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Nominations are now open for:
Campion, Staff, and Curtis Miles Community Service Awards!
Apply or Nominate for a 2023 Community Service Award!

John Carroll University recognizes and honors individuals who have made a difference in the lives of others through involvement in the community. Click on each award below to learn more about the application and nomination processes and see past winners.

  • In the spirit of St. Edmund Campion, the George B. Sweeney Endowed Campion Award for Community Service recognizes one sophomore student and one junior student each year with a demonstrated record of involvement in community service and social action, dedication to a faith tradition and/or spirituality, and strong evidence of leadership potential. Students - apply now!



The application deadline for all the Curtis W. Miles Faculty Award is Friday, December 9, 2022, by 5:00 pm. The deadline for all other awards is
Friday, December 16, 2022, by 5:00 pm.
Check Your Emails for the End of Semester Survey

Were you involved in weekly service through CSSA this fall? Check your email from December 1 for your personal link to complete our End of Semester survey! (Liaisons will receive a separate email.)

This assessment allows us to better support you, our faculty, and our community partners throughout the service-learning experience. It also gives us important feedback to track the quality of our programming and make improvements for the future.

All feedback is ~anonymous~ and there is an optional drawing you can enter to win one of four $25 Chipotle gift cards if you complete the survey! Thank you in advance for your time and insight as we try to improve.
CSSA Co-Sponsoring Lessons and Carols at Tower Time


This week at Tower Time on Wednesday, Dec. 7 starting at 1:50 pm, join Campus Ministry and CSSA for Lessons & Carols in front of St. Francis Chapel! We will have readings, festive music, hot chocolate, and bunt cakes. All are welcome to come to celebrate this Advent season and enjoy time with our community before the winter holidays!
The Center for Service-Learning and Social Action
Summer in the City Internship Applications are Open!
Build advocacy skills, engage in community-based research, and explore Cleveland through an internship with CSSA’s 2023 JCU Summer in the City Internship Program!

The JCU Summer in the City Internship Program provides an opportunity for students to engage in the issues of homelessness, advocacy, service, solidarity, and social change through this internship. These paid internships will enable qualified students to explore the systems and structures behind many of the current social issues of our times. This ten-week, full-time, paid immersive experience will place students with a nonprofit community organization in Cleveland involved in advocacy work addressing these social issues. Students will use their internship experience to prepare a research project for the organization that promotes social change. Interns also receive a $4,800 (+$500 for the research component) stipend for their work. Internships are open to all sophomore, junior, and senior undergraduates and graduate students.

Visit this link for more information about the JCU Summer in the City Internship.
Application Process Timeline:
  • Applications open on November 1, 2022
  • Regular Decision Applications are due on Sunday, January 29, 2023.
Questions? Email service@jcu.edu!
The JCU Giving Tree

Help make the holidays brighter for families at the Fatima Family Center located here in Cleveland's Hough neighborhood. Campus Ministry sponsors the Annual Giving Tree to provide gifts for children at the Fatima Family Center. The center is supported by Catholic Charities and offers a variety of outreach services to the community. Please consider joining us in supporting them by participating in the Giving Tree!

Steps to participate:
  1. Select an ornament. Trees are located around campus in the Lombardo Student Center Atrium, the Dolan Science Center Atrium, and outside CSSA's office. Ornament labels will describe what the child requested. Pick one to match your budget: under $15, under $30, or more than $30.
  2. Return the unwrapped gift by Monday, Dec. 12th. Gifts can be returned to Campus Ministry (Lombardo Student Center), Center for Service-Learning and Social Action (ground floor of St. Ignatius Hall), the Biology Department (Dolan Science Center), and Center for Career Services (Library).

Thank you for your generosity!
Sara Sfeir '24
Major: Biology

Minor: Leadership Development

Hometown: Beirut, Lebanon
Favorite Quote: “Do not take the agenda that someone else has mapped out for your life.” - John C. Maxwell 

One of the placements I was at this semester was the Holden Arboretum. This organization is one of the largest arboreta and botanical gardens in the United States. It exists to connect people to the wonder, value, and beauty of nature. It also exists to allow research about the conservation of trees and plants and ways we can perform everyday activities in a more sustainable way. 

As a result of my experience, my opinions about agriculture and trees have drastically changed. My primitive knowledge of the value of trees comes from my schooling. Trees are there to take in the CO2 and give us O2 in return. Other than that, trees were there to embellish the surroundings of houses, schools, etc... However, after this experience I learned how important trees are in our lives especially for health benefits. To elaborate, trees protect us from heat exposure when they are found as a canopy above our cities. This would in turn lower UV light to get through and damage our skin. 

I learned a lot from this experience. There were many activities that we did that related to our everyday lives. For instance, we learned how to inoculate mushroom bark which could be used for more sustainable growth of mushrooms that could then be sold to farmers markets or restaurants. We also learned how crucial trees are in the quality of life animals have. 
Register: Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Open to All Majors

All students are encouraged to register for this Spring 2023, Pass/Fail graded, service-learning course
taught by JCU Professor Emeritus Jerry Weinstein. Sign up based on class status:
  • AC 170/270/370/470 (1 credit, if you are otherwise under 18 hours, so no added cost)
  • AC 173/273/373/473 (0 credit, if you are already at 18 or more hours, so no added cost)

The VITA program helps low to moderate-income individuals and families prepare their income tax
returns without paying fees to professional preparers. The VITA program serves low-wage workers,
particularly those in families with children, who may be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit
(EITC). The EITC is a major way to help alleviate poverty among greater Clevelanders. Last year, JCU
students helped provide families in need with millions of dollars of refunds.

Additional Information:
  • You do not need to be an Accounting or Business major.
  • No prerequisites, homework, or exams.
  • All returns are reviewed and you have no liability for errors.
  • Finish by April 15, 2023.
  • Software and basic tax training provided at JCU on Saturday, January 28, 2023, from 9:00 am – 3:30 pm (free lunch).
  • Work 2 additional Saturdays from 9:00 am –3:30 pm to complete the course (free lunch)

Email weinstein@jcu.edu for details.
If you had a time machine, would you go backward or forward in time?
Forward in Time
Backward in Time
Get Connected! Stay Informed!

Follow us on social media to get the latest news from CSSA, learn about upcoming opportunities, find ways to stay connected and engaged, read posts by featured students, and learn about all of the great things happening in the Center for Service-Learning and Social Action! We post frequent updates daily, so be sure to stay tuned in!

Connect with us NOW to join the fun!


Instagram: @jcu_cssa



Facebook: @JCUCSSA




Twitter: @jcu_cssa



Dr. Katherine Feely, SND, Ed.D  | Director |   kfeely@jcu.edu   | 216.397.1966
Heather Craigie | Associate Director | hcraigie@jcu.edu |216.397.6233
John Jackson  | Asst. Dir. Community Partnerships | jnjackson@jcu.edu  |  216.397.1662
Blake Yoho | Asst. Dir. Data and Communications | byoho@jcu.edu | 216.397.2024
Maggie Klem | Graduate Assistant |  mklem20@jcu.edu | 216.397.6283
Maddie Panus | Data Analytics Intern | mpanus23@jcu.edu 
Anna Glass | Marketing Intern | aglass24@jcu.edu
JCU Center for Service-Learning and Social Action
Saint Ignatius Hall Building | SIH-32
service@jcu.edu | 216.397.4698