This spring, the Center for Student Involvement changed its name.
Now called the Center for Student and Community Engagement, the new name encapsulates Adelphi’s commitment to serving students and the community. Assistant Dean of Students and Community Engagement Anna Zinko explains the reasons behind the change and the opportunities available to all of us.
What inspired the name change?
Over the past several years, our office has worked to create meaningful experiences not simply to be involved on campus, but to fully engage with our community in learning, self-discovery, leadership and community service. Many of the experiences we provide are not simply for students but for our community as a whole.
How long has this been in the works?
We began considering a name change almost three years ago. As part of this process, we benchmarked our office name with other institutions with offices that had a similar wide scope of work as ours. When rolling out this name change to the community, we wanted to consider the timing of the [Ruth S. Harley] University Center’s opening and the impact of COVID-19.
I imagine the addition of “community” to the name will also broaden its focus. But in what ways? Might the center now focus more attention on community service, for instance?
Civic engagement and service programs have always been a critical component of our office’s work. This name change better aligns with our office’s mission and work. We hope that it will encourage even more members of our community to engage with us in our multifaceted programming throughout the year.