The University of Minnesota Morris announces the 2023 winners of its Community Engagement Awards: Samantha Clear, Ed Brands and Teresa Kittridge have been selected for awards from both UMN Morris and Iowa & Minnesota Campus Compact for their community and civic engagement efforts.
Samantha Clear, ’25, St. Cloud; Iowa & Minnesota Campus Compact Student Leadership Award and UMN Morris Student Community Engagement Award
Clear worked with the Pomme de Terre Food Co-op through a community-engaged learning course her first year at UMN Morris. The following semester, she took on a Center for Small Towns internship to continue her engagement. The board members who nominated her write, "By summer she was the general manager, coordinating most of the store’s functions and imposing some order and structure on an organization that is not famous for either. Within a few weeks, Sami was the expert on everything from our electronic payment system to our various vendors of local produce and eggs. She made a special effort to bring in new products. It is no exaggeration to say the store is still open due to Sami's work ethic, communication skills, and professionalism."
Ed Brands, Associate Professor of Environmental Studies; Iowa & Minnesota Campus Compact Presidents’ Civic Engagement Leadership Award, UMN Morris Faculty/Staff Community Engagement Award
A regular volunteer at the Stevens County Food Shelf, Brands saw a need for a systematic way to address food insecurity in the county. He worked with a VISTA and students on a year-long county food systems needs and assets assessment, and continues to engage students and partners in working toward the goals outlined in the assessment. He is also working with the Stevens County Commissioners and county staff to research the effectiveness and plan for next steps for an organics recycling pilot program. In all his interactions, whether with an elected official, student, community partner, or person living with food insecurity, he is thoughtful, respectful and uses his sense of humor to connect and create change.
Teresa Kittridge, founder and director of 100 Rural Women; Iowa & Minnesota Campus Compact Presidents’ Community Partner Award, UMN Morris Community Partner Award
Kittridge has partnered with the Center for Small Towns to provide engagement opportunities for rural students interested in rural leadership. One student writes, "Teresa has helped me challenge misconceptions about rural communities and provided me with the confidence and skills to engage in undergraduate research and work to make rural communities better places to live." Another student, who served as an undergraduate and continues to serve as a graduate student, writes, "Teresa helped me get to the point I am today by providing me with an internship that gave me valuable research and communication skills and showing me how special rural communities are and how I can make a difference."
About the Awards
Honoring Morris’s mission to promote global citizenship, the awards recognize students, faculty, staff, and community members who have demonstrated exemplary commitment to community engagement. Honorees will be recognized with Minnesota Campus Compact Presidents’ Awards. Winners will be honored on April 13 at the Minnesota Campus Compact awards ceremony in the Twin Cities and at the Office of Community Engagement awards ceremony on May 5.