Trinity College

Annual Projects

	Annual Projects *August* ¨ Pre-Orientation programs [*On hold for 2007 because of budgetary issues] Trinity currently runs a number of pre-orientation programs, which gives incoming first-year students the opportunity to arrive early and participate in a program that coincides with their interests. The Office plans and runs two of these: Community Service* and Hartford by Bike. ¨ FACES Training (Friends Active in Civic Engagement and Service--FACES): Held just before the start of the academic year for Trinity’s FACES representatives (for more information about FACES, see the “Ongoing Programs” section). This training includes sessions on College student group policies, volunteer recruitment, leadership development, record-keeping, etc. In addition, there are also bonding activities, such as a “ropes” course, a community service project, and group meals. This training is also a time for these student leaders to prepare their community service projects for the upcoming academic year. ¨ Praxis Welcome Weekend (Praxis): Held just before the start of the academic year for members of Praxis (for more information about Praxis, see the “Ongoing Programs” section), which focuses on community-building and planning. The Weekend includes a “ropes” course, a community service project, an improvement project for their residence hall (Doonesbury), planning meetings, and group meals and social activities. *September* ¨ Do It Day (FACES): Started in 1999, Do It Day is half-day event held the first weekend after classes that engages hundreds of students, faculty, and staff in service projects throughout Hartford. We began the Do It Day program in the hope of starting the academic year with an event that immediately engages a large portion of our campus in the Hartford community. The event has grown from about 150 participants at 11 worksites the first year to 520+ participants at 55+ worksites in 2006. ¨ Park River Clean-Up (Green Campus): As part of the annual fall Connecticut River Source to Sea Cleanup, Trinity students pull out thousands of pounds of garbage from the nearby South Branch of the Park River. *October* ¨ AIDS Walk (SUSHI): SUSHI recruits students to participate and raise money for this event that benefits AIDS Project Hartford. In addition to getting pledges for the Walk, SUSHI also typically holds a benefit concert to raise additional funds. In 2006, SUSHI raised $700.00 through its participation in the AIDS Walk. ¨ Habitrot 5K Run (Habitat for Humanity): Habitrot began in 2003, as a fundraiser to support the work of Trinity’s Habitat for Humanity chapter. With the assistance of the President’s Office and Campus Safety, this race around and through the campus, regularly attracts 75-100 students and raises $900 - $1000. ¨ Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk (Kappa Kappa Gamma): Kappa regularly assembles a team for this annual American Cancer Society event. In 2006, individual contributions from Kappa Sisters combined with pink ribbon sales resulted in $3,060 raised for cancer research by Trinity’s Kappa chapter. ¨ Red Cross Blood Drive (Psi Upsilon): Held on October 24, 2007, we were able to collect 63 productive units of blood. ¨ Halloween on Vernon Street (ACES): Annual Halloween event, held the Sunday before Halloween in which 500 children are given a fun and safe Halloween experience on Vernon Street, including trick-or-treating, games, and haunted houses. *November* ¨ Green Homecoming (Green Campus): On Homecoming Weekend purchases green energy (in 2006, 140,000 KwH) to offset a portion of the energy being consumed for Homecoming, as well as chalks the campus to remind people about the importance of recycling. Green Campus also is responsible for getting more recycling bins in the tailgating area, and volunteers are on hand to ensure that as much recyclable material is collected as possible. ¨ Thanksgiving Food Basket Drive (ConnPIRG and ACES): A drive done to provide a Thanksgiving dinner with turkey and all the trimmings to 100 families of children at the M.D. Fox Elementary School ¨ Great Pie Project (Praxis): In 2007, 500 pies were made for 11 community groups. ¨ Ninth Graders Go To College (Alpha Delta Phi): Sponsored by the Hartford Consortium for Higher Education, which this year brought about 40 Hartford ninth graders for a campus visit hosted by the brothers of Alpha Delta Phi. The ninth graders attend special programs done especially for the visit (i.e., robotics lab, insect lab, basketball clinic), talk to Trinity students about college life, and eat lunch in Mather Dining Hall. *December* ¨ World AIDS Day (SUSHI & AMSA): On December 1, 2007, SUSHI assembled a visual display to raise awareness about the almost 40 million people in the world living with HIV/AIDS. The display consisted of wrapping the trees of the Quad with giant red ribbons, with each foot of ribbon representing 10,000 people living with HIV/AIDS. SUSHI also sponsored a lecture by Merrill Singer, Ph.D., from the Hispanic Health Council, which addressed needle exchange programs. ¨ Sponsor A Snowman (ACES): Holiday Gift Drive for Hartford Interval House (ACES): In 2004 Trinity was able to provide gifts for about 145 children at Hartford Interval House, a local domestic violence shelter. ¨ Hartford Interval House Holiday Party (ACES): Each year Interval House holds a holiday for current and past clients of Interval House, and for the past few years members of ACES have participated in the part by assisting with arts & crafts activities, running games for the children, and just being on hand to assist with anything else that needs to be done. ¨ Human Rights Week (Amnesty International and the Human Rights Fellows): A week long series of events to raise awareness on important human rights issues and to foster a human rights culture on campus. The week builds up to the celebration of International Human Rights Day on December 10^th. This day commemorates the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. *January* ¨ JELLOH—January Experience of Living, Learning, and Outreach in Hartford (Chapel Council): JELLOH takes place the week before the start of the spring semester, and it is a week of service and religious reflection. The students who participate, live together in the Interfaith House, shop for food with a food stamps budget, cook meals together, conduct Bible study and discussions about social issues, and spend 4 days working at nonprofit organizations in Hartford, including Habitat for Humanity and the Hartford Catholic Worker *February* ¨ Souper Bowl Food Drive (ACES): Food drive held at a local supermarket(s) since 2000 the day before the Super Bowl, with all the food donated to a local food pantry, soup kitchen, or homeless shelter. This year, ACES was joined by Zeta Eta Omega and thus were able to collect food from two supermarkets (Stop and Shop in Wethersfield and West Hartford), donating the food to the Hartford Catholic Worker ¨ Red Cross Blood Drive (Psi Upsilon)—held on February 21, 2007, 77 potential donors showed and we were able to collect 62 productive units of blood. *March* ¨ Annual Auction for Charity (ACES)--auction held annually in which local restaurants, services, etc., as well as on-campus offices are solicited and donate items to be auctioned off to members of the Trinity community. The event has been held for about 14 years now, and all the money raised usually goes to a designated local charity, which in the past has included Peter’s Retreat, St. Agnes Home, Habitat for Humanity, the Charter Oak Boxing Academy, Hartford Interval House, Youth United for Survival, and the Immaculate Conception Shelter. In 2007 over $2,100 was raised for the benefit of Ciara Rivera, a 16 year-old from Hartford who was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) last year. Ciara has a special place in the hearts of many at Trinity as she has been a part of Trinity’s Dream Camp summer program for 10 years. Though her illness prevented her from participating as a camper in 2006, she remained dedicated to the program, serving as a Dream Camp office assistant and coming to help out on campus whenever possible. ¨ Alternative Spring Break (Habitat for Humanity)--30 students go on a spring break trip to a Habitat for Humanity affiliate and build houses for a week. Past trips have included, Starkville, Mississippi; Lynchburg, Virginia; Americus, Georgia; Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Fort Myers, Florida; Los Altos, New Mexico; and New Orleans, Louisiana. In 2007 students worked at the nation’s largest Habitat affiliate, HabiJax, in Jacksonville, Florida. *April* ¨ Relay for Life: Held now for two years at Trinity, Relay for Life is an all-night event held on Trinity’s track to raise awareness about cancer, celebrate survivors, remember those that have been lost to cancer, and to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Relay is Trinity’s largest student-run fundraiser and one of its largest service events. 500-600 members of the Trinity community participate, and in its inaugural year, Trinity’s Relay raised over $69,000, placing it in the top five college Relays (per capita) in the country. And although not a final figure, the 2007 Relay has thus far raised over $78,000. ¨ Hunger Clean-Up (ConnPIRG): A day long serve-a-thon during which about 50-100 Trinity student volunteer at various places throughout Hartford and raise money for their work. Half the money goes to a designated local charity, 35% goes to the National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness, and 15% goes to international hunger relief efforts. ¨ Act! Speak! Build! Week (Habitat for Humanity): A nationwide, student-initiated day of advocating for affordable housing. Unfortunately, this year because of overlapping and conflicting events, we were not able to participate in Act! Speak! Build! Week. We hope to resume our participation in 2007. ¨ Fifth Graders Go To College (Alpha Delta Phi): Sponsored by the Hartford Consortium for Higher Education, which this year brought about 150 - 200 Hartford fifth graders for a campus visit hosted by Trinity students. The fifth graders attend special programs done especially for the visit (i.e., robotics lab, insect lab, electric fish, library, and a basketball clinic), talk to Trinity students about college life, and eat lunch in Mather Dining Hall. ¨ Fox Fashion Show (AMSA): The Fox Fashion Show was started in 2006 by Nicole Tsesmelis ’06, in memory of her now deceased grandfather, Chrisosotomos Panos, who was afflicted with Parkinson’s disease for 30 years. Since Nicole’s graduation, AMSA has taken over and continued the event. Students solicit clothing donations from local merchants and national clothiers to be modeled as well as food donations from local restaurants, so that all the money collected from admission and drawings goes directly to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. *May* ¨ Fun Fair (Trinity College Activities Council and ACES): Annual carnival for hundreds of neighborhood children held at the end of the spring semester. In 2007, Fun Fair was conducted in partnership with a samba concert, organized by Music Professor, Eric Galm, on the Mather Quad. This collaboration made both events better, and it is hoped that this partnership will be continued. ¨ Get Naked with Praxis/Dump and Run (Praxis/Green Campus): Annual clothing drive and post move-out dorm salvage. Typically, items collected are donated to local shelters (men’s clothing--Immaculate Conception Shelter, women’s and children’s clothing--Hartford Interval House). Although, sometimes (as you will see in “Clothing Donations” part of the “Ongoing Programs” section) items go to a special initiative that might happen to pop up. ¨ Graduation Pledge (Graduation Pledge Committee): A pledge graduating seniors take voluntarily that reads as follows: "I pledge to explore and take into account the social and environmental consequences of any job I consider and will try to improve these aspects of any organizations for which I work." Over 100 schools in the country are part of the Graduation Pledge Alliance, and Trinity is the first one from Connecticut (starting with the Class of 2001). In 2007, about 340 of Trinity’s graduating seniors took the Pledge, which they demonstrate by signing a book and wearing a pin and ribbon on Commencement Day. In addition, the Graduation Pledge committee attempted to provide information on post-graduate opportunities consistent with the Pledge by working with Career Services to put out a “Nonprofit Job of the Week” to seniors as well as organize and co-sponsor a panel with local alums and other environmental professionals on careers in environmental work.