Utah State University Awards Community Engagement Champions 2021

On Wednesday April 21, the Utah State University Presidential Awards for Community Engagement and the Ivory Prize for Excellence in Community Engagement were presented as part of the Center for Community Engagement’s Annual Awards Ceremony. Each year, USU recognizes the work of outstanding faculty, staff, students, partners and alumni that exemplifies collaboration between USU and the greater community and demonstrates ongoing commitment to community engagement and positive social change.

Aurora Hughes Villa, professional practice associate professor in the Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services School of Teacher Education and Leadership, received the Community-Engaged Faculty Presidential Award. Hughes Villa was nominated for her extensive contributions to elementary students, USU students, professional educators and the public through elementary arts education and public art initiatives. An example of her exemplary community outreach is Art in Transit: From Schools to Community – a program which she founded that brings art made by children into public places.

Samantha MacFarlane, executive director of Common Ground Outdoor Adventures, received the Community-Engaged Alumnus Presidential Award. MacFarlane graduated from USU in 1997. Since then, she has served as the executive director of Common Ground for over 20 years. Under her leadership, the non-profit has seen monumental growth, enabling approximately 8,000 individuals with disabilities to engage in outdoor recreation alongside their friends and family. Through internships, AmeriCorps, and volunteer opportunities, Common Ground has given USU students from all disciplines unique opportunities to apply their education and help develop creative, new ways for people with disabilities to access the outdoors.

Mike Stokes, received the Committed Community Partner Presidential Award. He was nominated for his exemplary partnership with the USU Assistive Technology Program (UATP), and his commitment to involving students in designing and building devices that improve lives of people with disabilities - and people in general. In 2020, Stokes worked to meet a critical community need, spearheading the effort to create PPE for health care workers at a time when it was hard to find, bringing in UATP, the College of Engineering and community partners. The face shields, made with 3D printers, laser cutters and CNC cutters, ultimately went to rural health care and emergency workers.

Peter Taylor, a senior in the Department of Social Work, received the Community-Engaged Student Presidential Award. Taylor was nominated for his work with Cache Refugee Immigrant Connection (CRIC). During the COVID-19 pandemic, he single-handedly redesigned Walk-In Hours, a critical program that has made a measurable impact for New American families navigating complex systems. Beyond his crucial work with Walk-in Hours, he was also recognized for initiating a needs assessment grounded in community-engaged principles.

Hiram Wigant, Hunger Solutions Institute assistant coordinator, received the Community Engaged Staff Presidential Award. Wigant was nominated for his leadership in alleviating hunger in our community and the development of Buy Produce for Your Neighbor, a program that enables citizens and farmers to donate surplus food to people in need while combatting food waste. Wigant is also the creator and personality of the Captain Create YouTube channel for Create Better Health Utah (SNAP-Ed), which provides health and nutrition education specific for children.

The Ivory Prize for Excellence in Community Engagement, generously funded by the Clark & Christine Ivory Foundation, recognizes extraordinary, influential student accomplishments in community engagement. The prize provides a $2,000 scholarship for the recipient and an additional $10,000 to be invested in a program or effort developed and implemented by the recipients.

This year, the Ivory Prize was awarded to Melissa Alarcón and George Garcia. Through their work with USU Latinos in Action (LIA) and the Latinx Cultural Center, Alarcón and Garcia discovered that Latinx students in Logan City schools were experiencing high drop-out rates, and only a small percentage of those who graduated were pursuing higher education. With the goal of increasing graduation rates among local Latinx students and also increasing the number of Latinx students who pursue higher education, Alarcón and Garcia are launching a student-driven mentoring program through the Latinx Cultural Center.

Chris Gonzalez, Latinx Cultural Center Director, stated, “This program will be a gamechanger for both USU and the Cache Valley Community.”

More information on USU Center for Community Engagement can be found at https://www.usu.edu/communityengagement/.