Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

Students from the Special Education Program on Visual Impairments paired with the Vision Resource Center of Berks County to host a Dine in the Dark at the Crowne Plaza in Reading Sept. 26. More than 215 people in the community attended the event. Kutztown University students in the vision program planned activities to raise awareness of visual impairments and taught patrons how to eat without vision. Watch the WFMZ news story here.

Destiny Fisher has been named the Kutztown University campus organizer for the national It's On Us campaign. Fisher, of Philadelphia, Pa., is a senior communication studies major with a minor in public relations. She has served as president of the Black Flame Dance Team and is a volunteer at the Kutztown University Women's Center and GLBTQ Resource Center. As a campus organizers, Fisher serves as a mentor and point of contact for It's On Us initiatives on the KU campus. She will establish individual goals and motivate campus constituencies to rally around addressing the issue of sexual violence.

Nykolai Blichar has been selected as the northeast regional advisor for the national It's On Us campaign. Blichar, of Palmerton, Pa., is a graduate student at Kutztown University pursuing a degree in student affairs in higher education. He served on the It's On Us National Student Advisory Committee last year and was a former student trustee on the Kutztown University Council of Trustees. Currently, Blichar is a graduate assistant for the GLBTQ Resource Center & Women's Center at Kutztown University. He also serves on the President's Bias Response Task Force. As regional advisor, Blichar serves as the primary point of contact between the national It's On Us organization and all campus organizers and student advisory committee members in the northeast. He will relay regional goals to student advisory committee members and serves as a mentor for activists with the region. The northeast region represents colleges from Maine to Maryland.

Kylin Camburn, Coopersburg, Pa., has been selected as a GLAAD campus ambassador at Kutztown University. Camburn is a senior communication studies major and is minoring in bioethics. GLAAD's Campus Ambassador Program engages young LGBTQ advocates that contribute to GLAAD's mission of amplifying and celebrating a wide range of voices from the LGBTQ community by producing dynamic, educational media content relevant to the lived experiences of queer youth. Campus Ambassadors are also trained to work with the media as spokespeople and have had told their stories in national media from Entertainment Tonight, to Seventeen, Teen Vogue and more. Camburn is an undergraduate assistant in the GLBTQ Resource Center at KU and is the vice president of Lambda Delta Xi Diaternity. They are heavily involved in local and national activism both for the environment and for equal rights for all people, especially through the use of art and poetry. Founded in 1985 to counter inaccurate reporting on HIV and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, GLAAD rewrites the script for LGBTQ acceptance. As a dynamic media force, GLAAD tackles tough issues to shape the narrative and provoke dialogue that leads to cultural change. GLAAD protects all that has been accomplished and creates a world where everyone can live the life they love.

Kutztown University's Ryan Baron was recognized by the Tri-County American Red Cross at its annual Berks County Heroes Breakfast as the recipient of this year's Adult Good Samaritan Heroes Award.

The Kutztown University Global Brigades (GB) chapter is traveling to Panama in January to aid impoverished South American communities which lack access to medical care. The global brigades organization is the largest student-led international nonprofit. It serves to resolve global health and economic disparities by working with volunteers and the community to implement health, economic and education programs to meet a community's development goals.

Ten members of Kutztown University's chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity traveled to New Orleans, La., March 15-22 as volunteers for the Saint Bernard Project. Brothers spent their spring break continuing Hurricane Katrina cleanup nearly a decade later. They were assigned to work on the exterior of homes in the lower 9th ward where they replaced rotting wood, sanded, primed and painted the homes.

Thirty-five Kutztown University students will participate in community service next week as part of an Alternative Spring Break. Students will spend their week doing service projects in five communities on the east coast. Students will assist with construction of homes for Habitat for Humanity in Maryville, Va., New Bern, N.C., Marion, S.C., and Morgantown, W.Va. Students will also assist with environmental cleanup projects at Virginia State Park, Cape Charles, Va.

Katy Douillette '17 is a thrill-seeker--she loves the excitement of a call from the fire station in the middle of the night; the rush of speeding to the scene; the majesty of a wave of water falling over flames that lick the sky far above her head. But she's also a people person. Douillette has been volunteering with the Campbelltown Fire Company since age 14. Now that she attends Kutztown University (KU), she volunteers at the Kutztown Fire Company simultaneously.

Kutztown University recognizes four students for assisting a community member in a time of need. These students drove a woman to her home after she had been stranded at a local bus station for more than 15 hours. Read the entire story at http://readingeagle.com/news/article/kutztown-university-students-offer-lesson-in-compassion

Kutztown University students, faculty and staff worked in volunteer service to honor Dr. Martin Luther King's legacy on Jan. 20, 2014. Volunteers worked throughout Berks County and were joined by thousands of volunteers across the country for a national day of service.