Students Embark on Urban Plunge Experience

When freshman Danica Garcia joined more than 40 other students last weekend on a trip to St. Louis for Greenville College's Urban Plunge, she hardly knew what to expect. An announcement in chapel days before hinted at work with refugees. The schedule she received listed activities like training, team building, and a service project, but offered few details.

Yet, in slightly more than 24 hours, Garcia emerged from "the plunge" with a deep appreciation for the immense challenge faced by people she had rarely considered before - refugees relocated to the United States. Fresh memories from the weekend shaped her new empathy for these strangers in a strange land:

Heart-wrenching stories from refugees whose journeys began with genocide and the death of loved ones.The faces of the Bhutanese/Nepalese families who lived in the house she and other students had come to winterize. The triumph of devising ways to communicate past a language barrier (Charades work!).The pleasant discovery that the refugees she met shared her Christian faith.

By noon, she and her fellow students had joined hands with the refugees in prayer, worked side-by-side to cover windows in plastic, and fellowshipped together over a Nepalese meal. "It was awesome," reflects Garcia on the opportunity to learn and serve.

Garcia's team connected with the refugees through New City Fellowship, a partner with Greenville College in producing this semester's Urban Plunge. The church has engaged in vibrant ministry to refugees in the South City area for about six years. Under guidance from the Fellowship's staff, teams of college students spent Saturday morning helping its refugee/parishioners with home maintenance tasks like the one assigned to Garcia's team.

Among the refugees inhabiting St. Louis are those who have escaped tribal genocide in African nations, political persecution in Burma, and expulsion from their homelands like the Bhutanese/Nepalese with whom Garcia worked. Many of these refugees have spent years confined to camps. Some have never known life beyond a wire until now. They are challenged daily by the vastly different culture of urban St. Louis and the knowledge, skills, and resources that living in that culture requires.

The college students worked with Bryan Hayes, intern with New City Fellowship's Bhutanese/Nepali ministry. "New City's ministry to refugees has sprung from the deep commitment God expresses in his word for the poor and marginalized in our world," he says, "particularly the widow, orphan, and sojourner (or refugee/immigrant). We have thousands of people like that all around us in South City, so it isn't hard to find, serve, and build relationships with them."

Building relationships, in fact, was part of this year's Urban Plunge experience. On Saturday, after a morning of service activities, Garcia and other students chaperoned youth from New City Fellowship on a special outing.

"It was a huge blessing for Greenville College to provide pizza and a trip to the City Museum for 20 of our Nepali youth," remarked Hayes. "It was great to watch the College make it more than just about funding an event, but also making it a relational affair as the students split up into groups with the refugees to tour the museum.

Hayes expressed gratitude for the interaction the Urban Plunge experience afforded refugees because it helped them bridge the gap into a new culture and become more comfortable with those different than them. Students like Danica Garcia, however, might say Greenville College students were helped in precisely the same way.   

This story was published on November 19, 2012

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Three Grinnell students awarded Gilman Scholarships for study abroad

Left to right: Spring 2013 Gilman Scholarship recipients Emily Nucaro '14, Lana Mahgoub '14 and Samanea Karrfalt '14.

Justin Hayworth, communications

Three Grinnell College students have received federally-funded Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships to support study abroad during the spring 2013 semester.

The Gilman Scholarship is a federal grant program that provides awards for U.S. undergraduate students receiving Federal Pell Grant funding to participate in study abroad programs worldwide. The program aims to diversify the kinds of students who study abroad and the countries and regions where they go by supporting undergraduates who might otherwise not participate due to financial constraints. The three Grinnell students and their programs are:

Samanea Karrfalt, a third-year anthropology and German double major, is from McKean, Penn., and will study at the Humboldt University in Berlin. At Grinnell, she is a student adviser, a member of IndepenDance, and works with the Alumni Relations office. Post-graduation, she hopes to become a Fulbright scholar and pursue a Ph.D. in German.Lana Mahgoub, a third-year psychology major with a concentration in neuroscience, is from Arlington, Va., and will study in Denmark. At Grinnell she is a Posse scholar, president and founder of the Karaoke club, president of the Muslim Student Association, a student adviser to her peers, and she helps to build relationships with parents and alumni to raise money for Grinnell's Pioneer Fund. After Grinnell, she hopes to attend graduate school to pursue a psychology Ph.D.Emily Nucaro, a third-year sociology major with a concentration in global development studies, is from Urbandale, Iowa and will study sustainable development in Quito, Ecuador. A National Merit Scholar at Grinnell, she has worked with Habitat for Humanity through Americorps and as an Anna Beal intern with the Nature Conservancy. After graduation she hopes to work in development, possibly with the Peace Corps.

Grinnell College is a nationally recognized, private, four year, liberal arts college located in Grinnell, Iowa. Founded in 1846, Grinnell enrolls 1,600 students from all 50 states and from as many international countries in more than 26 major fields, interdisciplinary concentrations, and pre-professional programs.

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Greenville College Students To Host Community Halloween Events

The community is invited to two Halloween events at Greenville College. A haunted house sponsored by the Greenville College bands will open Oct. 28 at 6 p.m. to raise funds for the Simple Room, and the residence halls will be open for trick-or-treating on Oct. 31 starting at 6 p.m.

On Oct. 28, students associated with the Greenville College bands will transform the basement of the Whitlock Music Center into "Nightmare Off Elm Street." The haunted house will be open for all ages from 6 p.m. until 11 p.m. General admission is $4 and student admission is $2. All proceeds will go to the Simple Room, a local nonprofit organization that provides free youth programs.

Trick-or-treaters are invited to visit Greenville College residence halls on Oct. 31 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Burritt Hall will serve as the starting point for a tour that leads through several residence halls and ends with outdoor games and activities. Residence halls will be decorated with themes including Hogwarts, video game world, enchanted forest, carnival land, and School of Rock. Burritt Hall is located just off of Beaumont Avenue. This event is free, and parking is available at the campus parking lot on Prairie Street as well as Lot A between Burritt Hall and the tennis courts. Parents are asked to accompany children.

This story was published on October 22, 2012

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Gratz Students and Alumni Take Action

By Gratz College

Michael Slutsky, Danielle Selber, Gavy Alter and Adam Steifel

Gratz College and the Jewish Community High School find pride in the fact that many Jewish leaders across the country have grown from our classrooms. Here is another excellent example right here in Philadelphia.

As project director of The Collaborative, Danielle Selber (M.A.J.S. 2011) held a successful event for Jewish young adults who watch the polls together on November 6th while raising money for Hurricane Sandy disaster relief. Funds raised will go to Jewish Federation of Atlantic County.

Collaborative members helping with the event were Gavy Alter, a current Gratz College student, and Danielle’s husband, Michael Slutsky, a Gratz College Jewish Community High School graduate. Gavy is working on her Bachelor degree in Jewish Studies with certificates in Jewish Education and Jewish Early Childhood Education.

As seen through the actions of our students and alumni, the connection between Jewish identity, community awareness and leadership continues to be a core value of Gratz College and the Jewish Community High School.

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