Contact: Kenneth Billings
STARKVILLE, Miss.--More than 250 Mississippi State volunteers are expected to participate in the university's campus-wide day of service on Tuesday [Aug. 17].
The annual event, sponsored by Service DAWGS, an acronym for Donating A Wonderful Gift of Service, will begin at 8:15 a.m. in the Junction with registration and team assignments.
Megan Mullen, wife of head football coach Dan Mullen, and Miss Mississippi and university alumnus Sara Beth James will officially kick off the day's activities. All participants will receive a free Service DAWGS Day t-shirt.
Teams will fan out to more than 20 sites to complete their volunteer work by 1 p.m., and will enjoy a barbecue lunch immediately following. April Heiselt, an assistant professor of counselor education and educational psychology who leads the student organization, also is service learning coordinator for MSU's Leadership Programs.
Heiselt said the day provides incoming freshmen, returning students, and university faculty and staff the opportunity to begin the school year on a positive note through volunteerism.
"Mississippi State has a strong commitment to giving back to the community," Heiselt said. "Service is a very important part of the learning process, and this is an excellent way for students to start the semester, while providing them a chance to connect with the community in a meaningful way."
Working through the Maroon Volunteer Center in the Colvard Student Union and with Day One Learning Communities, Heiselt is encouraging volunteers to preregister online at
https://www.mvc.msstate.edu/servicedawgs/.
Work sites for the 2010 Service DAWGS Day include:
--Maroon Edition Habitat for Humanity, home construction project
--Aiken Village Preschool on campus
--Boy Scout Camp Seminole in northern Oktibbeha County
--T.K. Martin Center for Technology and Disability on campus
--Starkville Community Market
--Salvation Army
--Ability Works
--Starkville Parks and Recreation.
For final confirmation of sites, please contact Ashleigh Murdock at 662-325-9432. For more information about Service DAWGS and the Maroon Volunteer Center, visit http://mvc.msstate.edu/.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.