Reaching Out: Key Community Service Projects and Partnerships
Below are a few highlights of the activities involving Lasell College that have impact on the community.
The Second Step in Newton benefits from student involvement through Lasell’s Center for Community Based Learning (CCBL). The Lasell mentoring project with Second Step increased the number of mentors over the last school year: 20 in the fall and 12 in the spring. Those Lasell College students provided 416 hours of mentoring.
The College has partnered with the Waltham Community Day Center, where students received community service credit to provide services to homeless people from the surrounding area who utilize the Center. Students organized an exhibit of photographs taken by Day Center guests.
Lasell recently began working with Discovering What’s Next (DWN). Through a grant, Lasell became the site for the Encore Career Summit in November 2010.
For several years, Lasell has partnered with the Lincoln-Eliot School in Newton to facilitate disabilities awareness through the Understanding Our Differences program to 3rd, 4th, and 5th-grade students. Lasell students have also tutored children at the afterschool America Reads and America Counts programs and summer school program.
In 2011, Lasell began working with Newton-based non-profit Birthday Wishes to provide birthday parties to children in homeless shelters.
For the past two years the College has worked with the Barry Price Center to mentor participants from the ASCENT program—inspiring two Lasell students to start a new student club to facilitate mentoring on an ongoing basis.
The Auburndale Community Library re-opened in 2010 with support from Lasell College and other area businesses who donated funds to open the library on a part-time basis. Lasell also donated furniture and landscaping services.
Lasell Fashion Department faculty and students worked with Newton-Wellesley Hospital over several years to develop a garment for women to wear when having mammograms. The Joanies Project—as it was called on campus—produced 500 of the garments. They are being used at a satellite office today.
The Lasell College Brennan Library is a part of the Minuteman Library Network and open to all community members for borrowing and library programs. In addition, computers are available for use.
The Newton Girl Scouts have access to Lasell facilities for weekly troop meetings and special events on campus. In addition, Lasell Fashion majors designed a workshop for the Girl Scouts about body image and plan to host a science fair for the Girl Scouts.
The Lasell College Winslow Archives are a free resource for historians and others looking to learn more about the history of Lasell, women’s education, and Auburndale and Newton through its in-depth collection of artifacts, documents, photographs, and correspondence collected and maintained by the College.
Lasell’s partnership with the Newton/San Juan Del Sur (SJDS) Sister City Project is ongoing. In Nicaragua, students volunteer with the Newton Workshop for Appropriate Technology and the Free High School for Adults—both Sister City initiatives. Lasell also sends donations to the partner city.
Lasell recently worked with the Newton Childcare Commission to develop a marketing research study. Lasell College and Sodexo have teamed to donate used cooking oil to local shelters—which is then converted to heating oil. The Pine Street Inn currently benefits from this effort.
Lasell’s Yamawaki Art and Cultural Center and Wedeman Gallery host theater and music performances and art exhibits throughout the academic year that are open to the public.
Lasell College offers a 10% graduate tuition discount to full-time employees of the City of Newton. The Lasell Athletic Department offers free admission to all athletic activities for Newton residents. To view the Lasers’ schedule, go to http://laserpride.lasell.edu.
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