What others have done with the Action Fund…

Student Name Project Title/Description

Spring 2014

Li Guan, Courtney Olson, Sam Burlager

Carrotmob- with the LEDC & Lake Street Carrotmobbing: rewarding businesses that commit to environmentally friendly practices through organizing the positive power of consumerism. Letting consumers “vote” with their dollars, and financially supporting businesses lacking capital to participate in sustainability.

Mollie Rose Siebert

Courtyard Garden -with Laura Jeffrey Academy
This community garden in the central courtyard space will offer students the opportunity to dig into the dirt and discover the wonders and natural lessons the Earth has to offer. The garden will integrate traditional classes into garden curriculum, host after-school workshops, and be both a personal and academic gathering place for students, teachers, staff, and members of the community.

Antonina Storniolo, Miriam Magaña

Off Campus Student Employment site- with Minnesota Internship Center Charter High School (MNIC)
We want to bring MNIC students to visit the Macalester campus.  The students will be able to learn about the opportunities that the college provides and Macalester will be able to engage in partnership with a community organization, helping strengthen our current connections.

Fall 2013

Prakshi Malik

Acting Out the Economy- Experiential Learning with Girls Getting Ahead in Leadership at Junior Achievement
Partnered with Women’s Initiative for SelfEmpowerment to give GGAL members an opportunity for experiential learning that focuses on financial literacy, career exploration, and leadership skills.

Carol Mejia, Elisa Lee, Adan Martinez, Jocelyn Cardona, and Isabel Ruelas

Dare to Dream Conference: Demystifying the College Admissions Process for First-Generation College Students and Families
Partnered with Hmong American Partnership, NAVIGATE, and Common Bond’s Skyline Towers to hold a conference for 50-70 first generation college students and their parents to learn and experience the college process. Included a panel discussion, campus tour, and workshops on Financial Aid and the Admissions process.

Julia Sillen, Nina Slesinger, and Ilana Master

Signed Dealed, Delivered
Partnered with Twin Cities Correspondence School and Common Good Books to offer a series of workshops on diverse creative forms, with the end goal of creating mail art and personalized letters.

Nina Slesinger

Yes And…
Partnered with HUGE Theater to provide improvisational comedy lessons for adolescent girls to teach them the power and value of speaking up.

Yang Zhang

Health Education with Native American Community in Twin Cities
Partnered with Division of Indian Work to raise awareness of health issues among a Native American community. Hosted a series of health forums and training sessions that addressed community health topics to groups in need.

Spring 2013

Emma Buechs

In the Heart of the Beast/Phillips Project Partnership
Established a partnership between the three community center sites of the existing Phillips Project of the Youth Programs of HOBT. Chaperoned and bussed Phillips Project students to and from public workshops.

Caroline Devany

Building Our Village: A Collaboration Among Frogtown’s Gardeners, Local Business Owners and Macalester Students
Through the addition of a shaded pergola structure to “Our Village,” a community garden based in Frogtown, an opportunity was created for community building, with long-term goal of building a vibrant community space.

Margo Faulk

Dream of Wild Health
Purchased cooking ware for nutritional cooking classes for Native parents of young children as well as provided an opportunity for Macalester students to learn more about community based nutrition, culturally sensitive public health initiatives, and food justice in the Twin Cities.

Sofia Halperin-Goldstein

Soy un/a nino/a fuerte: The Development of an Activity Workbook to Increase Resilience Among Latin@ Children Living at a Domestic Violence Shelter
Funded the printing and binding of a resiliency- based workbook for Latin@ children ages 4-12 that aims to encourage participants to recognize and communicate their inner strengths and emotions, in addition to negotiating their identities through a process of cultural exploration.

Fall 2012

Jessica Ramirez

Allied in Sexual Health Advocacy and Outreach
Partnered with Family Tree Clinic to promote and expand testing for sexually transmitted diseases, as well as train and educate leaders on sexual health. Aims to promote sexual health on college campuses.

Sara Saltman, Antara Nader

Skyline ELL Resource Library Project
Partnered with CommonBond Communities ELL program to create an ELL Resource Library for the students attending the adult English class at Skyline Towers.

Essie Schlotterbeck

Learn to Ride Bike Fleet
Purchased a fleet of bikes for a series of adult Learn to RIde classes, held in partnership with Cycles for Change and the Community Partners Bike Library in Saint Paul. Taught a series of Learn to RIde classes.

Spring 2012

Caroline Devany, Julia Sillen

Greetings from University Avenue
Showcased the vibrancy of University Ave through postcards created by a Macalester printmaking class, enabling the University and Macalester community to build through artistic expression.

Emma Gerushun-Half, Miriam Magana

Establishing the MNIC Health Club
Founded a peer-led health organization at the MN Internship Charter School so that students could learn about health issues, raise health awareness, and educate their peers.

Fall 2011

Becca Cohen, Lydia Lippold-Gelb, Teal Radford

The New Face of the Jourdain
Implemented a recycling program in the Jourdain housing complex in the Hope Community. Partnered with Aeon, a non-profit developer, the project connected with the community to create a sustainable program.

Jonas Buck, Wayne Lee

Avid Mentoring Program (AMP)
Worked with the AVID mentoring program at Highland Park Senior Highschool to improve the curriculum and materials from previous years in order to adapt to new audiences of students. The project also allowed for students to keep their resources at the end of the program.

Steve Peyton

Redevelopment for the Community and the Future
Created community forums to provide a voice for valuable public input for the redevelopment of the Ford Plant.

Charlotte Fagan, Hannah Geil-Neufeld, Ainsley Judge, Sasha Lansky, Kayla Nussbaum

Girls on the Move
Built bike literacy through skills exchanges with 7th and 8th graders at the Laura Jeffery Academy and Macalester students interested in bike maintenance.

McKenna Bernard, Nadia Foo Kune, Paul Rebman

Fostering Recycling in an Apartment Building for Individuals Affected by Long Term Homelessness
Created a recycling system that helped develop enviromental sustainability and fostered skills for those who have suffered from homelessness.

Kelly Cargos, Erin Daly, Kyle Gename, Emma Wheeler

Project for Pride in Living: Energy Reduction Venture
Reduced energy waste through implementing a community-based social marketing plan to increase sustainability and environmental education, helped improve self-sufficiency in lower-icome environments.

Claire Henkel, Bo Scarim, Mollie Siebert

Sustainability as a Model for Communtiy Living
Fostered a sustainable lifestyle in a Project for Pride in Living-owned subsidized housing unit by using psychological principles to help community members engage in more sustainable habits and conscientious behaviors.

Harry Kent, Abbie Shain

Little Free Library
Re-imagined the “Mac Bubble” and fostered stronger community interaction between the Macalester-Groveland neighborhood and the Macalester College community through the installation of the community library, creating more opportunities for Macalester literature to be heard beyond campus.

Spring 2011

Sadie Cox

Addressing the Digital Divide with Project for Pride in Living
Project for Pride in Living came to speak at Macalester about the problem of the digital divide and their efforts towards fostering inclusion. Mac students had the opportunity to volunteer in a computer training workshop for K-6 students in PPL’s “Homework Hangout” program.

Emma Kalish, Eric Goldfischer, Maya Pisel, Aditi Rao

Economic Justice /Partnering with Peace House Community
Cooked a meal for Peace House, a community center for people experiencing homelessness and poverty in Minneapolis, MN.

Brett Srader, Anna Waggener, Sean Ryan, Kidist Sewdie, Julia Wallhager

Culture and Cuisine: Somali Youth in the Twin Cities
Connected students from Project for Pride in Living with Macalester students, particularly international students from Africa. During this gathering, we explored cultural commitments and the difficulties of maintaining culture in a new home, particular with relation to the Somali and East African context.

Hannah VanDenBrandt

From My School to Yours: Stimulating College Interest and Bridging the Arts
Third grade students from Linwood A+ Elementary, a local art-infused magnet school, traveled to Macalester College for an arts focused campus visit.

Fall 2010

Kathlynn Hinkfuss, Jonas Buck

Avid Mentoring Program (AMP)
Designed to match Mac students with 2nd semester juniors from Highland Park Senior HIgh School to facilitate a meaningful peer relationship and provide guidance on the college application process.

Leah Krieble, Lauryn Gutierrez

Camp CAMERA
Gave Mac students in MacPic the oppurtunity to demonstrate their leadership skills, their appreciation for their community, and their strong interest in photography.

Kayla Nussbaum, Charlotte Fagan, Hannah Geil-Neufeld, Emily Hanson

Girls on the Move
In collaboration with Sibley Bike Depot, was an after-school bike safety and maintenance class for 7th and 8th grade girls at Laura Jeffrey Academy.

Spring 2010

Bethany Battafaranao, Beth Moretzky

Medicinal Melodies
Students volunteered and organized visits to the United Hospital to perform music to lift the spirits of the patients.

Dara Hoppe, Rachel Mueller, Jesse Yourish

Jane Addams School Victory Garden
Planted a victory garden at Baker Community Center. Through the process of creating the garden, students had intentional conversations about culturally significant foods and worked to empower participants at Jane Addam School for Democracy to learn and engage together across cultural and generational differences.

Elise Griffin

Building Environmental Awareness & Empowerment in Somalian Communities and Schools
In collaboration with the MN Internship Center and different areas of Macalester College, the program worked to raise environmental awareness and involvement in Somalian Communities in the Seward Tower West apartment buildings through education, subsidization, and action.

Kim Delanghe, Andrew Gramm, Keith Armstrong

Whittier International Elementary School Education Garden
This project fostered collaborative partnerships between Whittier International Elementary school, Bethelehem Community Center/ Project for Pride in LIving, Youth Farm and Market Project.

Piera Von Glahn, Trina Pastarr, Laura Bartolomei-Hill

Worming our Way to a Better World
These students served as a link between Macalester and the community in the endeavor to bring composting resources to students living off campus. They educated citizens and installed compost systems.