Student volunteers treated to wings and recognition

By Kim Gordey

As a city, Calgary is well-known for its volunteerism. That spirit has been alive and well at the University of Calgary over the past year, as student leaders have worked to build a sense of community and engagement on campus.

Volunteers from Student and Academic Services, Dinos Athletics, Campus Recreation and the Students’ Union celebrated these accomplishments recently at the inaugural U of C Student Leader Celebration. Highlights of the evening included a feast of wings, potato skins and cake, peer recognition presentations and a video profiling student leadership on campus.

Graduates of the University of Calgary Leadership (UCL) program were recognized, as 64 students from the bronze UCL program and 26 students from the silver program were presented with graduate certificates.

Fourth-year students Farah Alani and Aileen Cormican organized the event, while Ryan Cameron, a second-year student, produced a 12-minute video that showcased the legacy of this years’ work. A copy of the video and a small tree were presented to each participant. In their final community-building project of the year, the students will plant their trees in areas affected by the 2005 flood.

“The UCL program offers students the chance to learn leadership skills while meeting other students interested in campus involvement,” explains Alyson Woloshyn, co-ordinator of student leadership programs.

“This year we have had cumulative attendance of more than 600 students in the 60 sessions we offered. This represents 120 hours of free leadership training for students. ”

In addition to the UCL program, four community-building leadership teams—the Wellness and Health Awareness Team (WHAT), Student Leaders in Calgary (SLIC), Student Ambassadors (SA), and Project Serve Canada (PSC)—organized more than 200 events and activities that attracted more than 250 students. The teams hosted projects that ranged from “de-stress days ” to the renovation of a day care in northeast Calgary.

The Student Life Office also developed a new tagline this year—“Get Involved”—to create awareness about leadership opportunities on campus and developed a new website to offer students a “one-stop shop.” The office will be more closely aligned with U of C 101 in 2006/07 with the launch of the Office of the Student Experience.

For more information, visit www.ucalgary.ca/getinvolved.