Build It to focus on city's north side
The University of Richmond is in the city's west end, but for the next two years, students, faculty and staff will be working and learning in the north side of Richmond as well.
The current Build It project is focusing on the Highland Park section of Richmond, founded in 1890 as one of the city's first street-car suburbs. Today a predominantly African-American community with a $23,916 median household income and high crime rate, the community has a variety of needs that Build It organizers hope to address alongside nonprofits already working in the area.
Build It is the University's largest community engagement initiative and is designed to connect students, staff and faculty to each other and the residents of metropolitan Richmond through service, education, and other community involvement. Build It participants develop and implement collaborative projects that address pressing needs in at-risk neighborhoods in the greater Richmond area.
"Build It brings the University into collaborative partnership with nonprofit and governmental agencies and links service with courses and educational programs on campus," said Andrew Ryan, '06, one of three co-chairs of the project.
Beginning this year and continuing through spring 2007, Build It will partner with five nonprofit agencies in the community: Partnership for Families-Northside, the William Byrd Community House, Hotchkiss Community Center, Habitat for Humanity and Richmond Public Schools.
Ryan said there will be a culminating project sometime during the week of April 3-9, 2006, but exact details are still under consideration. Last year's Build It included a blitz-build of a Habitat for Humanity house, but 2006 will be an "off year" while students raise money to build another house in spring 2007 in the Highland Park neighborhood.
This year Build It will focus instead on on-going projects that engage the community and extend through the spring 2006 semester and into the next academic year. Planned projects include tutoring and enrichment programs, such as drama, arts or sports, in the neighborhood's schools and community center; volunteering for Partnership's Reach Out and Read program; and helping William Byrd plan a youth-driven, skills-development program for teens.
"Build It has evolved from earlier community service efforts, largely due to students' interest in transforming events such as Community Service Day, the Merriewood Miracle and Habitat for Humanity home builds into longer-term, campus-wide service initiatives," said Alison Bartel Keller, associate director of student activities and Build It co-chair.
Build It is led by a steering committee of students, faculty and staff who work together to engage the campus community through service, education, events and fundraising efforts. "The overall goal of the initiative is to make a lasting impact on community needs and on those organizations and individuals that participate," said Betsy Kelly, service and program coordinator for the Center for Civic Engagement and the third co-chair.
The committee is working closely with faculty and staff to incorporate Build It into course work, develop structured reflection activities for participants, and support academically based programming outside of class.
More information on Build It can be found by visiting http://buildit.richmond.edu.
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