia-Snider Commons Ware Commons

Inaugural Engage Dallas Student Directors announced

Audrey Courreges

Engage Dallas Student Director for Armstrong Commons

Why I Serve: 

Engage Dallas is a unique opportunity for SMU students to be real world changers in the Dallas community. While Dallas shines as one of the fastest growing cities in America, there are several unseen problems in the metroplex that need to be addressed. That’s where Engage Dallas comes in. We can connect SMU students to service projects and make real progress in our local communities.

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Audrey Perovich

Engage Dallas Student Director for MHPS Commons

Why I Serve:

The mission of Engage Dallas is something I am looking forward to because I can work with others to encourage the MHPS community to come together in using our time and resources to help those in need beyond our college campus. I am excited for this opportunity because I believe that we are called to be a light in everything we are involved in. Each time I serve is a tangible way that I can show Christ’s love.

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Eduardo Yanez Pastene

Engage Dallas Student Director for Virginia-Snider Commons

Why I Serve: 

Dallas is a city that seen me grow professionally. Also, it enriched my journey and making me feel just like at home. Without a doubt, engage in Dallas is a beautiful way of giving back.

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Emma Siegel

Engage Dallas Student Director for Loyd Commons

Why I Serve:

I serve the local Dallas community to develop a more open minded and empathetic perspective on life. I believe that by helping others, you become a better version of your own self. I am extremely excited to encourage SMU students to participate in serving because I believe that it will allow them to meet new people, discover new things about themselves and others, and lastly, feel fulfilled and as if they have made an impact.

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Heidy Cortez

Engage Dallas Student Director for Crum Commons

Why I Serve: 

Dallas is my hometown and it has given me many beautiful memories. The least I can do is to give back to the community. Helping others is what keeps me going and I couldn’t be more excited to do it through SMU!

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Kami Busbee

Engage Dallas Student Director for Cockrell-McIntosh Commons

Why I Serve: 

I serve so that I can give back to my community and meet new people along the way. I enjoy broadening the service I have done as it makes me a more well-rounded person. I find it important to get other students excited about service opportunities by showing them how much fun it can be. Engage Dallas excites me because of how much potential it holds, especially with all of the creative minds that I know are working behind it.

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Kirk Thomas

Engage Dallas Student Director for Ware Commons

Why I Serve:

Sustainability. I strive to help people be sustainable in jobs, social life, family. My goal is to see the big picture and find a way to not only help someone today, but to find a way for them to be better off tomorrow. Engage Dallas is our opportunity to shape the lives of our neighbors. Every person we help can go on to help others; that should be the ultimate goal: a sustainable cycle of lifting people up and giving them a path forward.

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Madison Leyens

Engage Dallas Student Director for McElvaney Commons

Why I Serve:

I am a big believer in the power of community service to transform the servant’s perspective of community, to unite individuals through a shared objective, and to teach how to proactively address the needs of others. SMU shapes world-changers, and the Engage Dallas program is dedicated to carrying out that mission by building students into servant leaders and sending them out into the world to make a difference. While the impact this program will have on Dallas and beyond will undoubtedly be significant and powerful to witness, I am most excited to see how the introduction of a culture of servant leadership will enhance the SMU community and all aspects of the student experience

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Melanie Wright

Engage Dallas Student Director for Boaz Commons

Why I Serve:

Having worked on the initiative that led to Engage Dallas, I am excited to be included as the initiative turns into reality. Community service has been a significant part of my life, and I am looking forward to being able to continue this work as well as assist others in it as well! I look forward to seeing how Engage Dallas will encourage students to give back to the city we call home and become aware of how they can help the community around them.

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Natesa Vaidya

Engage Dallas Student Director for Morrison-McGinnis Commons

Why I Serve:

I serve to give back to the communities that have taken me in and given me the resources and support to be my best self. Serving has enabled me to understand the social issues nation-wide and globally, and be able to address them. I am excited to work with Engage Dallas for two reasons: 1) as an incentive for more SMU students to be involved with service opportunities and 2) to give back to the DFW community – a community that has graciously accepted me the past three years.

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Victoria Amen

Engage Dallas Student Director for McElvaney Commons

Why I Serve: 

I’m excited about Engage Dallas because it’s important to me to use my blessings to improve the lives and situations of those who need help. Engage Dallas is going to provide a wonderful opportunity to do that as well as involve my peers in community work. I’m looking forward to expanding community outreach and showing my peers the needs that exist and how they can help so that we can all be part of the solution.

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Engage Dallas receives Division of Student Affairs Innovation Grant

SMU DSA Strategic Plan Cover

Engage Dallas, the place-based community engagement initiative via SMU’s Residential Commons, received the 2020 Division of Student Affairs Innovation Grant. In the announcement email, vice president for Student Affairs Dr. K.C. Mmeje believes Engage Dallas advances the division’s commitment to innovating our work.

The Division of Student Affairs awarded a $25,000 investment in the Engage Dallas initiative. Dr. Dustin Grabsch, a key partner from Residence Life and Student Housing, reflected on the grant application stating, “We considered the proposal to be innovative, as only six institutions of higher learning currently employ place-based community engagement to our knowledge. Of these institutions, none operationalizes the model via a residential college system.” Engage Dallas offers a unique combination and timing of the initiative with University prioritization that made the proposal a promising contender for the grant.

Melinda Carlson, assistant vice president of Student Affairs and dean of Residence Life and Student Housing, remarked at the incredible potential to solidify the connection between the campus and Dallas communities. “Engage Dallas will bring high impact community engagement opportunities to our Residential Commons communities. Our residential student communities will be able to grow their sense of place in the larger Dallas community.” Carlson believes in the importance of students feeling a sense of connection and belonging to the neighborhood and community in which they live. “Students will learn and experience the importance of engagement with the broader community, a skill that is critical to being a World Changer”

Mmeje continued in his announcement email that each of our eleven Residential Commons will choose a social issue to address a community need in west or south Dallas. “Throughout the academic year each Commons will engage in education and thoughtful dialogue around their issue and the systemic causes helping us to move beyond voluntourism and into true community engagement. While COVID may not allow us to directly serve in communities right away, it does provide us an opportunity to prepare our students to be more informed citizens when the time comes. There is much that can be done virtually and through educational opportunities to set a strong foundation for improving the communities around us.” Student Affairs’ Office of Social Change and Intercultural Engagement is a key partner facilitating training, educations, and opportunities for students to learn about and address community needs.

Camille McCallum shared, “What I really admire about the Innovation Grant provided to Engage Dallas is how it embodies a commitment both to our students and our community. As the Initiative Manger, I have the privilege of supervising 11 talented student leaders who receive funding for the meaningful work they will do in the Residential Commons and in Dallas.” McCallum closed with saying the grant funding for student staff wages “sends a clear message that direct service is worthy of both SMU’s resources and time.”

Engage Dallas will begin offering service opportunities for residential students in October 2020 and SMU undergraduate students will be able to receive credit toward their Community Engagement Proficiency if they choose.