Community engagement is in the core DNA of the University of Washington Bothell and one of its top priorities, Chancellor Wolf Yeigh said as he welcomed more than 50 community-based learning and research partners to a recognition luncheon at Mobius Hall.
The opportunity for engaged scholarship transforms learning, Yeigh said.
The partners in organizations, businesses, schools and government agencies work with UW Bothell in a variety of ways. They collaborate with faculty, work with students and visit classes, said Kara Adams, UW Bothell’s director of community engagement. One example she highlighted is Voyager Middle School in Mukilteo, where seventh-grade teacher Annamarie Jordan mentors UW Bothell students working at the school. One such student, Ayva Thomas, who is pursuing a Master of Arts in Cultural Studies, helped Voyager develop a writing center.
All the partners present at the May 14 celebration were asked to stand and be acknowledged with applause. Each received a certificate of appreciation and a writing pad or tote bag. In addition, several partners who have worked with the University five years or longer received special attention for their accomplishments:
- The Bothell Youth Court was developed by Municipal Court Judge Michelle Gehlsen and Camille Walsh, an associate professor in UW Bothell’s School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences (IAS). Through this program, UW Bothell students mentor local high school students who counsel teenage traffic offenders. Joren Clowers, a Master of Arts in Public Policy student, is the program coordinator.
- Tim Parnell, the principal of Hazelwood Elementary in Edmonds, has welcomed at least 30 student teachers from UW Bothell for more than a decade. Parnell also served on the Professional Education Advisory Board for the UW Bothell School of Educational Studies. “He’s a true partner and friend,” said Allison Hintz, associate professor in the school.
- The Pacific Science Center has engaged in multiple collaborative projects, including Myth Buster videos by UW Bothell Discovery Core students, the Lake Washington Watershed Internship Program, summer science camps on campus for middle school students and support for the UW Bothell Office of Research. These kinds of partnerships change our community for the better, said lecturer Charity Lovitt, lecturer in the UW Bothell School of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics.
- The Youth Migrant Project in the Skagit Valley welcomes students each year to work in its food bank during the Alternative Spring Break Program. Jose Ortiz and other staff members partner with the Achieving Community Transformation (ACT) program, said Shauniece Drayton, ACT adviser.
- Through University Beyond Bars (UBB), IAS lecturer Gary Carpenter teaches a public art class made up of UW Bothell students and inmates at the Monroe Correctional Complex. The course explores social change through the arts. Michelle Giesler (Society, Ethics and Human Behavior ’16) is a former student of Carpenter’s and the new UBB program coordinator.
- The Washington Society of Certified Public Accountants supports UW Bothell’s School of Business with connections and advice from CEO Kimberly Scott, said Associate Professor Rajib Doogar. This year, the society selected five UW Bothell students for $5,000 scholarships.
Here are the 55 community-based learning and research partners honored at the event:
21 Acres
21 Progress
ARCH – A Regional Coalition for Housing
Bloodworks Northwest
Bothell Community Kitchen at Bothell United Methodist Church
Bothell Natural Health / Inside Health Institute
Bothell Youth Court
Catholic Community Services – Volunteer Services
Center for Human Services
Cocoon House
Coding with Kids
Compass Housing Alliance
Dale Turner Family YMCA
Denney Juvenile Justice Center and Snohomish County Superior Court
Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish County
Eastside Audubon
Everett Gospel Mission
Everett Housing Authority
Farmer Frog
Foundation for Edmonds School District
Foundation for Sex Positive Culture
Friends of North Creek Forest
Full Life Care
Green Kirkland Partnership – City of Kirkland
Hazelwood Elementary School
HealthPoint
Korean Women’s Association (KWA) Cares
Latino Educational Training Institute
Moon Construction
Mukilteo School District
National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) Eastside
New Beginnings
Northshore School District
Northwest Film Forum
Olivia Park Elementary School
Pacific Science Center
Providence Institute for a Healthier Community
Providence Intervention Center for Assault and Abuse
Providence Regional Medical Center Everett
Public Health – Seattle & King County
Puget Sound Kidney Centers
Reel Grrls
Refugee Women’s Alliance
SAgE / Viva Farms
Seattle Children’s Hospital – Alyssa Burnett Adult Life Center
Snohomish County Lakes
Snohomish Health District – Medical Reserve Corps
Sound Salmon Solutions
Swedish Hospital
Tri-Parish Foodbank / Youth Migrant Project
University Beyond Bars
University Family YMCA
Voyager Middle School – North Star Mentorship Program
Washington Community Action Network
Washington Society of Certified Public Accountants
