WASHINGTON – The Howard University strategic plan includes a pillar dedicated to community service. Within the Serve The Community pillar, there is a specific focus to help students, faculty and staff to leave a positive impact on the world. Managed by the Office of Student AffairsandAssociate Vice President for Student Affairs Parris Carter, Ph.D., six existing community service programs have been selected to serve as key community programs.

“We selected each of the key ‘serve the community’ programs because they offer a wide reach, not just within the Howard University community, but to external entities that are interested in collaborating with us,” Carter says. "What truly excites me about this initiative, is we can demonstrate the global impact of Howard University. Our work is just getting started!”

The pillar leaders also created a University-wide assessment tool for tracking service. This is critical for gathering data that is needed to understand how the programs listed above are causing an impact on communities across the globe. The gathering and reporting of data regarding service programs allows Senior Vice President of Corporate Relations Debbie Jarvis to explore how each program correlates to corporate partnerships.   

Alternative Spring Break

Although it was canceled this year due to the University’s response to COVID-19, the Howard University Alternative Spring Break (HUASB) program is celebrating 26 years of continued international service. Since 1994, HUASB has offered service learning opportunities in marginalized communities and immersed participants in unique cultures to provide immediate assistance and to reflect on the challenges prevalent in communities throughout society. HUASB connects students to the significance of their education and prepares them to be servant leaders for the nation and the world.​​

College of Dentistry Dental Clinic 

As the only dental school located in the Washington Metropolitan area, the Howard University College of Dentistryprovides an opportunity for residents who need reduced fee or free dental care. The College offers high quality care by students and post-doctoral residents, who are guided by dentists and professors, to patients of all ages who are seeking dental treatment. Patient fees may be reduced to approximately 50% of the average Washington, D.C. fee. The clinic accepts DC Medicaid, Chartered Medicaid & Alliance, and United Healthcare Medicaid & Alliance as forms of payment.

WHUR-FM Food2Feed

For the past 43 years, WHUR-FM – Howard University Radiohas hosted an annual Thanksgiving food drive and radiothon to feed those in need around the Washington, DC region. Last year’s Food2Feed collected enough money and non-perishable food to provide meals to more than 66-thousand local residents. The Capital Area Food Bank, Shabach Ministries and Alive Food Center, non-profit organizations that work to combat food insecurities, are benefactors of the 12-hour Food2Feed radiothon. Food2Feed is part of WHUR’s Season of Giving Campaign, in which the station provides new winter gear for youth of Washington, D.C., during the month of October, and toys and gifts for children, during the month of December.

HU Day of Service

Held annually during Howard University Homecoming, Howard University Day of Service brings students, faculty, staff and alumni together for service initiatives across the Washington, D.C. that focus on community building through seven service-learning initiatives: educational disparities, environmental injustices, health disparities, homelessness and poverty, violence, police and community relationships, and voter registration. Last year, nearly 700 participants were active at 29 different service sites. 

The Store@HU 

Located inside College Hall South, 2205 4th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20059, The Store@HU was created as a resource for Howard students to receive the nourishment needed to remain healthy and productive members of the University community. The goal of The Store@HU, which operates as a food pantry for students, is to reduce short-term food insecurity among the student body.Howard University Student Affairs is responsible for managing The Store@HU and conducts food and donation drives throughout the academic school year for faculty and staff donations. This ensure that the shelves of the pantry are consistently filled. 

Policing Inside Out Program

Led by Assistant Professor of Criminology Bahiyyah Muhammad, Ph.D., Policing Inside Out is offered at Howard University as a 15-week course that takes students away from the traditional classroom setting and places them inside correctional facility to learn alongside incarcerated individuals. Course participants will have the opportunity to reexamine what they have come to know about law enforcement and social justice issues, while gaining a deeper understanding of community-police relations in the 21st century. The semester-long academic course discusses contemporary policing and social justice issues, facilitates citizen-police dialogue to improve trust, tackles difficult issues such as use of force, and enhances cross-cultural knowledge of human diversity.

For more information on Howard Forward, including recent news and an overview of the five strategic pillars, visit https://www2.howard.edu/howard-forward.  

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About Howard University

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University operates with a commitment to Excellence in Truth and Service and has produced one Schwarzman Scholar, three Marshall Scholars, four Rhodes Scholars, 11 Truman Scholars, 25 Pickering Fellows and more than 165 Fulbright recipients. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States. For more information on Howard University, visit www.howard.edu.