Hadley Ninow ’27 and Katherine Lew ’25, MAOT’27 at the Seed Coalition awards with Anne Harris, Seed Coalition board chair and president of Grinnell College. Photo courtesy of D'Ann Urbaniak Lesch
On April 11, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ faculty, staff, and students were recognized for their exceptional civic engagement leadership with Presidents’ Awards at Seed Coalition’s annual awards ceremony. , formerly Iowa and Minnesota Campus Compact, is a network of college campuses across Iowa, Minnesota, and the Midwest dedicated to fostering student civic and community engagement.
The Presidents’ Awards recognize outstanding contributions in civic and community engagement by students, faculty, staff, collaborative teams, and community organizations. Each member campus is invited to designate awardees to be recognized at the awards ceremony, held this year at Hamline University. The groups and individuals nominated by President Marcheta P. Evans, PhD, this year include ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ's Special Olympics Club, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Kate’s Mini-Courses at Minnesota Correctional Facility – Shakopee, and Wisdom Wellness.
Please join us in congratulating these community members' accomplishments:
Presidents’ Student Leadership Award
The Presidents’ Student Leadership Award recognizes an individual student or a student organization that models a deep commitment to civic responsibility and leadership, evidenced by initiative, innovative and collaborative approaches to addressing public issues, effective community building, and integration of civic engagement into the college experience.
²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ's is leading the social justice movement of Special Olympics Minnesota at ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Kate’s by connecting college students with and without intellectual disabilities through sports. The club engages community members and students from across the University to host developmentally-adapted physical education events with Focus Beyond, a special education program for young adults that provides support for the transition from high school. The club was co-founded by Katherine Lew ’25, MAOT’27, during her first year at ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Kate’s, and Hadley Ninow ’27 is undertaking an honors project to make the partnership an embedded part of the exercise and sport science curriculum.
Presidents’ Civic Engagement Leadership Award
The Presidents’ Civic Engagement Leadership Award recognizes a member of the faculty, administration, or staff or a group that has significantly advanced their campus’ distinctive civic mission by forming strong partnerships, supporting others’ civic and community engagement, and working to institutionalize a culture and practice of engagement.
²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Kate’s Mini-Courses at Minnesota Correctional Facility – Shakopee connects ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ with people incarcerated at the Shakopee women’s prison through non-credit enrichment courses. This project was founded by faculty in the arts and humanities and has since grown to include faculty, students, and staff across the ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ campus. Participants at Shakopee watch video lectures on the prison's television system and correspond in writing with ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Kate’s faculty and students. Since this partnership with the Minnesota Department of Corrections began in 2022, the initiative has involved 9 faculty and 30 students from ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Kate’s, and 76 participants from Shakopee. As a women-focused university and Minnesota’s only state women’s prison, the two communities share a unique opportunity through this project to learn from each other and build community together.
Presidents’ Community Partner Award
The Presidents’ Community Partner Award recognizes a community-based partner or organization that has enhanced the quality of life in the community in meaningful and measurable ways and has engaged in the development of sustained, reciprocal partnerships with the college or university, thus enriching educational as well as community outcomes.
Wisdom Wellness is a volunteer-run clinic providing weekly free medical services at low-income senior living communities, including Elders Lodge in ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Paul, which houses predominantly Native American seniors. Since the founding of Wisdom Wellness in 2019, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Kate’s students in nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and public health have had a consistent presence at Elders Lodge through clinicals, community-based internships, and community-engaged learning courses. By combining the wisdom of current and retired medical professionals with the new perspectives and energy of emerging professionals and students, Wisdom Wellness offers a rich environment for shared community support.