NEW YORK—More than 100 freshmen are arriving on Fordham’s Bronx and Manhattan campuses early this semester to participate in Urban Plunge, a University program that gives new students the opportunity to work together on community service projects involving local youth, the elderly, the homeless and the environment.
“Urban Plunge is a service program for incoming first-year students that gives them an introduction to Fordham University, the surrounding community and New York City,” said Heather O’Rourke, associate coordinator of the Community Service Program. “We hope that this is just their first service-oriented project at Fordham.”
Approximately 115 freshmen moved onto the Rose Hill campus on Aug. 25 and another 30 moved onto the Lincoln Center campus on Aug. 26. Current students who are alumni of the program will serve as peer mentors for the incoming student participants.
The students will do service work at more than 20 sites in the Bronx and Manhattan, including soup kitchens, nursing homes, transitional shelters, hospitals and community parks. Many of the community efforts take place in areas of the Bronx that are among the lowest per-capita incomes in the country.
According to Nick Napolitano, associate coordinator for community service and service learning, the program exposes students to the diverse array of life experiences you can find in New York City.
