Wooster's Newest Residents Catch the College's Volunteer Spirit

First-year students tackle a range of community service projects

Colleen Bartman, a first-year student from Hudson, Ohio, helps spread mulch at The City of Wooster's First-Year Service Day.

WOOSTER, Ohio - Hundreds of Wooster's newest residents fanned out across the city last Saturday morning to volunteer for a range of community service projects. The residents, members of the first-year class at The College of Wooster, filled the Kiwanis Playground at Schellin Park with mulch, repaired a brick sidewalk and pruned trees and shrubs at the city's skate park, restored and painted 15 park benches, painted over graffiti sites throughout the city, installed 150 feet of a railroad-tie wall to protect newly installed landscape beds at DiGiacomo Green, stacked more than 11,000 bricks at the College's salvage yard, and picked up trash along nine miles of U.S. Route 30 and State Route 83 in the largest single-day event in the history of ODOT's District 3 Adopt-A-Highway program.

"It was awesome," said Carolyn Buxton, senior associate dean of students and coordinator for the project. "The students responded in record numbers. They were eager to work and learn more about this community."

An estimated 450 first-year students were divided into two groups. About 300 were assigned to community projects, while the other 150 worked at the College's salvage yard. "These projects are learning opportunities for our students," said Buxton. "Whether on campus or off, they return exhausted, but with a greater appreciation for the community and the College."

Darryl Decker, parks manager for the City of Wooster, said that the students logged 600 hours of community service (valued at $10,200), which helped his department in its efforts to maintain the highest standards of care for assets in the parks. "What a tremendous group (of students)," said Decker. "They were a pleasure to work with, and they accomplished so much for us."

Beau Mastrine, director of campus grounds, expressed his appreciation to the students while pointing out the educational value of the experience. "Having the first years handle a part of the ongoing college history makes this effort so important," he said. "Some of these bricks have been around for many, many years. It really shows the incoming students that the hard work it took to make the (bricks) years ago is not forgotten. The future for the students is based on getting the most out of their education with hard work."

Among the participants was Colleen Bartman, a first-year student from Hudson, Ohio, who noted the benefits of the project, "I think it is good to get involved in the community and work together as a team," said Bartman, who was an active volunteer in high school. "It helps to create a bond among the first-year students."

Emilie Ivanowicz, a global nomad from Buenos Aires, Argentina, is no stranger to service projects either, and she's looking forward to other opportunities like this one. "It was a great experience to start off the year," she said. "I hope to become involved in more community services activities on campus."

Renee Hennemann, a first-year student from Akron, said the project was important because it provided a link to Wooster's legacy of community service. "I was somewhat aware of Wooster's service commitment through what I had seen on the Internet," she said. "A project like this helps to get everyone involved."

The benefits of the annual first-year service day project are numerous, both for the College and the community, according to Buxton. "The College has a long tradition of service and giving to others," she said. "This project introduces new students to that tradition and to the community while providing an opportunity for them to be seen in a positive light by area residents."