Greenfield, MA – Campus Compact, a Boston-based non-profit organization working to advance the public purposes of higher education, has announced the 273 students who will make up the organization's 2017 cohort of Newman Civic Fellows, including Greenfield Community College's own Christina Chin.

As a 2017 Newman Civic Fellow, Christina will be a part of the first cohort to benefit from a completely re-designed fellowship. The Newman Civic Fellowship, named for Campus Compact co-founder Frank Newman, is a one-year experience emphasizing personal, professional, and civic growth. Through the fellowship, Campus Compact provides a variety of learning and networking opportunities, including a national conference of Newman Civic Fellows in partnership with the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate. The fellowship also provides fellows with access to exclusive scholarship and post-graduate opportunities.

"The cultivation of community-committed leaders has never been more crucial," said Campus Compact president Andrew Seligsohn. "We rebuilt the Newman Civic Fellowship experience because our country needs more people who know how to bring communities together for positive change. We are thrilled to welcome this group of 273 exemplary students as the first cohort to participate in this new model."

Christina Chin began volunteering with the Federal Street Elementary School as part of Read Across America Day, a celebration of the life of Dr. Seuss. As a parent of a student entering first grade, Christina applied for the VISTA position working with the Elementary School to ensure that her son would benefit from the program the following year. In her role as VISTA and parent, Christina communicates regularly with the teachers to plan and provide and deliver programming that enhances the first grade curriculum. Christina recruited GCC volunteers from all majors with activities focusing on fossils, book making, mapping and art. She provided a "College Positive Volunteer Training Program" and reached out to fellow AmeriCorps members to expand the program. Christina will graduate with an Associate in Science degree majoring in Business Administration Transfer from GCC with a 3.7 GPA. She is enrolled in the Honors-to-Honors program though the University of Massachusetts Amherst and will complete a Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in Economics. She is the Secretary for the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, participated in the Student Senate trip to Washington, DC, and the Million Women March. Christina understands the value of investing in our schools.

The Newman Civic Fellowship is supported by the KPMG Foundation and Newman's Own Foundation.

About Campus Compact:
Campus Compact is a nonprofit coalition of more than 1000 colleges and universities committed to the public purposes of higher education. As the only national association dedicated to this mission, Campus Compact is a leader in building community engagement into campus and academic life.  For more information, visit www.compact.org and follow @Campus_Compact on Twitter.

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