The President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge Reflection

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The President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge

Part of a reflection series presented by the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships

 

The President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge is an initiative of the White House with support from the Department of Education, the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Corporation for National and Community Service.

 

For many, college years include experiences that challenge long held assumptions about the world and our place in it. Part of that challenge can include building bridges of understanding alongside rising leaders from different religious and non-religious traditions through service. Based on the recommendation of the inaugural President’s Advisory Council on Faith-based & Neighborhood Partnerships, President Obama established the Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge, which brings together students and educators, colleges and universities, faith and community organizations, and others to strengthen campuses and communities through the power of faith and service.

 

Now in its sixth year, more than 500 schools have been or are currently involved in the challenge. Currently 12 percent of American college students who attend schools with more than 1,000 students are attending a participating school. This includes schools in 43 states, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia.

 

The challenge has not been restricted to one model of higher education. Instead it has flourished in a variety of settings including large research universities, four-year colleges, tribal colleges, career colleges, and historically black colleges and universities. Each institution provides a unique perspective on what it means to have an interfaith engagement component to community service. The make-up of the student body, the resources of the institution and faculty, the nature of the community, and the traditions of the school have resulted in unique programs at each school.pic1

 

In 2015, educators and students from around the world were invited to join the conversation about interfaith service. As a result, more than 70 people from 24 countries participated in the Fifth Annual President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge gathering. This tradition continued into the Sixth Annual President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge where we had 60 international guests representing 31 countries joining the nearly 600 faculty, staff, students, and college presidents at Gallaudet University.

 

The President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge provides a platform though which service connects people from different religious and non-religious back-grounds to tackle community challenges together. American colleges, community colleges, and universities have often been at the forefront of solving our nation’s greatest challenges. The White House is calling on higher education to make the vision for interfaith cooperation a reality on campuses across the country.

Belief, Behavior and Belonging

oct-19On Wednesday, Ocotober 20th, The Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (CFBNP) participated in the State Department’s (STATE) Office of Religion and Global Affairs Religious Literacy, Public Policy and American Schools brown bag event in The Ralph Bunche Library. The event included a panel moderated by Mariam Kaldas (STATE) with panelists Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell (CFBNP) and Benjamin Marcus (Newseum Fellow). Brenda gave remarks on the work of the Department of Education Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships and Ben presented his research from his chapter in the forthcoming Oxford Handbook on Religion and America Education. Some of the topics discussed were practicing religious literacy, religious identity formation and how to work with religious communities in conflict settings.

In Ben’s research he highlighted how we all have different understandings of faith and religion. For instance, if a group of people are asked the definition of religion, there would be a myriad of different definitions and one may even say it is undefinable. Religious literacy does not mean you can define every religion, but rather “understand and use the religious terms, symbols, images, beliefs, practices, scriptures, heroes, themes, and stories that are employed in American public life.”

Ben’s research delves further into religious identity and formation and perception of religion. He uses a framework called the “Three B’s”: Belief, Behavior and Belonging to explain how one develops his or her religious identity.

When engaging conflict communities, there are a few steps to address religious identity:

  1. Listen and ask “What does your religion mean to you?”
  2. Determine what aspect of religious identity (Belief, Behavior, Belonging), if any, fuels the tension.
  3. Look for common ground, not necessarily talking about scripture, but what they care about.

Through Brenda’s remarks and Ben’s research, the audience was able to engage in an introspective conversation on religious literacy. Brenda reinforced the value of convening and bringing people together. Ben was able to build upon that foundation by discussing practices to humbly address differences and understand the history behind various religious identities. Finally, questions on topics such as separation of church and state, populism and religion, and secularism were discussed.

It was an informative and reflective event that helped the participants gain a further understanding and direction on discussing religious literacy!

Grants, Grants, Grants!

fbo-webinarOn Wednesday, October 05, 2016, The Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships along with Dr. Sylvia Lyles of the Office of Academic Improvement (OAI) held a webinar to discuss Applying for US Department of Education Grants. The webinar was in response to requests from the Hampton Ministers’ Conference and other listening sessions. There were over 400 participants eager to learn more about how to apply for Department of Education grants.

Following an introduction and welcome from Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell, Dr. Lyles gave an overview of one of OAI’s functions; managing 30 grant programs with a combined total of over 4 billion dollars. Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) and Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) are encouraged to apply for grants and to begin the process as early as possible. During her overview of the grant application process, Dr. Lyles focused on the 21st Century Community Learning Center’s (CCLC) Grant. Interested organizations should get in touch with their state 21st CCLC contact and learn more on the CCLC website.

Tiffany Ways, HUB Director of The University Church in Toledo, Ohio and Jen Russo, Program Assistant for the Hope After School Program, in Frederick, Maryland provided were voices from the field. They shared some of their experiences as CLCC grantees. Successful grantees must have effective partnerships.

Key components of effective partnerships:

  • Multifaceted partner engagement
  • Consistent communication
  • Building a relationship of trust
  • Working collaboratively through partner administrator and/or staff transitions
  • Overcoming expectation/ execution shortfalls
  • Celebration of successes

This webinar is just our first step on this journey to increase the participation of FBOs and CBOs in the grant process at the U.S. Department of Education.

Stay tuned!

Family Engagement: Supporting Your Child in School and in Life

Family Engagement Pic1Reid Temple A.M.E. Church (Reid Temple) in conjunction with ED’s White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans (WHIEEAA) and the ED’s Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships (CFBNP) found a way to get parents and children excited about going back to school. On August 28th, they hosted a Family Engagement Back-to-School Summit filled with information on how to support children in school and in life along with having fun at the church’s Silver Spring, Maryland location.

 

The focus of the summit was to reach out to families in the community and encourage greater family engagement in their children’s education. We had education representatives from kindergarten through college, including a school Principal and college President, and professional organizations. Most were members of Reid Temple A.M.E. Church congregation, demonstrating the resources available in one’s own community. Free books from the Maryland Book Bank were provided to the children who attended. The Maryland Book Bank, located in Baltimore, MD, is available to all Maryland residents and programs to pick up free books for children.

It was amazing to see the children attending the summit involved in the discussion. They talked about what was important to them when it came to their education. To hear them say they wanted love, support and patience from their teachers and parents was breathtaking. The parents were given the chance to talk about ways they are helping their children in and outside of school. The summit was a listening and learning session for all.

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Rev. Russell St. Bernard “Rev. Russ” of Reid Temple organized the summit with a goal in mind. “Our goal for the Family Engagement Summit is to empower students, parents, and administrators alike to make this school year the best one yet! By providing experts in the field, free resources, as well as encouraging dialog amongst peer-groups (adults and students), we expect for all those who attend the summit to leave with practical tools that they will be able to use immediately in the life of their student.”

Family Engagement Pic2Rev. Russell St. Bernard “Rev. Russ” and members of Reid Temple worked with David Johns, Director of the WHIEEAA, Frances Frost, Family Ambassador Fellow of the Campagna Center and Angel Rush of the CFBNP to create such a powerful and meaningful summit. We are looking to plan additional educational forums with Reid Temple and hopefully other churches in the area in order to reach families and communities that are less represented in school engagement.

By Angel Rush, Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships and Frances M. Frost, Family Ambassador Fellow, The Campagna Center