Community Outreach

Community Outreach Committee Chair

Sam Pritchard
samuel.pritchard@drake.edu

The Community Outreach Committee Chair is responsible for planning at least one major community outreach event each semester. Each event is open to all students, faculty and staff at Drake University, as well as to members of the community. The Community Outreach Committee Chair also attends the meetings of the Campus Advancement Committee and the Drake Neighborhood Task Force and seeks to collaborate with other community outreach organizations, initiatives and offices at Drake University.

Fall 2011 Summary (submitted by Sam Pritchard)

This semester has been truly been exciting time for the Community Outreach Committee (COC). After re-evaluating some of the goals and objectives of the committee, we determined that the committee needed to focus on three primary areas: Service, Advocacy, and Development. While the COC has typically been a committee devoted to community service, we thought it was necessary to expand the scope of the committee’s efforts.

In response to our focus area of Service, the COC organized two main community service initiatives this semester. The first was an effort to collaborate with RHA’s “3 Mile Project”, a food drive to benefit local food pantries in the Des Moines metro area. RHA’s event drastically exceeded all expectations and involved a wide variety of students and organizations. The COC was excited to be involved with this effort, and held a tailgate fundraiser before the Homecoming football game on October 1. This event was enhanced by collaboration with the Brocal Chords, one of Drake’s premiere all-male a capella groups, who walked around the tailgate parking lot and sang to parents and fans for donations. The combined effort resulted in $155.50 being raised.

Additionally, the COC held the annual Holiday Wish Party. This year over 40 students and their parents participating in the Holiday Wish Party, and in all 24 families received gifts purchased by faculty, staff, and students. The event was a massive success, and was called the “best it’s ever been” by Jan Wise. The event was marked by cookie decorating, coloring, crafts, sing-a-longs, and even a visit by Santa. Additionally, over ten senators were able to volunteer and help create a warm and inviting environment for the children.

In the area of Advocacy, the COC is excited to be pursing a legislative advocacy day at the State Capitol next semester, tentatively called “Bulldog Breakfast.” This event will enable students to interact one-on-one with our state’s decision makers and increase Drake’s community presence. The event is currently scheduled for Thursday, February 2, from 7:00 to 10:00 am. The COC is looking forward to planning this event next semester.

Finally, I have made a conscious effort to focus our goal of Development. My objective has been to develop relationships with community members and increase not only the visibility of the Drake student body, but also the voice of the student body.