Long Island City, N.Y. – Taking a brief respite for the lacrosse season, the Queens College lacrosse team spent Wednesday night donating their time and effort to the Materials for the Arts organization in Long Island City. The team chipped in by sorting and organizing numerous donations received by the charity.

The Materials for the Arts is New York’s premiere reuse center, providing a way for companies and individuals to donate unneeded supplies to thousands of nonprofit organizations with arts programming and public schools. These materials get into the hands of children to help promote participation and growth in the arts.

Head Coach Todd Kaiser summed up the evening best, “To know that we are helping children is especially rewarding. Promoting the arts to them at a young age will help them as they get older.”

The QC lacrosse team returns to action on Saturday, April5, when they face Dowling College at home at 1:00 PM.

Zoë Scandalis’ time at USC has been that of a dominant player on the court, and dedicated community member off it.

Even during her freshman season, it was evident that Scandalis’ career as a Trojan would be special. After posting a 36-14 singles record and finishing ranked 11th in the country, Scandalis was named the ITA “National Player to Watch”, an ITA All-American, a member of the USTA Collegiate Team, and an All-PAC-12 First Team member.

This dominance continued into her sophomore season, as she was named to her second All-PAC-12 Team, and reached the doubles final of the National Collegiate Tennis Classic with partner Gabriella DeSimone. She finished her sophomore year ranked 24th in the country, and was primed to make a big splash during her junior season.

However, none could have predicted the extent to which Scandalis would have to step up for her team this year.

Fellow Junior Sabrina Santamaria, the top USC women’s singles player, tore her ACL during a match against Texas earlier in March, tragically ending her season. It was up to Scandalis to take over the number one role, and serve as a leader for her team.

Scandalis has done an exceptional job filling in for Santamaria, in a season highlighted by a signature singles victory over 3rd ranked Robin Anderson of UCLA. As of this month, she is ranked 25th in the nation in singles, and 6th in the nation in doubles with partner Giuliana Olmos, a fellow recipient of the Outreach Athlete of the Month.

Scandalis’ impact, however, has stretched far beyond the court.

She has maintained strong community involvement throughout this year, by participating in the Rose Cup Tournament, the Community Bowl, Girls PLAY events, and the Heritage Hall Re-Opening night.

Scandalis also has a particularly special relationship with a group of middle school girls at the 32nd Street School near USC. “Every week I meet with 12 girls that are all in 6th grade”, she commented. “They have such sweet personalities and most of them love sports so it’s been fun running around doing different games with them.”

Beyond just games, however, Scandalis makes sure to add important life lessons to their sessions together. “I find it really important that they know their values; whether it be loyalty, hard work, or independence, and that they have a role model in mind to learn from. I hope in our lessons and through the things we write in the journals that they have a better idea of the person they want to become.”

Scandalis understands the unique opportunity for positive mentorship that she possesses as a USC Athlete. “I feel like as student-athletes at USC we have the ability to get young kids to listen and look up to us. I realize that I might not always have this ability to make a difference in someone else’s life so I want to use my time here as a student-athlete the best I can. I see so much potential in these young girls, I hope to help inspire them to reach for their goals in anyway possible.”

The relationship between Scandalis and the students was heightened, as they were able to attend the match against UCLA earlier this month.

“I was touched to hear them all screaming and waving signs around,” commented Scandalis. “I loved having them behind my court.”

Beyond goal setting and identity, education is another important pillar of Scandalis’ mentorship. “I want to emphasize how getting schoolwork done and doing well in the classroom will allow them to go after what they want, both in athletics and other endeavors,” said Scandalis.

As Zoë Scandalis’ season heated up in March, she refused to miss a day with her group. Her dedication to the community is not only exemplary, but it seems to be reaping benefits in all areas of her life. One thing is for sure: Scandalis possesses a unique ability to powerfully serve, both on and off the court.

Source: http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/comm-outreach/spec-rel/040114aae.html

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Student-athletes from the Southern Connecticut State University women’s soccer team spent time over the weekend volunteering at a local gala for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

This program is just one example of many community outreach events that SCSU student-athletes will take part in as part of the Tim Greer Insurance Agency Community Service Cup.

Initiated in September, 2008, the ‘Community Service Cup’ program provides a competitive format that allows student-athletes to gain an enriched experience through engagement with the on-campus and local communities by supporting ventures of traditional citizens, campus community members and peer students and student-athletes. SCSU student-athletes volunteered more than 3,000 hours of their time to numerous outreach efforts, both on-campus and in Greater New Haven, during the 2012-13 academic year.

Forrest Buck has spent the better part of his internship with the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Athletics Department planning to stage a “mobile food pantry” on campus.

Buck, a senior who is majoring in human services, said working with the Athletics Department isn’t exactly where he pictured his required, 120-hour internship being fulfilled, but he is certainly grateful for the opportunity.

“I always want to see a greater good come from any situation,” Buck said. “As a human services major, that’s main reason we got into this—to help people.”

So, Buck’s been behind the scenes coordinating, planning and marketing the upcoming Feeding America Mobile Food Pantry, which comes to campus Friday, April 11. The large-scale food pantry event, held at Kolf Sports Center, will take place from 3 until 6 p.m. and is open to campus and the broader community. Kolf was chosen as the pantry location because of its central location in Oshkosh.

The event is put on by Feeding America Wisconsin and is supported by University departments including Titan Athletics and the Office of Academic Support of Inclusive Excellence; campus support comes in the form of monetary donations, which helps with the purchase of food for the mobile pantry event. Within the community, the event is supported by the Oshkosh Area Community Pantry.

On campus, the event is also made possible by volunteers, which includes everyone from faculty and staff to students, student-athletes and coaches.

“Our goal for our student-athletes is to have them be leaders in the community and in the workforce. Volunteering gives student-athletes an opportunity to give back to those people who support our programs in our community and develop a lifelong commitment to service,” said Pat Cerroni, head football coach at UW Oshkosh, who encourages and expects his team to lend a helping hand at both the upcoming Feeding America event and for other causes with the community.

Sylvia Carey-Butler, assistant vice chancellor of academic support of inclusive excellence, agrees.

“It’s important we demonstrate to students that we are part of a larger community,” she said. “Civic engagement is part of our moral obligation.”

In December, UW Oshkosh held a similar Feeding America event on campus, which attracted more than 275 households; more than 170 of those households were from the immediate area around campus.

“The mobile pantry is a cool idea,” Buck said. “It gives people in this part of the community an opportunity for access. Sometimes college students might not want to admit they have this need, hopefully the event being on campus will make them a little more comfortable.”

Inspired by the mobile food pantry idea on campus, Carey-Butler and others around campus are now beginning to assess whether food pantry services are needed on a more consistent basis on the UW Oshkosh campus.

“We’re acknowledging that we want to make a different through outreach projects such as this one,” Carey-Butler said. “But hunger is hunger and there are students out there who maybe could benefit from a more permanent food pantry.”

Carey-Butler, along with Graciela Hernandez, a junior majoring in women and gender studies, is hopeful to learn whether there is a real need for a permanent pantry at UW Oshkosh. Discussions are currently underway with different programs and offices across campus to better understand hunger in Oshkosh, especially in the areas close to campus where many students live.

“It is common today for students to be struggling with financial realities of families and jobs in addition to the educational costs,” Hernandez said.

Following Friday’s event, all leftover food items will be donated back to the Oshkosh Area Community Pantry, the local organization that addresses the food and nutritional needs of customers in the community. The Oshkosh Area Community Pantry is located at 2551 Jackson Drive and is open to all members of the community–including UW Oshkosh students.

In order for the Feeding America Mobile Food Pantry to go smoothly April 11, the Athletics Department is seeking additional volunteers. Volunteers are needed from 1 until 3 p.m. Friday to unload the semi truck of food and from 3 until 6 p.m. to help distribute food. Volunteers can help for any amount of time they have to offer―all help is appreciated! If you would like to volunteer or have any questions, please contact Cameron Wengrzyn at wengrzyc@uwosh.edu or by calling (920) 424-1226.

BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Apr. 2, 2014) – Five different LIU Post teams are competing in the Spring Into Action Video Challenge that Team Up 4 Community sponsors each year.

The Pioneers are looking for your support. Below are the links to each video. All you have to do is enter an e-mail address and vote! http://teamup4community.org/spring-video-challenge-2014-map

LIU Post Men’s Soccer Volunteers at Special Olympics: http://bit.ly/Pjfe1H

LIU Post Men’s Lacrosse Supports Big Brothers Big Sisters: http://bit.ly/1lCe7Z9

Field Hockey Walks to Support Colon Cancer Research: http://bit.ly/1jZaDjh

Pioneer Athletes Help Donate to Island Harvest: http://bit.ly/1pRnG3J

Women’s Lacrosse Holds Clinic For Local PAL Program: http://bit.ly/PjfFsM

Freezin’ for a Reason: http://bit.ly/1dRJUCy

Source: http://liupostpioneers.com/news/2014/4/2/GEN_0402142320.aspx