-
About
- Saturday, April 6, 2024
- Sunday, April 7, 2024
- Saturday, April 13, 2024
Admitted Students Day
Exclusively for first-year accepted students, Admitted Student Day is our most comprehensive tailored program.
About
-
Academics
- Saturday, April 6, 2024
- Sunday, April 7, 2024
- Saturday, April 13, 2024
Admitted Students Day
Exclusively for first-year accepted students, Admitted Student Day is our most comprehensive tailored program.
Academics
-
Admission & Financial Aid
- Saturday, April 6, 2024
- Sunday, April 7, 2024
- Saturday, April 13, 2024
Admitted Students Day
Exclusively for first-year accepted students, Admitted Student Day is our most comprehensive tailored program.
Admission & Financial Aid
-
Student Life
- Saturday, April 6, 2024
- Sunday, April 7, 2024
- Saturday, April 13, 2024
Admitted Students Day
Exclusively for first-year accepted students, Admitted Student Day is our most comprehensive tailored program.
Student Life
- Athletics
At Civic Centre
Center for Civic Engagement and Leadership
Red
The Community is Your Classroom
The Center for Civic Engagement & Leadership (CCEL) connects students to their community by providing volunteer opportunities, internships, student employment, and Community Based Learning classes. Students contribute to local initiatives and they develop crucial skills that will serve them well beyond the college classroom. Faculty draw upon the CCEL's host of community partners to provide students with hands-on projects that supplement their traditional classroom learning.
Connecting Students with Their Community
A strong sense of community is one of the key pillars of Marist College. Marist students are given the resources to harness their interests and create a significant social impact on the local community and beyond.
The Center for Civic Engagement & Leadership links academics to social action. By working with faculty across campus, we are able to offer Community Based Learning classes, such as Introduction to Professional Writing, Interactive Media, Communicating in the Spanish-Speaking World, and The Ethics of Food. In addition to fostering innovative teaching, we pride ourselves on exposing students to vital community organizations and new career paths.
Community-Based Learning
The Center for Civic Engagement & Leadership promotes the principle that civic engagement and Community Based Learning (CBL) empower students to connect their academic work to their wider interests. Participation in CBL provides students with the problem-solving tools and confidence needed to generate positive change in their communities. As defined by Janet Eyler and Dwight E. Giles (1999), CBL provides "...a form of experiential education where learning occurs through a cycle of action and reflection as students.” Combining academic coursework with hands-on activities and deep reflection has been shown to achieve real outcomes for the community and deeper understanding and skills for students. These experiences enhance awareness and, in turn, lead to more effective social change.
Benefits of Community-Based Learning
For Students
- Enrich the understanding of classroom material
- Increase the awareness of important social problems or issues
- Develop essential skills (e.g. critical thinking, problem-solving) for academic work and professional life
For Faculty
- Develop new ways to generate higher-quality student learning
- Cultivate new avenues for research and publication via new relationships with community partners
- Network with engaged faculty in other disciplines or institutions
For Community Partners
- Achieve organizational goals by tapping into valuable human resources
- Increase the collective impact made in addressing critical social problems
- Build partnerships with new stakeholders and attract new volunteers
The Marie and Rupert Tarver Summer Internship Program
Each summer, a cohort of highly motivated Marist students remain on campus to participate in the Marie and Rupert Tarver Summer Internship program, which enables undergraduates to work on a community improvement project in collaboration with a local non-profit organization. Participants receive a substantial stipend, tuition credits, and on-campus housing for the duration of the program. As an integral component of the program, interns affiliate with an approved nonprofit organization in the Hudson River Valley and complete agreed-upon goals and objectives during the summer term. Tarver Interns work with faculty and their nonprofit partner to design their internship project and identify the key issues that their work will address.
Red Fox Spotlight
Louis Higuera
Pittsfield, MA
Mark Palmer
Los Angeles, CA
Megan Nickel
Pompton Plains, NJ
Nick Bayer
South Windsor, CT
Riana Ramirez
New York City, NY
Meghan Lai
Honolulu, HI
Meet the Director: Dr. Melissa Gaeke
Melissa A. Gaeke, Ph.D. is the Director of the Center for Civic Engagement & Leadership and Senior Professional Lecturer in Political Science at Marist College. She holds a doctorate in Public Administration from the University of Southern California’s Sol Price School of Public Policy.
Her interests include engaging students in activities that teach them about civic engagement and working with nonprofit organizations to build their capacity to access resources and connect with stakeholders. She has worked to create and support civic engagement programs for more than 20 years.
Learn more about Dr. Gaeke >
Fontaine 201
Melissa.Gaeke@Marist.edu
(845) 575-2914
Center for Civic Engagement & Leadership by the Numbers
Post-Course Community Engagement
Seventy-three percent of students who participate in CCEL courses plan to engage with the community even when the course ends.
Community-Based Learning Approval
Eighty-one percent of students feel that the Community-Based Learning component helps them to better understand the required class lectures and readings.
Opportunities to
Remain Engaged
We promote over 150 non-profit internship opportunities in and around Poughkeepsie, as well as gap-year programs such as Teach for America and AmeriCorps.
Featured News
Applications during the early decision/action phase are up 16% and international applications grew 25%, showing interest in a Marist education is surging across the U.S. and around the world.
Momentum Building for First-Ever Day of Giving!
With a goal of 1,000 donors in 24 hours, the Day of Giving on March 20 aims to boost engagement and philanthropic support and show how Red Foxes Rise Together!
Marist, New York Stage and Film to Host Winter Theatrical Productions at Midtown Manhattan Campus
Winter theatrical productions feature readings by playwrights Caridad Svich and Emma Horwitz.
Fusing Art and Tech: Made @ MakerLab Showcase
Students and staff share their innovative artwork created in the Marist MakerLab.
Alumna Starts National Movement with "P.S. I Love You Day"
After losing her father to suicide in 2010, Brooke DiPalma ‘18 and her sister started a nonprofit to promote messages of kindness and mental health awareness. Over 600 communities nationwide now participate.
Through Her Eyes: Student Reflects on Impact of Her 11-Country Study Abroad Journey in Asia
From international business meetings to volcano hikes, Marist's Asia Study Abroad Program is a unique opportunity to bridge knowledge with experience, inspiring students through exposure to new places, people, and perspectives.