June is Pitzer’s Engagement Month!
We have teamed up with the Community Engagement Center (CEC) to connect the Pitzer community with our local community partner sites and beyond. Engaging with social responsibility and the ethical implications of knowledge and action draws many to Pitzer and informs their experience in meaningful and lasting ways.
Here’s how to get involved:
- Decide where you want to serve. We have several Claremont-local options listed below. Choose a community, organization, or group you want to partner with.
- Tell us! Let [email protected] know where you plan to connect during the month of June or share in the Facebook event.
- Read the materials. Click here to thoughtfully frame your experience.
- Tell your friends! Rally your Pitzer community friends to serve with you
- Serve! Post a photo on Facebook or Instagram and use #PitzerServes to let us know what you’re doing out in the world to make a Pitzer difference.
- Share. Tell us all about your experience.
If you want to get involved, but don’t know where to start, contact the CEC. They can help!
Below are Claremont-local options for getting involved:
- Tongva Living History Garden , Upland, CA – The Chaffey Communities Cultural Center and Pitzer College students have teamed up to design, build, and cultivate a Living Tongva History Garden. Your help is needed to help maintain the Tongva Living Garden which seeks to represent 500 years of growth in the area.
- Julia Bogany: Talking Circle – A project facilitated by Pitzer Students after decolonizing discussion to recognize and include indigenous ways of knowing on campus. The project is creating a defined space on the campus for collaboration among students, faculty, and indigenous community members from the greater Southern California area.
- Indige-Nation Claremont Scholars – Indige-Nation Claremont Scholars provides mentorship and support for Native youth who are in the process of applying to colleges. Claremont College students either drive to partner sites twice a week or groups come to Pomona. Partner schools include Sherman Indian High School, Noli Indian High School, and Semillas del Pueblo.
- Elders in Residence Program – Brings American Indian elders to campus for hands-on workshops, presentations and discussions, to answer questions, offer support, or just listen. Our current Elder in Residence is Julia Bogany, Tongva cultural affairs director.
- Native Youth to College Program – Focuses on college preparatory experience for Native American high school students in 9th-12th grades, designed to motivate them to complete high school, strengthen their self-esteem, their academic preparation for college, and their connection to traditional knowledge and culture. Native American Scholars and Elders contribute cultural knowledge and traditional ways of learning within the academic environment. For more information, contact Scott Scoggins ’10, director, Native Youth to College, assistant director, Native American Initiatives [email protected].
- Huerta Del Valle – Ontario, CA – The Huerta Del Valle (HdV) mission is to cultivate an organization of community members to grow our own organic crops. Through growing our food we work toward sustainable community empowerment and health: creating meaningful work, building lasting skills, and developing strong relationships within the city of Ontario. Just west of Bon View Park, it’s the city’s first urban farm and community garden. Volunteers will be involved in planting, harvesting, composting, and other gardening tasks. For more information, contact HdV at [email protected].
- Help Build the Prototypes Library – Prototypes Women’s Center has been a community-based partnership with Pitzer College for nearly 20 years and was started by Pitzer professor, Dr. Laura Harris. Prototypes’ mission is to rebuild the lives of women, children, and communities impacted by substance abuse, mental illness, and domestic violence; the program promotes self-sufficiency while ensuring safety and shelter for those in need. Each year, Prototypes serves more than 10,000 women, men, and children with individualized and comprehensive behavioral health services. Women who enroll in their residential treatment program can bring their children with them. In fact, all of their programs are focused on the needs of the entire family. Therefore, services are available for children separately or even while their parents are receiving care. The impact this can have on the recovery of the client and the preservation of the family cannot be emphasized enough. Prototypes is a very special place which not only does tremendous work with communities but also hosts our students’ community-based internships regularly throughout the year in GED tutoring, College Access classes, and youth programs.
Prototypes clients have made a direct request to Pitzer and the CEC to help build their on-site library. Gently used or new books for all ages and interests are welcome! To place a donation or learn more, please contact CEC Community Fellow, Elizabeth Shulterbrandt at [email protected].
