Union’s Kenney Community Center was recently honored by the Hamilton Hill Neighborhood Association for its volunteer work.
Rachel Meyers '19 helps paint at the Hamilton Hill Arts Center in 2015.
Student volunteers regularly participate in neighborhood cleanups, projects at the Hamilton Hill Arts Center and COCOA House, which provides afterschool tutoring and other programs to Schenectady children.
Hamilton Hill is one of Schenectady’s most impoverished neighborhoods. Forty percent of residents live below the poverty level. And nearly 80 percent of people who live in the neighborhood are renters. Revitalization efforts are underway, including the demolition of many vacant buildings and the construction of a new apartment complex and community center.
Angela Tatem, Kenney Center director, accepted the award on behalf of the College at a dinner Nov. 3 at the Ancient Order of Hibernians in Schenectady.
Union’s commitment to community service has been recognized nationally. Five times in the past six years, the College has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for exemplary service to the local community. The honor is the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for its commitment to volunteering, service learning and civic engagement.