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for immediate release
Still Serving: Measuring the Eight-Year Impact of AmeriCorps on Alumni

URGENT: Rebuilding OLLU Fund

Donate at the Ditch: Rebuilding OLLU Donation Drive

Engaging Conversations, April 25, 2008

Governor Awards $102,040 Wagner-Peyser Grant to Support Texas Campus Compact, Austin Community College Partnership

Join The Compact's VISTA Program

Host a TXCC AmeriCorps VISTA


news about the compact
Making an Impact: Stop. Drink. Donate.

Call for Help

The Compact Organizes Donations for OLLU

Donations to Fire Victims

OLLU Donation Drive

Texas works to boost Latino enrollment in universities

News about Texas colleges

TXCC and ACC partner for STEM in Action grant

Texas Campus Compact Announces New
Director of Operations & Programs

New Directors for Texas Campus Compact

Director Patricia Paredes welcomes new Directors, Jim Conditt and Deone Wilhite  to Texas Campus Compact

It is with great pleasure that I announce the hiring of Jim Conditt, our new Assistant Director and Deone Wilhite, our new Director of Operations & Programs.

Jim Conditt comes to Texas Campus Compact from the University of Texas Medical Branch - Office of Community Outreach's Area Health Education Center where, serving in the capacity of a Special Projects Coordinator II, he
designed and implemented a program to assist rural and medically underserved communities to recruit and retain their healthcare professionals; reduce healthcare disparities through community development efforts; and improve
rural / medically underserved healthcare infrastructure. Prior to UTMB Jim was the Prevention Services Director for Health Horizons of East Texas, where he directed efforts to prevent the spread of HIV and STDs.

Jim has extensive experience with grant writing, program design, and research and data collection and has designed and facilitated a statewide AmeriCorps pilot project; he is also a Department of Homeland Security AWR-160-1 Trainer.

Jim has a Bachelors of Applied Arts and Sciences with a double major in Social Work and Sociology from Stephen F. Austin State University; he graduated Summa Cum Laude and First in the College of Social Work, and has
worked in healthcare and community development since 1989.

Jim and his wife Rebecca moved to Austin from Nacogdoches, Texas in 2004 and enjoy living in South Austin with their children, Clint and Sabina, and their dog, Yoshi. Jim also has a grown son, Eric and a grandson, Phoenix who
still make their home in East Texas - despite a constant barrage of "come live in the best town in Texas" letters.


Deone Wilhite comes to Texas Campus Compact from Big Brothers and Big Sisters - where, serving in the capacity of Director of Educational Services, he facilitated scholarships for more than 320 youth while directing efforts to increase the number of Educational Services Matching
Scholarship Program.  Deone also created the "Kaplan Kids" program, which gives students free Kaplan SAT training as well as access to college admission counselors and business professionals.

Deone has more than 20 years of successful sales and administrative and management experience, having worked as the Business Continuity Planner for the Travis County Health & Human Services Department; the Vice President of
Marketing & Development for Silver Box Publishing; as a Customer Resolution Representative for Dell, Inc; and as both Vice President and Executive Director of the Rites of Passage Development, Inc.

Deone has an MBA from the Clark Atlanta University Graduate School of Business and a BBA in management from the University of Texas at Austin.  He
is a former Leadership Austin class of 2003 alumni and is the founding member and VP of membership for the National Black MBA Association.

According to Deone, "I like to combine strong business principles and strong ethics in establishing meaningful objectives for the organization that I serve.  I hold everyone's performance, including my own, to the highest
level of accountability."

The Compact is proud to announce sixteen member institutions have been selected for the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll in recognition of their extraordinary contributions to service in their communities. Of those sixteen, three schools, Dallas Baptist University, Southwestern University, and The University of Texas at Arlington, received special distinction. We congratulate all the winners and look forward to next year and continued success building communities and educating citizens.

Our President's Honor Roll recipients include:
Abilene Christian University
Blinn College
Brookhaven College
Collin County Community College District
Dallas Baptist University*
Lone Star College System
Lone Star College-Kingwood
Rice University
Southern Methodist University
Southwestern University*
St. Edward's University
St. Mary's University
Stephen F. Austin State University
Texas Tech University
The University of Houston-Downtown
The University of Texas at Arlington*

asterisk (*) denotes distinguished Honor Roll recipients

Launched in 2006, the President's Honor Roll recognizes institutions of higher education that support innovative, effective and exemplary community service programs. Honorees for the various award levels, including the Presidential Award, were selected based on a series of factors, including scope and innovation of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service and the extent to which the school offers Service-Learning courses.

The Honor Roll is jointly sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Service, through its Learn and Serve America program, and the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, USA Freedom Coprs, Campus Compact and the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.

Recent studies have underlined the importance of service-learning and volunteering to college students. In 2006, 2.8 million college students gave more than 297 million hours of volunteer service, according to the Corporation’s Volunteering in America 2007 study. Using Independent Sector’s estimates of the value of volunteer time, college student volunteering was worth more than $5.6 billion last year. The U.S. Department of Education found a growing service-learning trend, with more schools offering service-learning as part of their curriculum. Students who participate in service-learning are more likely to continue service in college. In 2005, the UCLA Higher Education Research Institute reported that two-thirds of entering college students believed it was very important to help others, which is the highest percentage in the last 25 years.

Expanding campus incentives for service is part of a larger initiative to spur higher levels of volunteering by America’s college students. In 2006, the Corporation set a national goal of engaging 5 million college students in service annually by the year 2010 as part of its five-year strategic plan. The agency is working with a coalition of federal agencies, higher education and student associations, and nonprofit organizations to achieve this goal. Each year, the Corporation invests more than $150 million in fostering a culture of service on college campuses through grants awarded by its main programs; the education awards that AmeriCorps members receive at the conclusion of their term of service to pay for college; and through support of training, research, recognition, and other initiatives to spur college service.

Applications are currently being accepted for the 2008 Honor Roll which covers the 2007-2008 academic year. The application deadline is September 23, 2008.

The Office of the Governor has awarded Texas Campus Compact and our partner, Austin Community College, a Wagner-Peyser grant in the amount of $102, 040 to develop STEM in Action Community Impact, a program to incorporate civic engagement and Service-Learning initiatives into current STEM curricula.

View the press release.

Patricia Paredes Named Executive Director

The board of directors of Texas Campus Compact announced January 15, the appointment of Patricia Paredes as the new executive director.

“I am very honored by this appointment. I look forward to working closely with president of the board, Charles Cotrell, the other members of the board, the state’s higher education, public education, and business communities, local leaders and elected officials to help promote awareness of Service-Learning and civic engagement activities throughout Texas,” Paredes said.

Paredes has more than 15 years of experience in public relations, marketing and development in both nonprofit and commercial sectors and is the former interim executive director of First Night Austin. In 2000, Paredes established her own marketing, communications and public relations firm, PR Works, whose clients have included H-E-B and the 2005 Dennis Quaid Charity Weekend event.

She is active in community, educational and cultural organizations, serving on the national board of AVANCE, Southwestern University’s Board of Visitors and The Long Center’s public relations and marketing committee. Paredes is also an honorary member of the UT Ladies Club, a Zachary Scott Theatre Center’s Great Scott, a member of the Manchester Who’s Who and board member for First Night Austin.

Paredes received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Texas at San Antonio and her Master of Arts degree from the University of the Incarnate Word.

Dr. Juliet Garcia, former board president said, “Patricia has a long history of building, growing and supporting nonprofit organizations. We look forward to her expanding The Compact’s membership base and increasing the visibility of the Compact’s valuable work.”

Roslynn Almas, a sophomore at Brookhaven College of the Dallas County Community College District, has been selected as a recipient of the 2007 Frank Newman Leadership Award. Roslynn has been active in many Service-Learning activities and programs. She has worked to address issues facing those in need in her community and has assisted at risk youth. Roslynn is also a member of Phi Theta Kappa and the United Nations Student Alliance and plans to pursue a double major in political science and journalism. She is also interested in issues pertaining to foreign policy, and she was recently selected to serve as a student delegate at the Association of Community College Trustees' National Legislative Summit in Washington, D.C.

Brookhaven College is an active member of Texas Campus Compact and a Campus Compact member institution. The Newman family established the Frank Newman Leadership award in memory of Campus Compact co-founder Frank Newman to praise and support students at both two-year and four-year institutions with financial need who have demonstrated civic leadership through service and scholastic achievement.

Texas Campus Compact would like to congratulate Roslynn for being selected as the 2007 Frank Newman Leadership Award Winner. With the support of Dr. Sharon Blackman, President of Brookhaven College, and matching funds provided by the college, Roslynn will receive $10,000 for future school-related expenses and to support her continued service work. Please communicate your congratulations to Roslynn and Brookhaven College for this distinguished honor.

Leadership in Action Winner
Angelo Steinhardt-Keely, student at St. Edward's University is the recipient of the 2007 Texas Campus Compact Leadership in Action Award. Angelo was nominated by Matthew Zielsdorf, Texas Campus Compact AmeriCorps VISTA also at St. Edward's University.

Runner-up: Jennifer Chaparro, The University of Texas at El Paso; Nominated by Gregory Schober, Program Coordinator, UTEP Center for Civic Engagement

Unsung Hero Award Winner
David Castro, student at The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College, is the 2007 recipient of the Texas Campus Compact Unsung Hero Award. David was nominated by Sarah Soriano, Texas Campus Compact AmeriCorps VISTA also at The University of Texas at Brownsville.

Runner-up: Brianne Ashley Burger, Blinn College; Nominated by Dr. Greg Phillips, Service-Learning Director, Blinn College