SRU Office for Community-Engaged Learning

We are extremely proud to announce that Slippery Rock University is a Carnegie Certified campus!

It’s our favorite time of the year! Sign up using the QR for this years Elf Project Toy Drive!

Let’s say hello to our newest member of the Professional Staff:Tori Kapopoulos! My journey to this point has followed a somewhat zig-zag path. I began my undergraduate career as a psychology major. After a summer field course at the end of my sophomore year, the idea for my future transitioned and I decided that my passion lied with the environment and making the world a better place. I graduated with a BA in Environmental Geography with minors in Psychology and Anthropol...ogy from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2015. I didn’t feel that I was finished learning, so I continued my education and earned a Masters in Sustainability from Chatham University in 2017. I loved idea around sustainability. Through a graduate assistantship under a faculty who became my mentor, I began getting involved in the sustainability movement in the City of Pittsburgh. Things were popping up around air quality, water quality, human rights, and ecological well-being and I was intrigued by it all! This work helped me to connect with so many people and interact with communities that were facing real world issues, looking for answers After graduation, I spent time working for a nonprofit focused on water quality followed by a local government focusing on grant management before making my transition to SRU in March of 2020. In the short time I’ve been with the OCEL, I have learned so much about myself and how I interact with the world around me. My favorite part of this office, and specifically the Bonner Program, is the constant encouragement of growth for yourself and the support of others around you. I’m here to guide the Bonner Leaders to meet all their goals and reflect on their experiences to help them grow into strong leaders and community changemakers. Welcome to the team Tori! #newstaff #happyfriday #slipperyrockuniversity #communityengagement #staffspotlight

If you haven’t already- GO SIGN UP ON Rock Serve to get all newest and best volunteer opportunities! Check out the link in our bio!

Let’s give a warm welcome on this chilly fall Friday to our Associate Director of the OCEL office!Laura Villers Originally from Ohio, my journey in community engagement and civic leadership began in 2012 when I began national service as an AmeriCorps VISTA in Keene, New Hampshire. Wanting a bold change after college, I moved 600 miles from home and served at Keene State College in the Community Service Office developing campus service events and managing a literacy progr...am. My AmeriCorps experience led me to my Masters in Higher Education Administration at Syracuse University, and now to my role at SRU! I’m so grateful to get to pose these questions to others looking to create social change. I have my absolute dream job! I love the OCEL specifically for the culture of community we intentionally build as a team. The ability to bring one’s whole self into the workplace is not necessarily the norm in the U.S. That the OCEL strives to normalize the ability to be reflective, to be vulnerable, to be honest with ourselves and others makes us a stronger, more empathetic, and more driven team. Having a profession that is meaningful in an environment that is both productive and ridiculously fun is the greatest privilege I could imagine. #happyfriday #staffspotlight #slipperyrockuniversity #americorps #community #ilovemyjob #communityengagement #socialchange

There's still time to participate in Community Service Week! Join us tomorrow, October 31st from 9am-12pm for a socially distant Slippery Rock in Bloom. SRU Office for Community-Engaged Learning - OCEL Register now: https://sru.givepulse.com//212110-Slippery-Rock-in-Bloom-E

We want to thank everyone who volunteered this past weekend for our Community Clean Up Event! We had a lot of fun and was able to give back to our community in an amazing way! #community #communitycleanup #communitylove #communityservice #slipperyrockuniversity