Nine CSB and SJU students named as 2010 Jackson Fellows

Summer employment is undoubtedly on the minds of most college students throughout spring semester. Educational value and pay rate are both qualities that students look for in potential employers.

Nine students from the College of Saint Benedict, St. Joseph, and Saint John's University, Collegeville, went beyond the average qualifications. These students are completing summer service work through the Marie and Robert Jackson Fellows program. The fellows program creates summer work opportunities where the goals include building leadership skills, enhancing social development and improving community life.

 The Jackson Fellows program was established in 2008 through an anonymous donation made to the College of Saint Benedict. Students who are named Jackson Fellows work at community sites for the summer. The goal of the program is to improve community life by engaging in both political and non-political service activities.             

The program is co-directed by Matt Lindstrom, Ed Henry professor of political science at CSB and SJU and director of the Eugene J. McCarthy Center for Public Policy and Civic Engagement, and Marah Jacobson-Schulte, service-learning coordinator at CSB and SJU.

On June 17, the Jackson Fellows program received one of 19 2010 Civic Engagement Steward awards. This award recognizes faculty, staff or administration members of the group who have advanced the campus directive and civic mission. The award was presented by Minnesota Campus Connect, an organization that partners with educational institutions and communities to inform students and develop solutions to society's most pressing issues.

CSB Jackson Fellows:

· Kaitlin Andreasen, a psychology major, is working at Kaleidoscope Place in Minneapolis, a creative, educational and nurturing environment for children to learn and grow in character and community. Andreasen is serving as a program coordinator, managing different projects within the organization and mentoring and providing support to children in social, cognitive and emotional development.

· Grace Mevissen, an elementary education major, is working with the Children's Museum of South Dakota in Brookings, the first children's museum in the state which enables kids and adults to come and learn through play. Mevissen is developing programming, learning about grant writing, building outreach projects and helping create the museum's website.

· Kelsey Minten, a sociology and Hispanic studies double major, is working at the Jeremiah Program in St. Paul, Minn. Minten is a program evaluation intern, helping develop an evaluation model that can be used in nationwide expansion.

· Kelci Reiner, an accounting and Hispanic studies double major, is working at Communidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio (CLUES), a non-profit organization in St. Paul and Minneapolis. Reiner works in the Economic Advancement Department on the Financial Empowerment Program that serves diverse communities by helping community members become financially prosperous and maintain a stable future for themselves and their families.

· Carolyn Vandelac, a gender and women's studies major, works at the White House Project, a non-profit, nonpartisan organization focusing on advancing women's leadership in all communities and sectors. Vandelac assists with logistics and outreach for training events the project organizes and for the annual "Go Run" conference, which will be held in September in Duluth, Minn.

· Ashley Weinhandl, an accounting and Spanish double major, is working at Catholic Charities of St. Cloud, Minn. Weinhandl works in the legal immigration services department, which serves individuals seeking legal advice and/or assistance with immigration related topics and provides service to people of all backgrounds, beliefs, and socioeconomic conditions.

SJU Jackson Fellows:

· Aaron Sinner, a political science major, is interning with Minnesota 2020, a non-partisan, state-level think tank in St. Paul. Sinner's job consists of researching and writing.

·Casey Wojtalewicz, a peace studies major, is working for the Summer of Solutions program, which has projects around the Twin Cities in urban agriculture, green manufacturing and job creation, energy efficiency, bike transport and community organizing. Wojtalewicz helps to create and expand urban farms and gardens, researches the potential to convert old factories into more sustainable sites, collaborates with Cooperative Energy Futures and provides bikes for people with no alternative means of transportation.

· Daniel Wolgamott, a political science major, is interning for Minnesota Sen. Al Franken in his St. Cloud office. The office helps constituents with government issues and documents. Wolgamott and staff members listen and document constituent concerns and opinions and meet with groups to discuss legislative issues and proposals.