Power of 10 Community Engagement Program

SUNY Cortland's Institute for Civic Engagement will be continuing a program called Power of 10.  The idea of the Power of 10 originated from Virginia Tech's program of community engagement called VT Engage.  VT Engage encourages people everywhere to volunteer where they can to foster healthier communities everywhere.  The hours that are logged for VT Engage commemorates the students who lost their lives in the April 2007 campus attacks.  The Power of 10 was created to partner with VT Engage's mission of community engagement.

Last year, the Power of 10 logged 67 volunteers for a total of 1750 hours, falling short of its goal.  The goal of the volunteer program is to have "10 hundred people volunteer 10 hours of service for a total of 10 thousand hours, for this spring 2009 semester," says Main Street Community Outreach Coordinator, Tim Rodriguez.

The Power of 10 is open to everyone.  "Community engagement does not just pertain to a select few individuals.  Community engagement can also be very creative and a way for people to express themselves and their community in their own unique way.  This is the basis of a democratic society," says Rodriguez.

If anyone is going to volunteer and engage themselves in the community, it is encouraged to pick up a Power of 10 log sheet, where people can log their hours and hand it in to the Institute for Civic Engagement.  People can pick up these forms at Main Street SUNY Cortland (The Beard Building, 9 Main Street, Cortland, NY 13045), or download the form through the link below.  For more information contact Tim Rodriguez at (607) 753-4271.  "This will allow us to gauge how much volunteerism and community involvement there is in Cortland as well as contribute to VT Engage's mission and cause," says Rodriguez.

Download the Power of 10 form