Center for Excellence in Learning through Service (CELTS)

Madison County’s Public Library is bringing back the Couch-2-5K program AND ending with Better Together 5K!

Take enough walks with us to support the Berea Food Bank this fall.

Family Friendly, accessible group gathering to run, walk, and roll will starting September 28 at 8 a.m.👟🛞

Registration is through ‘s website!

Join us ‼️TONIGHT‼️ at 5:15pm in STEPHENSON 214 for our FIRST VOLUNTEER MEETING ‼️‼️
You wouldn’t want to miss it! 💙

Can’t make it? Join us next week!
➡️ September 3rd at 5:15pm
➡️ September 5th at 6:00pm

📢 Welcome back to campus! 🎉 Ready to make a difference through volunteering + service this semester? 🌟

Join us to learn about CELTS and our awesome programs, including:
• Berea Buddies 🤝
• Berea Tutoring 📚
• Berea Teen Mentoring 👩‍🏫
• People Who Care 💙
• Habitat for Humanity 🏡
• Hispanic Outreach Program ✏️
• Adopt a Grandparent 👵

📅 Date: Tuesday, August 27th, 2024
🕔 Time: 5:00 - 7:00 pm
📍 Location: Alumni Patio

Get ready for free food, cool merch, raffle packs, and fun games! 🎁🎯 See you there!

Berea Kids Eat keeps doing that good work! We are joining forces as they kick-off their summer feeding program with this 🎉🎉PARTY meant for all youth under 18 and their guardians. Stop by the CELTS table where we will share info about our student-led programs, especially Berea Teen Mentoring, Berea Buddies, and CELTS Berea Tutoring! Plus, free grilled cheese for the kids? SOLD. See you there on Tuesday, May 28th, from 11-2PM, at Glades Garden across from Little Caesar's.

A CELTS-sponsored team of faculty and staff attended the Gulf South Summit on Service-Learning and Civic Engagement through Higher Education from April 15 to 17 at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. Ashley Cochrane, Shannon Phelps, Laura Seroka, and Sarah Heggen were inspired and energized by connecting with fellow community-engaged scholars and practitioners from our region. Berea College is a proud member and sponsor of the Gulf South Summit! 🧡🫧

Proud of our Habitat Team 🤗💚

CELTS is thrilled to share that thanks to our incredible Berea community, we raised an impressive $3,209.08 for the Berea Food Bank at our annual Empty Bowls event last month! Your unwavering support and active participation truly enrich our community 💙🫧

Volunteer Recognition Day!

Tomorrow, Apr 19, stop by the Stephenson building at any time between 9 AM and 4 PM for some special prizes and fun activities 🥳✨

Some recent photos with our lovely Convo speakers- Ouita Michel and Kristin Smith 👩🏻‍🍳🍽️ Thank you for joining us for the Service Convocation this semester, we’re proud to have you in our community 💙

President Nixon joined us at the CELTS Labor Meeting on Feb 20, leading one of her ‘Affirming the Heart of Berea’ brainstorming sessions. These insightful notes from our students will shape Berea College’s strategic planning for the benefit of our Berea Beloved. Thank you, Dr. Nixon, for your dedication to our community! 💙

Empty Bowls week is here! 🥳

Join us for the 21st annual Empty Bowls Hunger Initiative at Woods-Penn Commons on March 27, 2024, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. Secure your tickets from March 22-26 at Berea College Alumni Lounge or CELTS office (Stephenson Building, room 206), or grab them at the door. Let’s fill bowls and hearts together! 💙

All proceeds support the Berea Food Bank. Don’t miss out on delicious soup served in beautifully crafted ceramic bowls by our talented Ceramics students.

Please join us this Thursday, March 21, 2024, from 3:00-4:15 p.m. in Phelps Stokes for the 2024 Service Convocation, sponsored by CELTS (Center for Excellence Learning through Service) 💙🫧

Our distinguished speakers and Service Award winners are Kristin Smith and Ouita Michel, two award-winning Kentucky chefs, restaurateurs, and entrepreneurs, who will dialogue with Berea College faculty member, Kentucky Poet Laureate, and New York Times best-selling author Silas House, in a presentation titled Crowded Table: Kentucky Foodways & Economies.

We are grateful for the speakers’ permission to livestream this convo at: https://vimeo.com/bclive (also available in our bio) 😉

See you there! 🍽️

Grateful for the enriching experience at the Senior Bonners Presentation of Learning, hosted by the Appalachian Center last Sunday! 🌟

We were captivated by the heartfelt stories shared by our senior Bonners, reflecting on their incredible Berea journeys. Amidst delightful Indian cuisine, engaging conversations, and profound reflections, it was a day filled with warmth and inspiration🌻

Congratulations to our graduating seniors for completing their Bonner commitment! 🎓

Good news! There has been another change in our training schedule for Spring 2024. For your convenience, please choose one (1) out of two available ALL-CELTS trainings, either on Wed Jan 24, or on Thu Jan 25.

For Program-Specific Trainings, please refer to the previous post for details and locations.

Looking forward to seeing you all soon! 💙🫧

WELCOME BACK to another semester at CELTS! 🥳🫧

If you want to volunteer with us this semester, make sure to mark your calendars!

🫧 The MANDATORY all-CELTS training will take place on the 23 of January at 5:30 pm in Stephenson Building’s Activities Room on the 2nd floor.

(please note that if you’ve already attended an All-CELTS training last semester- you don’t have to attend this one)

Program Specific Training locations, dates and times:

💙 Habitat for Humanity: Jan 25 and 26, 5-6 pm, Activities Room (only attend one!)

💙 People Who Care: Jan 25, 12 to 7 pm (drop in at any time) on the second floor of Stephenson, Connector space; Jan 26, 9 am to 7 pm (drop in at any time,) same location (only attend one program-specific training with PWC!)
💙 Berea Buddies: Jan 29 and 30, 5-6 pm, Activities Room (only attend one of the meeting times)
💙 Adopt-a-Grandparent: Jan 30, 5-6 pm, Arts & Crafts room in Stephenson Hall
💙 Berea Tutoring: Jan 30 and 31, 5-6 pm, Tutoring room (only attend one of the meeting times)
💙 Berea Teen Mentoring: Feb 1, 5-6 pm, Activities Room in Stephenson Hall.

Hope to see all our volunteers back this spring 🥹🫶🏻

We at CELTS are very grateful for each and every one of our students and volunteers. Naturally, it is always sad when our students are leaving us, but we’re also incredibly excited to see all the wonderful things you are about to do in the world!
Today, we celebrate our wonderful graduates- Matthew and Jasmine 🎓🤗
May the future ahead of you be bright and full of amazing opportunities! Keep living, keep learning, keep serving 💙🫧

As a token of our gratitude for your volunteer efforts, we are gifting you a free drink from Frost Cafe as well as a CELTS volunteer pin that you can wear, and potentially decorate your graduation stole with as well when the time comes. 💙🫧
Come pick up your gifts at our office in Stephenson Hall 🥳

We’re sending out a big THANK YOU to so many people! Yesterday’s Better Together 5k (and kids dash!) brought together people from infants to 80 years old to help keep food on the shelves of the food bank for the coming months! We’re grateful we got to see ALL Y’ALL demonstrate we really are Better Together!

All photos are uploaded to the race site now, be sure to check them out!

Some folks that helped make this awesome event come together: RaceRise, Berea Parks & Recreation, Berea College Alumni, Berea College, Berea Food Bank - BUURR - Frank Gailey Transient/Emergency Assistance Fund, Light My Fire Photography, Center for Excellence in Learning through Service (CELTS) volunteers!

We're so excited to be celebrating Better Together 5k (and kids dash!) With so many of you tomorrow!!! Grateful we are Better Together when we can collaborate for good to get food to people who need it ♥️ Berea Food Bank - BUURR - Frank Gailey Transient/Emergency Assistance Fund Berea College Alumni Berea College

Forgot to register?!? It's not too late! Have kids that want to run? We still have free registrations left with code K12RUN

It’s Better Together week, where you can support the local Berea Food Bank in a multitude of ways!

This Thursday from 7-11 PM is Bonfire are Better Together, where you can enjoy a s’more and live music🔥

The Better Together 5k Run/Walk is Saturday morning, designed to support the Berea Food Bank and to remind all of us that we are indeed Better Together.

Check out the link in our bio to sign up for the race in person, virtually, or support donate to the cause!

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We at CELTS are excited to welcome Sarah Heggen to our professional staff team, in the role of Community-Based Learning Coordinator! 💙🫧

We’re so excited that you’re part of the CELTS community, Sarah!

We at CELTS are excited to welcome Sarah Heggen to our professional staff team, in the role of Community-Based Learning Coordinator! We’re so excited that you’re part of the CELTS community, Sarah!

Please join us this evening in Woods Penniman Commons for our first HOP Talk of the semester!

HAPPY PRIDE 🌈

This past weekend, our team took their volunteers to Berea Pride in collaboration with 🫶🏻

Thank you everyone who volunteers with CELTS 💙🫧

CELTS programs YOU can volunteer with to help your community 💙🫧

Press on numbered circles on the picture and follow the programs you’re interested in to learn more!

Connect with us today to find how YOU can make a difference 🫂

WELCOME BACK to another year at CELTS 💙🫧

We’re so excited to see all our students and volunteers back with us! Here’s some exciting news: you can also become a part of CELTS this year by joining our volunteers!

Just choose a program to volunteer with and attend one of their trainings this week to prepare and learn more about the program and the kind of cool things they do ☮️ Each training will be held on the 2 floor of the Stephenson building 🕊️

If you don’t know what team suits you best- make sure to check out their Instas to see what each program is up to:

🤍 People Who Care
🤍 Habitat for Humanity
🤍 Hispanic Outreach Program .bc_
🤍 Adopt a Grandparent
🤍 Berea Buddies
🤍 Berea Tutoring
🤍 Berea Team Mentoring

You can work with a variety of different people- kids, teens, other Berea students, elderly, and even pets!

Make sure to follow to stay updated on our service projects 🫶🏻

We hope to see you there! 🫂

CELTS is so pleased to collaborate with the Full Service Grant at BCS! CELTS/Bonner Scholar students have been collaborating with Berea Community Schools to offer programming for decades. This most recent collaboration has opened new levels of creativity that benefit Berea Community and Berea College students alike!

Over the past few months, we've been celebrating the CELTS and Bonner Scholars class of 2023!
They've incorporated community engagement throughout their Berea College careers, serving in Berea and communities throughout the US and world.
They've served in fields as varied as agriculture, communication, economic development, education, environmental science, healthcare, psychology, social work, and more.
They've used their skills of farming, language, mentoring, nursing, research, and teaching, to empower people and support communities.
Congratulations, CELTS and Bonner class of 2023! You are phenomenal. 💙