John H. Pace, Jr. ’39 Center for Civic Engagement is providing more opportunities for students to have meaningful service experiences. We’re doing so because service is a central part of the Princeton experience, and because students are coming to Princeton more attuned to service. On campus and in the community, students are engaging in experiences that connect them with new people, places, and ideas. Students are actively reflecting on how these experiences impact their values, goals, and futures; and we see a future where students build community with each other and recognize the expertise and knowledge of partners in the wider community.
In our 2018-2019 Annual Report, we illustrate a few of the ways these experiences impact students. Did you know?
- More than 600 first-year students started off the 2018-2019 academic year with Community Action during Orientation to Princeton.
- Over fall and spring break, students examined how performing arts promote youth empowerment, studied the return of wolves in the Rockies as a conservation issue, and explored end-of-life care and inequality in cancer treatment as part of Breakout Princeton.
- Student organization Princeton Student Climate Initiative convened NJ legislators, regulatory agencies, environmental groups, and businesses on campus to discuss statewide policies to mitigate climate change.
- More than 200 members of the campus and surrounding community attended student organization Students for Prison Education and Reform’s spring conference on carceral reform.
- More than 70 sophomores bridged service and learning as part of Service Focus’ inaugural class.
- Undergraduate and graduate students partnered with more than 300 community organizations this past year.
- Students celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Student Volunteers Council in spring 2018 and are planning celebrations for the 50th anniversary of Community House in fall 2019.
- Computer science professor Alan Kaplan and eight undergraduate students traveled to Puerto Rico over the summer of 2018 and the summer of 2019 to teach computer science and take part in Hurricane Maria relief efforts.
- Students engaged in summer internships with criminal justice organizations, government agencies and leaders, environmental groups, and more as part of Projects for Peace, Guggenheim Internships in Criminal Justice, and the John C. Bogle ’51 Fellows in Civic Service program. This year, we are also excited to welcome Princeton Internships in Civic Service into the fold.
The Pace Center's 2018-2019 Annual Report is dedicated to founding supporter John (Jack) C. Bogle ’51 (1929-2019). Jack epitomized what it meant to be “in the nation’s service and the service of humanity” and in his honor the annual report shares stories from students and partners about their own service experiences, as well as additional information on how the Pace Center is advancing our mission of making service and civic engagement part of the student experience at Princeton.