Ivy Tech Hosts Awards Ceremony During O'Bannon Institute

April 28, 2006

Bloomington, Indiana-The winners of civic engagement awards in four categories and the Jeanine C. Rae Humanitarian Award were recognized during the O'Bannon Institute for Community Service on Friday, April 28, 2006. The civic engagement award categories include Community Involvement, Faculty/Staff Excellence in Volunteerism, Student Excellence in Volunteerism and Excellence in Service Learning. The awards ceremony is part of the college's Center for Civic Engagement, a program that promotes individual volunteerism, integration of "service learning" into the teaching curricula and facilitation of community events on campus.

John Whikehart, Chancellor of Ivy Tech Community College-Bloomington, announced during the ceremony that the college's staff and students have helped more than 150 non-profit agencies and have devoted over 13,000 hours to community service within the past year. "Our award recipients exemplify the mission of Ivy Tech Community College - Bloomington and the Center for Civic Engagement. Their service, whether it is the result of a college-sponsored service learning project or the desire to give back to their community, is changing lives."

Award winners (except for the winners of the community involvement award) will receive $500 stipends to be used for civic engagement development. Area 10 Agency on Aging and VITAL (Volunteers in Tutoring Adult Learners) received Community Involvement awards; Ivy Tech faculty Keith Klein and Kirk Barnes received Faculty/Staff awards for Excellence in Volunteerism; and Obie James and Thea Bennetti were the recipients of Student Excellence in Volunteerism awards. Two faculty pairs were awarded in the Excellence in Service Learning category - Jim Heinzen and Jeanette Dix for their work with Monroe County United Ministries and Roy Elkes and Steve Englert for their work with the VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) program, a partnership between Ivy Tech, the City of Bloomington, and the IRS (Internal Revenue Service). In 2005, VITA served 157 clients and generated a total of $248,303 in net federal and state tax refunds.

Ivy Tech student Thea Bennetti also received the Jeanine C. Rae Humanitarian Award. This award recognizes a student whose attitude and way of life demonstrates concern for the well-being of others. Bennetti was nominated by her instructor, Adam Pence, who said she exemplifies the term humanitarian. Pence, in his nomination letter, said, "Thea has been a substitute at Montessori schools, worked on various women's advocacy campaigns, helped at young mother support groups, sponsored visiting nurses to educate young girls on teenage pregnancy prevention and spent countless hours picking up trash in parks and preserves in Indiana. She deserves an award and recognition of her achievements more than any other person I know."

The Jeanine C. Rae Humanitarian Award has been given to 31 Ivy Tech students since its inception in 1984.