UB awarded for volunteer work

Third time's a charm.
UB has been named to the 2009 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for the third year in a row.
This achievement is the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning and civic engagement.
The office of Student Leadership and Community Engagement is excited about this award and views it as a reflection of hard work.
"[This award is] well deserved," said Terri Frysh, the community engagement coordinator for the Center for Student Leadership and Community Engagement (CSLCE). "The school does a lot to engage students in the community and the recognition will hopefully bring more awareness to our office and the opportunities available on and off campus for volunteering."
The CSLCE was recognized in the award specifically for its "Saturdays of Service" program. This program, according to the Center for Student Leadership and Community Engagement Web site, is a monthly service opportunity for students to volunteer and help serve the local Buffalo and WNY Community. Students volunteer on a designated Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at a number of locations throughout the community.
"Our office has an online posting of volunteer opportunities on or off campus that range from one-time opportunities to ongoing ones, and we offer specific programs through our office, such as Saturdays of Service and Habitat for Humanity," Frysh said.
Among the programs recognized was UB School of Management's free tax preparation service. Student volunteers provided this service for about two months to families in the Buffalo area who make less than $49,000 a year. According to a press release, this program prepared 676 tax returns, adding up to a total of $640,000 in tax refunds to the Buffalo community.
Ryan Linden, a junior accounting major and site coordinator for the free tax service, takes pride in the work this program has done for the Buffalo community and encourages others to get involved.
"Everything that this school gives you, you have to give back. Through this program, I have learned how to file my own taxes while getting to help those in need, and it is a very rewarding experience."
The program had its biggest turnout this year with 200 volunteers. It is sponsored by the Beta Alpha Si business frat and the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program, VITA.
Included in the other noted programs here at UB were UB's Lighthouse Free Medical Clinic; the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) summer program; and Community as a Classroom, a project of the UB Center for Urban Studies.
The Corporation for National and Community Service, which administers the annual Honor Roll award, recognized more than 700 colleges and universities for the 2009 honor. The recognition process consists of a series of selections based off of factors that include a percentage of students involved in service activities and incentives offered by the university for academic service-learning courses.
According to a press release, approximately 4,700 students, as well as hundreds of faculty and staff, participate in community service activities at UB.

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