Grants to Aid CSUN Community Service

Cal State Northridge will receive thousands of dollars from two new grants to benefit the university’s community service programs.

AmeriCorps, a domestic service program similar to the Peace Corps, has given $120,000 to CSUN, and the Getty Grant program will provide $167,000 to support the development of service learning institutes for art faculty at CSUN.

The AmeriCorps grant will support Service Learning for Family Health, a program in which students volunteer at local health agencies, often as part of their course work.

The money will help pay for living expenses and tuition for 16 students who are part-time AmeriCorps members. The students will serve for a year, helping such organizations as the American Heart Assn., the American Lung Assn., the American Cancer Society and the Red Cross.

The students also will spend time recruiting volunteers from the community and within the Cal State University system.

“CSUN is happy to be able to expand its efforts to help the community while helping students learn and become better citizens,” said Patti Klein Lerner, acting director of news and information at CSUN.

The university is expected to receive additional funding from AmeriCorps over the next three years, allowing the university to expand its service-learning programs, said Nikki Maxwell, coordinator of CSUN’s Volunteer Program.

The Getty grants, given to six CSU campuses, will allow art faculty from these universities to apply for 12 service-learning scholar positions, according to Maureen Rubin, chairwoman of CSUN’s Center for Community Service Learning.

Selected faculty will receive a $5,000 stipend, plus instruction on using the arts to help the community.

Rubin said she considers CSUN an ideal candidate for the Getty funding because the campus’ art department already is involved in community outreach programs.

“We are really hopeful that some art department faculty members from this campus will apply for positions,” Rubin said. “The art department at CSUN has a fabulous tradition of working on service learning projects that bring art to the community, particularly children and at-risk teens.”