August 18, 2006
Rollins freshman Maia Ryan pulls weeds with Fern Creek Elementary second grader Brianna Ortiz.
On Wednesday, August 16, more than 650 incoming Rollins students, faculty and staff took part in 20 community service projects throughout Central Florida. The program, called SPARC (or Service Philanthropy Activism Rollins College), is the only one of its kind in the state of Florida. During the day of service, students did everything from landscaping to sorting food pantry items to setting up computers.
“SPARC was an awesome experience,” said Maia Ryan, a Rollins freshman who participated in a landscaping project at Fern Creek Elementary School. “I moved here less than a week ago, and I am already getting to know the community around me. It is definitely a great feeling.”
It wasn’t just Rollins students who reaped the benefits from the outreach project. “We love our continued relationship with Rollins,” said Holly Vanture, community and mentor coordinator at Fern Creek Elementary. “For these at-risk kids, interacting with college students lets them know that one day, they could go to college.”
Rollins students participate in community service during SPARC, a component of Rollins' orientation.
The event was sponsored by the Rollins College Office of Community Engagement and supported by the Rollins College Philanthropy & Nonprofit Leadership Center, The Rollins Fund and the Rollins College Alumni Association.
SPARC is the cornerstone of orientation for new students. SPARC produced 2,600 hours of community service. The goal of the program is to ignite students' interest and passion for engaging as activists and servant leaders and to teach students that their community extends beyond the college campus.
Following the community service projects, students, faculty and staff gathered on the Mills Lawn for a barbecue. This is the fourth year incoming Rollins students have participated in community service projects at the beginning of the school year.
