JCSU News Release

Johnson C. Smith University Receives Special Achievement Award for Service

School Honored for Service to Disadvantaged Youth

February 11, 2008 – The Corporation for National and Community Service honored Johnson C. Smith University today at the American Council on Education (ACE) annual conference with a Special Achievement Award as part of the second annual President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. JCSU was one of two minority-serving institutions that received the special achievement award in recognition of its commitment to service.

JCSU President Dorothy Cowser Yancy said, “Service learning has been one of the longest-running and most successful components of our curriculum at Johnson C. Smith University. It’s an honor to be recognized two years in a row for our efforts to make a difference in the lives of children in our community.”

The award was given in recognition of the Johnson C. Smith Saturday Academy program, which partners 45 college students with three local elementary schools. At the schools, JCSU students serve as tutors, mentors, and ambassadors, providing 1,440 hours of direct service in reading and math during the 2006-07 school year.

Launched in 2006, the Honor Roll’s Presidential Award is the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for its commitment to service-learning and civic engagement. Honorees for the award were chosen based on a series of selection factors including scope and innovativeness of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.

“Johnson C. Smith’s students are a sterling example of today’s college students, who are tackling the toughest problems in America, demonstrating their compassion, commitment, and creativity by serving as mentors, tutors, and in other roles,” said David Eisner, CEO of the Corporation, who presented the award. “They represent a renewed spirit of civic engagement fostered by outstanding leadership on caring campuses.”

In congratulating the winners, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said, “Americans rely on our higher education system to prepare students for citizenship and the workforce. We look to institutions like these to provide leadership in partnering with local schools to shape the civic, democratic and economic future of our country.”