Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. - in a speech to Riverside Church in New York City in 1967 - said that “a call for a worldwide fellowship that lifts neighborly concern beyond one's tribe, race, class, and nation is in reality a call for an all-embracing and unconditional love for all mankind.” Dr. King was a preacher, social justice advocate, and civil rights activist. It seems appropriate, then that I should get to submit the blog entry following the 2010 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. My position as the Director of Interfaith Action (IA) at the University of Michigan has me connecting students from different faith (and non-religious) backgrounds for community service and dialogue.
As IA director at the Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning at the University of Michigan, I come into contact with people of different faith traditions on a daily basis. I am accustomed to hijabs, kippot, and turbans as part of my work. It is my job to bring together students from different faiths (and non-religious) backgrounds for service work and dialogue, and to help them learn about each other from their differences.
From monthly visits to local faith communities to allow University students the opportunity to experience a new type of worship service, to interfaith service and dialogue days, IA strives to bring students together on campus for service and dialogue. This position also puts me in regular contact with University staff and faculty to discuss issues related to faith across campus. In November, we met with city officials, religious leaders, community leaders, and students to discuss how faith is treated on campus and citywide.
My favorite part of my service, and the reason why I wanted to take on the (sometimes-daunting) position, is working with students. This year IA has successfully started up a Student Leadership Team (SLT). The SLT meets bi-monthly to discuss issues on campus, plan and execute events, and learn from each other. They are made up of students from each of the various faith groups on campus, and represent a majority of the religions practiced at U of M.
The most exciting event happening with IA right now is our new partnership with SOC389/Project Community (PC), also run out of the Ginsberg Center. Through PC and the LUCY (Lives of Urban Children and Youth) initiative, we are currently offering a three-credit class with the University of Michigan entitled “Interfaith Service Learning and Dialogue.” This class centers on an alternative spring break trip to Detroit where students will be volunteering at Malcolm X Academy, working with Gleaners Community Food Bank, and visiting many of the other cultural and historical sites around Detroit, while staying at Christ Episcopal Church in the heart of the city. This experience is enhanced by a semester’s worth of in-class discussions, readings, and journaling about the intersections of the interfaith movement, Detroit, and service work. This class has afforded me the opportunity to design a syllabus, plan out a course week by week, and get hands on experience teaching in a college classroom, as well as planning the trip for the students.
My service work this year, while sometimes quite different from that of my peers, has shown me that “service” has many different faces, and that it all makes a difference. Discover the different ways YOU can make a difference at http://www.americorps.gov/.
1 comment:
Rachel -
Your position with MAP sounds super interesting! I hope you continue to have great dialogue between students, staff, and community throughout the year. Thanks so much for sharing!
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