Community Engagement Virtual Summit

This virtual summit showcases the community engagement work of Wagner College faculty and affiliated organizations who are responding to local or global challenges through collaborative projects involving a diversity of stakeholders. In particular, it highlights the effectiveness of equity and inclusion in achieving solutions to community challenges.

The NYC Compost Project Hosted by Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden

Carol Hooper, Project Manager The NYC Compost Project works to rebuild NYC’s soils by providing New Yorkers with the

knowledge, skills, and opportunities they need to make and use compost locally.

•  Train New Yorkers to develop, maintain, and revitalize community compost sites through our Master Composter Certificate Program.

•  Build and support a strong network of community compost sites such as Hill Street Community Garden, Joe Holzka Community Garden, Olivet Heavenly Harvest Garden.

•  In collaboration with Wagner College we developed the College Compost Leadership Training. A team of 3 Wagner students participated in the 10-week training (9/20/19 - 11/22/19), which took place at Snug Harbor and Wagner. Participants learned best practices in urban composting, expanded their community compost site, and held their own volunteer workday. Following the training, participants have continued to host volunteer workdays and promote composting at their home campus.

The 30,000 Degrees Initiative, a regional anchor initiative to increase the number of baccalaureate degree graduates from Staten Island, by 30,000 between 2015 – 2025

●  30,000 Degrees will host The Art of Successful Grantsmanship Traning Series, VIRTUALLY, with DePass Academic Consulting, for faculty, staff, & partners to pursue funding to advance equity & inclusion through college readiness research & programming on Staten Island.

Sponsored by:

●  Areas of Interest include: ○  K-12 to College Pipelines ○  Undergraduate STEM education for degree completion; specifically

Science & Biology ○  Simulation Technology for homeland security & emergency management ○  Persistence & completion for 1st generation college students ○  Workforce to Degree Completion Pipelines ○  Teacher preparation & decreasing teacher attrition ○  Funding & scholarship resources for community-based research

Please email crystal.Montalvo@csi.cuny.edu if you’re interested in collaborating on a grant application, in one of the areas of interest

•  Facilitated by a panel of professionals •  Includes 5th graders: 9-10 years old (preferable male) •  Contributing potential partners: Teachers, Doctors, Community

Leaders (NAACP), Church Leaders and Staten Island Assistant District Attorney’s Office

•  Coordination provided by Wagner Childhood Education. PS21 Teachers, and Guidance Counselor

•  OUTCOMES •  Increase knowledge among elementary school students of non-

traditional career partnerships/ possibilities •  Share knowledge and improve career opportunity •  Develop new role models •  Create mentoring program for underrepresented students

P.S. 21 Mentoring Program for General & Special Education Students Wagner College

Prof. Vanessa Smith-Washington, Mr. Anthony Cosentino, and Elaina Boncich

There are no mentoring programs that address the unique needs of African American boys in the New York City School System in Staten Island, NY. The primary goals of the program are to engage boys who are perceived as

high-at-risk, connect boys to professional role models in non-traditional careers, provide life skills training, employability skills, and ultimately inspire the young boys to pursue successful and productive futures. This program is designed to be a culminating activity and to supplement the current curriculum. A target date to

initiate the Mentoring Program is scheduled to begin in Spring 2020.

First Year Learning Community 1: We Say Never Again! Empathy, Ethics and Courage

Prof. Theresa McCarthy (Theater) and Prof. Lori Weintrob (History) 2015-present

•  This Learning Community explores the impulses that drive the perpetrator, the bystander and the resister of genocide.

•  Wagner College LC1 meets three times with Holocaust survivors and 2nd generation survivors, as well as a survivor of the Rwandan Genocide (often with a local high school class).

•  LC1 College Students of all faiths create a performance on lessons of Holocaust for the Jewish Foundation School of Staten Island (6th-8th grade)--using monologues of survivors and songs.

•  Students often stay involved in the Spring semester and beyond.

Part of the First Year Program at Wagner, students enrolled in this program take a suite of three courses that draw upon interdisciplinary and experiential learning. Through an immersion in

theatre and history, students consider the power of storytelling as a tool for empathy and courage. Students present lessons on methods for standing up against hate and prejudice in word and song

to youth and community members.

Youth Stand Up to Hate Wagner College Holocaust Center

Profs. Lori Weintrob (Director), Laura Morowitz, Theresa McCarthy, Mickey Tennenbaum, Aleksandra Zagorin

The Holocaust Center’s mission is to empower future generations in empathy, courage, and ethical decision-making in order to combat anti-Semitism, racism & all forms of prejudice.

•  Our More than 25 Wagner College student interns have

connected Holocaust survivors to over 6,000 local youth—Susan Wagner & Port Richmond High Schools, I.S.49, I.S. 2, P.S.19, P.S.1 and many other schools.

•  Original Play Rise Up: Young Holocaust Heros featuring talented Wagner students and attended by over 600 3rd-12th grade students annually.

•  Work directly with the District Attorney’s Office and Board of Ed. Since 2019.

Obesity Education Presentation Dr. Edna Aurelus

The NYC health reported in 2018 that 24% of residents in Port Richmond are obese. Obesity is one

of the most common causes of preventable death. Local community advocates indicated there was need for education around this epidemic

This program was developed collaboratively between Dr. Aurelus in Nursing and Reverend Terry Troia at Project Hospitality and El Centro. Engaging a pre-existing nursing class at Wagner, Nutrition and Health (NR224), Aurelus and Troia have students create poster presentations to teach residents about healthy food choices when grocery shopping.

Marketing Research Community Engagement at Wagner Prof. Paul G. Baretta, Nicolais School of Business and MK 401

Goal: to explore qualitative methods of marketing research to determine motivations around working

on community engagement through various outlets within and without the Wagner community. ●  Student and Professor exploration of qualitative methods

●  Guest session by Dr. Lori Weintrob on community engagement

●  Initial methods of Individual Depth Interviews and Focus Groups changed to online projective technique due to campus closing in response to the spring 2020 national covid-19 outbreak.

●  Online projective technique gathers qualitative data from Wagner College students, faculty, and staff. Survey asks respondents for a detailed response from two fictional friends based on the questions why DO and why DON’T you participate in community engagement (126 responses: 65 students; 32 faculty; 29 staff)

●  Students will conduct content analysis individually and then in groups using Open/Axial/Selective coding techniques (Strauss & Corbin 1998 – Basics of Qualitative Research, 2nd ed. Chap’s 8-10)

●  Objective is to develop theory and variables for use in a quantitative study to be pilot tested on the Wagner College community and then utilized for a broader audience to benefit Community Engagement motivations.

●  Early indications appear to reveal a good taxonomy of motivations for and against related to internal trait-based motivations / anti-motivations, community environment, opportunity

PRPLA’s goal is to enhance and enrich the achievement of Port Richmond High School rising juniors and seniors and foster growth of college awareness in its students. It also looks for ways to connect and engage the Port Richmond community through service.

Port Richmond Partnership Leadership Academy (PRPLA) Shawn Lawson Jr., Coordinator

Community Partners

El Centro del Inmigrante La Colmena Snug Harbor Cultural Center Project Hospaitality Make the Road ISY / UAU NYC Compost I.S. 51 / P.S. 21

Dr. Sarah Scott Dr. Sarah Donovan Dr. Steven Thomas Dr. Holly Van Buren Dr. Cyril Gosh Dr. Matthew Kubacki

Wagner staff/faculty Wagner collaborations

Bonner Leaders Program

During the internships, students volunteered at many partnerships in Port Richmond. There was also an art mural that was done at Port Richmond High School that displayed embracing your roots and breaking grounds that color our students and their heritages.

Markham Leadership Academy Ashley Olsen, Coordinator

The Markham Leadership Academy (MLA) is an educational initiative established by Wagner College, Port Richmond High School, and Edwin Markham IS 51. This program is designed to increase the

number of middle school students completing high school, to create college awareness, and raise their civic consciousness.

Wagner College Collaborations

⧫ Bonner Leader Program ⧫ First-Year Program ⧫ Nursing Program ⧫ Swimming and Diving Team ⧫ Women’s Basketball Team ⧫ Wagner College Community

Community Partners

⧫ SIPCW ⧫ Project Hospitality ⧫ SI MakerSpace

Faculty Collaborations

⧫ Dr. Sarah Donovan ⧫ Dr. Edna Aurelus ⧫ Dr. Shaohua Hu ⧫ Dr. Steven Thomas ⧫ Dr. Heather Cook ⧫ Dr. Celeste Gagnon ⧫ Dr. Christopher Corbo ⧫ Dr. Arun Sharma