Community and Alumni Impact
Impact Report
Quick Data Reports
Service Learning in Action
Have you ever purchased produce from Everyone's Harvest Farmer's Market in Marina, CA? Have you watched the Salinas-based César Chávez Futból Academy team compete in a state-wide match? Then you've experienced firsthand how service learning at CSUMB impacts community members, students, and alumnae.
Each year, CSUMB service learning students contribute over 80,000 hours of service to over 400 schools, non-profit organizations, and government agencies in our region. In addition, our service learning community partners tell us that CSUMB students bring valuable new energy and new ideas to their organizations.
The work of service learning continues to give back and pay it forward as CSUMB graduates have a real impact in our communities and around the world.
Alumni Impact
After a semester of service learning, many students are invited back to work as interns or in paid positions by their community partner organizations. And for a number of students, their service learning partner becomes their first employer after graduation. Many of our partner organizations are staffed by former CSUMB service learning students. And for some students, their service learning leads to the creation of brand new community organizations.
The impact of service learning continues to grow as our graduates take their newfound insights about service, diversity, justice, and social responsibility into the world.
Community Impact
While the hours of service are valuable, they are like the rich, organic soil in which seeds will blossom in the future. Below are some stories of the fruits that have grown through CSUMB’s service learning commitments in our region.
Everyone’s Harvest was founded in 2002 by Iris Peppard building on her capstone project as a service learning student at CSU Monterey Bay. Since then, the small nonprofit has grown into a robust, values-driven 501(c)3 organization. It operates five certified farmers’ markets and is a catalyst for health-related programs across Monterey County. The mission is to provide access to healthy, affordable fruits and vegetables through certified farmers’ markets and community food programs. The vision is for every community to have a fair and sustainable food system.
The César Chávez Futból Academy (CCFA) was born with the vision of two CSUMB Service Learner college athletes who wanted to offer more to the community, Anthony Velazquez and Craig Sterling. After completing their service learning at the Cesar Chavez Library, they continued to offer after-school soccer and homework help for the children of the neighborhood. Today, ten years later, CCFA has four teams that compete state-wide at the highest level and run clinics and afterschool support for boys and girls of ages 5 to 18. The mission of the César Chávez Futból Academy is to provide opportunities for community youth and families to enhance their lives through academic success and the game of soccer.