Community Engagement Projects
Each semester, our interns design and implement community engagement projects in areas that align with their personal and professional interests.
Interns focus on projects that are beneficial for their individual professional development goals, and implement a wide range of deliverables that impact communities across the country.
Food Literacy and Security
LGBTQA+ Education
Destigmatizing Mental and Physical Health Topics
Professional Development
Awareness Campaigns
Veteran Relief & Assistance
Impact to Date
32
Projects
implemented on a wide array of project topics including food insecurity, mental health, LGBTQ+ education, generational mentorship, Race and Gender education, the Colorado Marshall Fires, Refugee Resettlement, and many more
1000+
invested by our interns, since Spring 2024, into their communities through the creation of their CEPs. This involves outreach, project planning and implementation, and engaging with their community.
500+
People
involved in our interns’ community events, which have included professional webinar series, mentorship programs, a 5K walkathon, self-defense classes, and community gardening events
Hours
Spring 2024 Internship
InclusiVOTE
Interns Catherine and Ruby recognized the lack of voting efforts in younger generation voters. Being new voters themselves, InclusiVOTE is an initiative to raise voting awareness by having comprehensive and accessible resources regarding the voting process. Their efforts aimed to increase young voter turnout empowering young voters to exercise their civic duty with confidence!
Catherine and Ruby were able to provide young adults with more interest and preparation for current and future elections. This was done by hosting an interactive workshop, pushing their peers to new limits when it comes to election dates, where polls are, how to fill out ballots, and educating them on various potential candidates in their respective communities. Their survey, website, and calendars even reached audiences outside of their local scene. Overall, their project was able to provide people in the community with a better comprehension on voting, encouraging them to participate in the next election and many more!
Next Gen Creatives
Interns Iryna and Alessandra had a unique vision where any and all art could be in the spotlight. Seeing the lack of creative outlets for many smaller and upcoming artists, their combined appreciation for art led them to establish a project that could elevate works of art never seen before. In addition, they wanted a space for artists to collaborate and support one another in a small tight-knit community.
Due to this, Iryna and Alessandra created their own platform for artists to thrive and have a sense of community, especially for young college artists. They facilitated a network for them to share work and connect with similar challenges through a website, Discord server, and in-person events. Professors and students alike were able to connect with one another, allowing for meaningful artistic engagement and networking for future pieces of work!
See their website here: https://nextgencreativesco.wixsite.com/ngc-con
See their Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/nextgen_creatives_con
CORTIBYE: Stress Less
Interns Teagan, Jason, and Oleksandr dedicated a major focus regarding academic stress and how to potentially manage it for their project. By basing their project with research-based solutions to minimize stress, students were able to feel supported by their project as they were able to help them alleviate this major problem.
Collaborating with a professional psychologist, this team had students at San Diego Mesa College join them in a pop-up event helping them with time-management and deeper discussions regarding academic stress. A social media campaign was also produced in addition to surveys in order to analyze stress management habits and equip the students with strategies to encourage self-care practices. Their project was able to directly impact over 80 students, with surveys, assessments, and various community outreach flyers.
See the CORTIBYE Instagram here:
The South Bay Spring Cleaning
Interns Vivian and Nestor organized a major beach cleaning event due to the increased rate of pollution in the local ocean waters of Imperial Beach and Pacific Beach, San Diego. With immense effort tackling ocean pollution and overall cleanliness of beaches, they were also able to collaborate with major government officials and SurfRider.
They hosted a Zoom meeting with Surfrider to raise awareness, 2 beach clean-ups with 26 volunteers in attendance with 80+ pounds of trash collected, and implemented a community clean-up toolbox to pass on for future public usage! In addition, their form of outreach was immense, with posters and flyers at UCSD organizations, newsletters, and local recreation centers. To further their impact, they attached QR codes to track the usage of their donated tools!
The College Lens
Interns Aloukika and Gavin connected by wanting to help their generation minimize isolation and loneliness. As 72% of Gen Z reported feeling this way, they established their own interactive podcast to lower the rate of social isolation. By producing podcast episodes on streaming platforms and short form content on Instagram, they connected with over 150+ followers from their respective universities.
Their main deliverables consisted of having filmed interviews of fellow students and peers that went through similar struggles regarding isolation, mini-mic interviews that led them to connect with new people through a unique and interactive way, and a couple of in-person events which gained traction for people to further openly engage with healthy conversations about isolation.
See their Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/thecollegelenspodcast/
See the College Lens podcast here: https://open.spotify.com/show/2nubhryPj4ynimbuWseOxV?si=uPE8VFwbTfWQ-76MY07oiA
Fall 2023 Internship
SDSDS4All
Fall 2023 intern Hung Pham reflected on his and his family’s past financial struggles and created a project to alleviate the financial burden of school supplies for K-12 students and their families. This was a problem that he could deeply connect with, as he experienced the same struggles growing up.
His project, San Diego Students Donating School Supplies 4 All (SDSDS4ALL), consisted of organizing a local donation drive, an Amazon wish list, along with a website and Instagram page to spread awareness for his mission. Through implementing his deliverables and interacting with members of his community, Hung was able to gain more confidence in his ability to make an impact and become more adaptable when encountering obstacles. Overall, he was able to garner over $900 in school supplies, ranging from hand sanitizer to construction paper to bulletin boards, for Ross Elementary school! Hung was able to gain valuable interpersonal skills as a result of taking on a project that had so much direct community involvement.
See his website here: https://sdsds4all.wixsite.com/help
See the SDSDS4ALL Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/sdsds4all/
SipSmart
Fall 2023 interns Vitoria Jones and Tyra Wiley recognized the lack of priority and awareness on hydration in college students. In an effort to positively impact their immediate community, they wanted to create a fun and engaging culture to encourage hydration on their campuses - a healthy habit they believe to be instrumental to one’s physical and cognitive health.
Their project, SipSmart, went beyond spreading awareness on the health benefits of staying hydrated. It included working with Holy Family University to distribute hydration kits, creating hydration challenges to track water intake, a cross-platform calendar to encourage hydration, and an Instagram page for education on hydration. Through their project, Vitoria and Tyra were able to hone their problem-solving and organizational skills as they navigated all the moving parts of their project. Personally interacting with their community to distribute their hydration kits gave them a sense of community engagement that was new, but gratifying and interactive!
See the @SipSmart Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/sipsmartt/
Volunteer 4 Veterans
Fall 2023 interns Jadyn Hawkins and Nekha Duraisamy based their project on bringing more awareness to helping veterans through showing the volunteer opportunities that exist for local communities around the U.S.
Jadyn and Nekha created a flipbook to showcase opportunities available in each state for volunteering for veterans. This was supplemented by an infographic that detailed the characteristics and skills of a volunteer that volunteer organizations look for. They created an Instagram to inform the general public more about veterans and the military, shedding stigma and humanizing people in the military. Their in-person event consisted of letter-writing events on their respective campuses. Organizing and interacting with the many people who wrote letters at their event contributed to their goal of bettering their professional communication skills. They were able to garner 49 letters, showing appreciation and gratitude to veterans for what they do for our country!
Find the @Volunteer4Veterans Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/educateempowerend/
Ayurveda Education
Fall 2023 interns Ramanpreet Mander and Neha Agarwal shared an interest in Ayurveda, a collection of Indian wellness rituals, and created a project that allowed them to further explore the practice while educating college students in their community of its benefits to the mind, body, and spirit.
Ramanpreet and Neha organized a plant pot painting event that featured prominent herbs used in Ayurveda and hosted an online workshop to demonstrate marma points, which are anatomical locations that contain life energy. Additionally, they presented about Ayurveda at a local research conference and had a panel discussion for community members to ask questions regarding Ayurveda. Hosting multiple in-person events required them to develop a high level of organizational skills to handle many moving parts. Self-care kits consisting of body oils, teas, Ayurvedic herbs, and more were distributed for people to sample at home. Through their deliverables, the interns gave a sample of useful products and information regarding a wellness system that could teach stability, balance, and overall wellness.
Educate Empower End
Fall 2023 interns Gabby Ural and Katie Quiat recognized the general lack of education and awareness in college students around sexual assault (SA) and the resources available to educate and support them with sexual assault and health. Through their own experiences, word-of-mouth, and experts in the field, they found that many college students are lost in seeking help, resources, and other forms of advocacy.
Gabby and Katie hosted a safe and inclusive book club for college students to discuss prominent books that educate about SA, their experiences, and overall engage with the sensitive topic in a judgment-free space. In addition, they created informative brochures and an Instagram to provide accurate information regarding SA support resources students can lean on and stigmas that often make SA issues difficult to address. They distributed goodie bags containing SA preventative resources to distribute to on-campus sororities. The success of this project was a testament to strong collaboration and professionalism, allowing them to consistently stay true to their project timeline. Their project effectively found ways to directly interact with their target audience while giving them the space and support on such a sensitive topic.
Find the @EducateEmpowerEnd Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/educateempowerend/
Mas Que Frito
Fall 2023 interns Cassandra Iracheta and Monica Zepeda bonded over their appreciation for their shared Mexican community, more specifically, their rich and vibrant food culture. However, they recognized that many of their traditional dishes lack balance, which could lead to negative health implications. This inspired them to create a project that could educate on healthier alternatives to staple ingredients while not stripping away the identity of the dishes.
Their project, Mas Que Frito, consisted of an educational recipe website where balanced recipes for Mexican dishes are highlighted, accompanied by videos as well as Spanish translations. Their website displays multiple informational interviews they had with dieticians, where the experts educated based on their unique dietary specializations. Their drive to interact with many professionals highlights their development in their interpersonal skills and overall professionalism. Additionally, Monica and Cassandra’s project consisted of an Instagram to feature information about Mexican food culture, cheaper alternatives for quintessential ingredients, and recipes from their website. Lastly they hosted a community potluck, where community members shared and enjoyed their Mexican dishes while being educated about the importance of prioritizing health when cooking Mexican food!
Find their website here: https://mquefrito.wixsite.com/my-site-1
Find the @MasQueFrito Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/masquefrito
Weekly Check-In
Fall 2023 interns Mia Bonanno and Kayla Harris believe that improving one’s mental health should be a holistic process, filled with enjoyable and incremental steps to improving one’s life. The focus of their project was to destigmatize mental health by giving members of their community tangible ways to improve their physical health, mindfulness, and open-mindedness for personal betterment.
Mia and Kayla created a 30-day challenge to try new, fun, and affordable activities to push people to try new activities. Additionally, they hosted an online yoga class, a beach walk, and a hike in their respective communities to promote happiness through a healthier lifestyle. Their Instagram was used to advertise their events as well as inform their audience of activities they can do to translate their health into happiness. Throughout their project, they improved their ability to navigate communicating and hosting events virtually. Their project was able to provide people in their community ways to take initiative and better both their physical and mental health!
Find the @Weekly.CheckIn Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/weekly.checkin/
Spring 2023 Internship
That Thyme of the Month
Spring 2023 interns Agazeet and Lillian dedicated their community engagement project to creating digital resources to destigmatize menstrual education and increase the quality of life for people with periods. Motivated by the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 and the privacy concerns that have occurred since with digital period apps, they wanted to create dependable resources to help people track their menstrual cycles.
As a result, they created a unique calendar catered to this audience. Their project grew into That Thyme of the Month, a multi-faceted project that, along with the calendar, includes a website and a social media account. These deliverables provide quality-of-life tools such as educational awareness, recipes, and other wellness tools for those who menstruate.
Find their work here: https://thatthyme.wixsite.com/ofthemonth.
To Make Ends Meat
Spring 2023 interns Oscar and Marek connected over their belief that cooking is an essential life skill. In order to make a positive change in their community, they concentrated on creating resources for college students to improve their food literacy and cooking skills.
They organized a food masterclass in collaboration with a student organization at the University of California San Diego (UCSD). 20 students attended the masterclass to learn about budgeting efficiently for their meals, navigating nutritional labels, and learning to cook a delicious turkey burger! In addition, the interns created a website to serve as a lasting cooking and food literacy resource. The website features recipes from local college members and includes recipes from beginner to advanced to cater to all skill levels.
Find their work here:
AAPI Engagement
Spring 2023 interns Diya and Nicholas focused their community engagement project around building conversations pertinent to the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community and increasing this group’s collective voice.
The interns focused on voter engagement and assembled a group of panelists in the AAPI community to speak on issues such as student civic responsibility, the importance of representation, and the process of building coalitions. The questions for the panelists were collected by the interns from members in their communities. The recording of this panel, along with information on how to get involved in the AAPI community and have an impact as an AAPI voter, are featured on their website!
Find their work here:
Destigmatizing Mental Health in College Students
Spring 2023 intern Isabel, inspired from her own experiences with mental health, concentrated her community engagement project on creating a safe and inclusive space for students in her community to openly discuss mental health.
Isabel, assisted by her student counselor and a therapy dog, organized and facilitated round-table discussions with students at her college to discuss their experiences with how society affects their mental health, stigmas surrounding mental health, and personal strategies for dealing with stress. There were 30 attendees to her round-table discussion. The positive reception for the event inspired her and the student counselor to collaborate to plan more of these student discussions for the Fall semester.
College Based Wellness
Spring 2023 interns Phillip and Bu decided to focus their community engagement project on education surrounding prevalent topics at their universities, such as mental health and drug overdoses.
They created informative brochures detailing the nuances of college based wellness and included actionable steps for preventing opioid overdoses and keeping up with self-care. Phillip and Bu also organized community events at their respective universities where experts on their topics of focus shed light on topics relating to the health and wellness of many college students. Lastly, with contributions from organizations on both their campuses, Phillip and Bu created wellness baskets to distribute to students during finals week.
Career and Finance Resources for Formerly Incarcerated Women and Minorities
Spring 2023 interns Robin and Sajni centered their community engagement project on the goal of connecting formerly incarcerated women and other minority groups to the tools they need to succeed in life post-incarceration.
As people who value empathy and justice, they created opportunities for these groups to strengthen their skills in financial literacy and career-searching. In Washington, D.C., Sajni hosted a financial workshop to teach attendees personal finance terminology and guide them through budgeting. In Denver, Colorado, Robin recruited local employers and organized a job fair with over 60 attending employers. This job fair went on to inspire a local organization, Denver Assessment, Intake, and Diversion (AID) Center, to apply for grants to host more job fairs for the community! Additionally, the interns designed and distributed pamphlets with job opportunities, workshops, and organizations useful in the transition to life post-incarceration.
Fall 2022 Internship
Professional Development
Interns Urvi Patel, Corey Walker, and Tyler Nguyen completed a project focused on the academic and professional success of marginalized students, including veterans, first-generation, and international students. The goal of this project was to provide these groups with accessible resources in order to facilitate career and academic success.
This group provided skill development sessions where students could receive personalized feedback on their cover letters and resumes, as well as learn about how to make the most out of the GI Bill. The group also offered free professional headshot sessions to community members. One of the strengths of this project was the team’s ability to leverage their unique skills and interests to provide comprehensive support to the students and veterans they worked with. The resources used in the skill development sessions were turned into virtual resources, so people can continue to access the information now that the project has concluded. Tyler, Corey, and Urvi also created an Amazon Wishlist to raise donations for a local non-profit for Veterans Day. The Wishlist raised $156 worth of items, and after the Veterans Day event, the Wishlist was donated to the non-profit for future use!
Think Out of the Can
Interns Jasmine C. and Hannah Bernard created a project focused on combating food insecurity through the creation of a recipe bank that uses a majority of items that can be found at a local food bank.
To reach this goal, they created a website that lists out several simple recipes. They also created physical recipe books that they donated to their local food banks. In addition to these physical resources, Jasmine and Hannah also did extensive research on food insecurity to use on the posters that they distributed in their local communities. They also used some of their research in the creation of their website!
Find their work here:
Facilitating Refugee Resettlement
Interns Lizzie Ballantyne and Daphne Dozier created a project focused on easing the resettlement process for refugees. Their project was centered on a donation drive for items such as kitchen supplies, hygiene products, and toys.
Lizzie and Daphne were able to raise 126 items—a value of $1700—from both in-person donation drives, as well as an Amazon Wishlist! This team advertised the donation drive through social media posts and collaborated with a local refugee resettlement agency, Hello Neighbor, in Pittsburgh. This team also focused on educating their respective communities about the challenges refugee families face during resettlement by distributing educational pamphlets.
Menstrual Education
Interns Vance Duche and Genevieve Goldstein completed their community engagement project on menstrual education. The focal point of their project was the creation of a 20-page zine on menstrual education and the accessibility of menstrual products, that includes maps of their respective campuses showing where to find free menstrual products.
They did educational presentations at each of their schools to showcase the zine. Vance and Genevieve also led a donation drive that benefited the Center of Women’s and Gender Equity at UNC and the Junior League of Schenectady. They were able to collect 33 different products through Amazon wishlists that were donated to these two organizations!
Find their work here:
Spring 2022 Internship
Build Back Boulder Walkathon
Interns Julia and Kasim organized a walkathon to raise food donations for the victims of the Marshall Fire.
They increased accessibility to their walkathon by holding an in-person as well as a virtual event. They raised $406 in virtual donations as well as over 200 pounds of physical food donations that went directly to Community Food Share! To further their service to the greater Boulder community, they both volunteered with Community Food Share, and were able to see just how impactful donations like they had raised are for so many members of our community.
Just Care
Interns Jake and Christina created a project focused on mental health awareness, specifically anxiety, for college students.
They both organized groups at each of their respective universities who met once a month to discuss common anxieties in college students, such as life after college, COVID-19 anxieties, and work-life balance. They furthered their impact by creating an anonymous blog where anyone could share their struggles or successes with mental health. Jake and Christina also created an Instagram account, @justcareasd, to post resources and tips for students who are struggling. They were able to reach dozens of college students across different states through their groups, their Instagram outreach, and their blog.
Project Move
Interns Jack and Weston have always been passionate about their physical health and exercise science, so they decided to create a program that would encourage college students to integrate four essential daily habits into their lives: 30 minutes of daily activity, waking up at a consistent time, going for a 10 minute walk, and getting outside within the first hour of the day. They created a Healthy Habits Challenge at CU Boulder and were able to show students the value of keeping up those daily habits on a consistent basis, especially in a stressful week. They also organized a sunset hike and a field day to further encourage the participants in their challenge to get outside!
Generation Bridge
Interns Ruth and Reayah designed a program to connect the younger and older generations to combat loneliness. They saw a problem with those who are in nursing homes having a lack of socialization with others.
To combat this problem, they created a program that connected people living in nursing homes with college students who were looking for guidance in their lives. Pairs were matched up based on common interests and served as a way to foster connections between two groups that do not often interact with each other!
Women’s Safety
Interns Trip, Taylor, and Emma have all been passionate about women’s safety, especially on college campuses, for a long time. They decided to come together to create a project geared towards making women feel safer and more prepared for a variety of situations. They organized two self-defense classes with a local expert, and were able to facilitate participation across their local university campus, CU Boulder. They also led a male allyship conversation for those who want to help in their mission to make college campuses a safer place for everyone!
Pan Pals
Interns Molly and Brianna focused on building community among their peers through a letter writing initiative. Their project centered around combating loneliness brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. To achieve their goal, this team oversaw a series of pen-pal relationships throughout the Spring, and hosted a virtual community event for participants.
Fall 2021 Internship
Crops for College
Amery Jendzel-Scott and Kenzie Sain teamed up to tackle food insecurity on college campuses and the disappearing prairie through gardening.
To achieve this, they constructed raised garden beds at the Rocky Mountain School of Art and Design (RMCAD) in Denver, CO to create a community garden for students and also hosted a wildflower bomb making event, which allowed them to disperse native plant seeds across prairie land near Dover, AK.
Aphasia Awareness
Sara Oza and McKenzie Kessel teamed up to improve the quality of life for people with aphasia, which is language loss following a stroke or other brain injury, by combining their two fields of experience to restore the ability to easily order a cup of coffee.
Their project centered on the implementation of a community awareness campaign and the development of aphasia-friendly 2D menus, which will be implemented in coffee shops throughout the Denver-Boulder area.
LGBTQIA+ Education
Emma Calarco and Lauren Hartman focused their project on providing LGBTQ education to different communities, with particular focus given to the workplace and student audiences.
This team developed multiple resources to support LGBTQ education, conducted an outreach campaign, and facilitated a virtual community webinar. Lauren and Emma are hoping to identify pathways for the continued distribution of their educational resources, so they can reach as many communities as possible after the internship.
Affordable Housing Access
Alissa Kiser and Bryar Tuchscherer focused their project on the affordable housing crisis in the CU Boulder community. Their goal was to make the university’s resources more accessible to students seeking affordable housing options.
To achieve this, this team conducted a series of surveys and interviews on campus, consolidated available resources into more accessible formats, and sent an advocacy letter to CU Boulder’s administrative staff.
CU Town Hall: Creating Community Spaces
Ornella Musinguzi and Angela Pena de Niz teamed up to create more spaces for the student community to discuss topics of race and gender.
To achieve this, this team facilitated a CU Town Hall, where they had a panel of professors conduct a Q and A on topics of gender and race, solicited students stories, and identified ways to more effectively support different racial and gender identities on the CU Boulder campus. This team hopes to establish CU Town Hall as an organization on the CU Boulder campus moving forward.