DSU hosts second annual service day

April 24, 2017

On April 26, Dakota State University will be highlighting service -- past and present.

The events of the afternoon will begin with a tribute to the past service of former professor Bob Jackson, speech communication faculty member who passed away from Parkinson’s Disease in 2016. DSU faculty and staff donated to a memorial fund to celebrate his life. Because of Jackson’s enthusiasm for gardening, those resources were used to plant four lilac bushes on the campus green last fall. At noon on Wednesday, a gingko tree will be planted in his memory south of Beadle Hall near the rose garden. The community is invited to attend the ceremony.

In the afternoon, students, faculty, staff and community members will volunteer their service to the greater Madison community. With classes cancelled for the afternoon, almost 350 students, faculty and staff have signed up to help various groups and organizations with a variety of projects.

Some are spring cleaning endeavors, on campus and around the city of Madison, but also at Prairie Village and Lake Herman State Park. Others involve collaboration with city organizations. Volunteers will be at the Mundt Library tying blankets for Madison Regional Health System; others will partner with a Leadership Madison service group to paint fire hydrants around town. Leadership Madison is a program sponsored by the Greater Madison Area Chamber of Commerce.    

The afternoon will conclude with Spring Fling events on the campus’s south lawn and in the Trojan Center, food, music, games and a movie.

At the first service day in 2016, volunteers completed over 1,100 hours of service work.