Institute for Ethical and Civic Engagement

CU-Boulder Home to Civically Engaged Students

CU-Boulder has a long history of graduating civically engaged students. From building homes  locally and introducing Colorado youngsters to the sciences, to working in far away places like Africa and Nepal, CU students are traveling near and far to use their knowledge and skills to help solve a wide array of problems.

"Civic engagement is reaching out and doing something for the common good, and it can be anything from helping your neighbor to volunteering at your local food bank, working on political issues or policy issues, or even going to another country to volunteer through a program such as the Peace Corps," said Peter Simons, director of the CU-Boulder's Institute for Ethical and Civic Engagement. "Our long-term goal is to have all of our 30,000 students civically engaged in one way or another."

More than 13,000 CU students participate in some form of community service and more than 3,500 are engaged in academic service learning, a teaching strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction.

With 117 undergraduate alumni currently serving in the Peace Corps, CU-Boulder is No. 1 in the 2011 ranking of large schools producing Peace Corps volunteers. Since the Peace Corps' inception, 2,369 CU-Boulder alumni have served in the Peace Corps, making it the No. 5 all-time producer of volunteers.

CU-Boulder's national reputation as a leader in civic engagement is growing. It was featured in the 2009 book "The Guide to Service Learning Colleges and Universities" that highlighted schools with significant track records of integrating community service with academic study to enrich learning, teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities. In 2008, CU-Boulder was one of three schools in the nation to receive a Presidential Award for General Community Service given by the corporation for National and Community Service.

The strong civic engagement commitment of CU and its students fits right in with CU-Boulder's Flagship 2030 Strategic Plan, which calls for the university to serve Colorado and be engaged in the world.

"Not only does the university have a civic mission to help the communities that it serves, but it has a mission to help graduate students who are civically and socially responsible, and who will do this civic engagement service as an ongoing activity throughout their lives," Simons said.

Civically Engaged at CU-Boulder

	CU Student's Life Plans Change After Volunteering in Rural Nepal Taylor Roberts, a CU-Boulder senior majoring in architectural engineering, is an example of the growing number of CU students who are civically engaged. Roberts is co-president of the CU-Boulder chapter of GlobeMed, a national student organization focused on improving the health of impoverished people. Roberts traveled to Tipling, Nepal, last summer where he spent nearly two months working on various health-related projects in the community. "I've traveled around Europe before, but Nepal was life changing," Roberts said. "I want to spend a lot of time in Nepal and rural communities. That's the direction I see my life going." More>>
	CU-Boulder Ranks No. 1 for Peace Corps volunteers in 2011 CU-Boulder is ranked No. 1 in the nation for graduates serving as Peace Corps volunteers in 2011, with 117 undergraduate alumni serving in locations across the globe. CU-Boulder was ranked No. 2 in both 2009 and 2010, and is ranked No. 5 all time with 2,269 alumni who have served in the Peace Corps since it was established in 1961. "I am delighted that our emphasis on civic engagement as part of the learning experience at CU-Boulder has resulted in service-oriented graduates," said Chancellor Philip DiStefano. More>>

CU-Boulder Volunteer/Service Programs

Puksta Scholars Program -- This program provides substantial scholarships and support to approximately 20 students per year who develop and implement intensive year-long civic engagement projects. Many students report that Puksta has been the most important experience of their college careers. Projects have ranged from developing rooftop gardens to mentoring Muslim high school students.

Mortenson Center in Engineering for Developing Countries -- The engineering center promotes integrated and participatory solutions to humanitarian development by educating globally responsible engineering students and professionals to address the problems faced by developing communities worldwide.

Public Service Pledge Program -- The law school’s voluntary public service program provides law students with skills and values, such as legal research and writing, client interviewing, and legal argument development. Students signing the pledge commit to 50 hours of law-related public service work, not for credit or other compensation, during their time at the law school.

The Volunteer Resource Center -- One of the first organizations of its kind in the nation, the student-oriented VCH has worked to fill community needs since 1965. Currently more than 5,200 students have been linked with volunteer opportunities that best fit their individual interests and have contributed more than 211,000 hours of community service.

Engineers Without Borders -- CU-Boulder is home to the founding chapter of Engineers Without Borders-USA, which is dedicated to helping disadvantaged communities worldwide improve their quality of life by building environmentally and economically sustainable engineering projects. Students have worked on projects from Peru to Rwanda to Nepal during the academic year, on breaks and in the summer.

Contact Information

Peter Simons
Institute for Ethical and Civic Engagement
303-492-1962

Greg Swenson 
Office of News Services
303-492-3113

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