Accelerate Faculty

Just over a year ago, Alverno College kicked off Caring Counts: The Alverno College Volunteer Challenge as part of its 125th anniversary celebration. The goal of the year-long project was to reach 125,000 hours of volunteer service. The actual total is 307,268 hours, far surpassing to original goal.

“Service to others has always been at the very heart of our mission. Time and again, when the Alverno community is given an opportunity to serve, we respond in ways that exceed even our own expectations,” said Mary J. Meehan, Ph.D., president of Alverno College. “I am deeply humbled by the generosity of the Alverno community.”

Anyone who has a tie to the college was invited to take part in Caring Counts. This includes alumnae/i, the School Sisters of Saint Francis, and families of current students, faculty and staff.

More than 1,500 people documented their volunteer hours. Of those, 229 people logged 125 hours of service or more during the year, accounting for nearly 30,000 hours. More than 200 organizations, including schools, churches, food pantries and homeless shelters, were helped throughout the year.

One of the organizations that benefitted from this project was Hunger Task Force. The whole campus community took part in Knockdown Hunger, collecting 550 boxes of cereal. The boxes were set up domino-style in the Rotunda and knocked down. Students also donated 170 Thanksgiving dinners, complete with a turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce, rolls and pie. The dinners cost $55, and students paid for them using their meal plans. The campus also took part in a mandarin orange challenge, collecting 917 cans. Additionally, more than 500 pounds of food was donated as part of Cans Across the Conference, an annual food drive competition between the 14 schools in the Northern Athletics Conference. “Hunger Task Force is thrilled to partner with Alverno College whenever we get the chance,” said Sherrie Tussler, executive director of Hunger Task Force. “Their students and faculty really understand the importance of feeding Milwaukee and they also understand how much fun volunteering can organizing a food drive can be. Alverno College is a great leader in the community.”