Approximately 60 Niagara University students help picked up trash and debris in the McKoon Avenue neighborhood of Niagara Falls on Saturday, Oct. 1.
A variety of student groups were represented, including Niagara’s baseball team and the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
The day of service was coordinated by Jason A. Jakubowski, Niagara’s dean of students, Fran Boltz, director of Learn and Serve Niagara, and the university’s Office of Student Affairs.
Organizers reported that the students were pleased to “make the community cleaner and the residents happier,” with one undergraduate remarking, “It shows that we care.” Several upperclassmen who reside on McKoon Avenue spontaneously volunteered to assist the cleanup efforts upon seeing the Niagara students working in their neighborhood.
Inspired by Niagara University’s Catholic and Vincentian mission, students perform 1,000 hours of community service each week during the academic year. The various forms of service may include preparing taxes for the elderly, tutoring at-risk youths, conducting breast cancer research with professors, and general cleanup. As a result, NU has earned continued recognition with Carnegie Foundation’s Classification for Community Engagement, and has been named to the President’s Honor Roll for Community Service every year since its inception in 2006.