MACON — Mercer University’s Associate Director of Engaged Learning Lauren Shinholster and her Visionary Student Panel (VSP) program have been selected for Campus Compact’s Excellence in Civic and Community Engagement Programming Award.
The national award recognizes initiatives that use on-campus civic and community engagement to address meaningful areas of need and make effective and long-lasting positive changes in communities.
“Campus Compact’s recognition of the Visionary Student Panel program is a tremendous honor. Since its inception, the Visionary Student Panel has fostered civic learning, innovation and positive community impact,” Shinholster said. “I am deeply grateful for this opportunity to celebrate the program and continue the legacy of guiding our students as they transform their ideas into meaningful action.”
Winning programs must have evidence of a depth of impact, center accessibility and inclusion and have the sustainability to be impactful over a substantial period of time. The Visionary Student Panel is one of four recipients this year.
The Visionary Student Panel invites undergraduate students to present ideas for independent projects that engage in highly impactful community and civic engagement work and provides them with the skills and funding to implement them.
The program was first implemented in 2015 as part of Mercer’s reaccreditation process and began as an event where students would present their ideas to an audience of peers and faculty experts who would then vote to select mini-grant awardees. However, over the last five years, the program has transformed into a multi-month experience that gives students the support they need to execute their plans successfully.
Since 2023, under Shinholster’s direction, students apply to become a VSP presenter in the spring semester, receive one-on-one mentoring from Shinholster, present for feedback to strengthen their project before being coached through the process of applying for mini-grant funding. Once funded, implementation begins the following summer and goes into the next academic semester.
An early VSP student project aimed at increasing civic engagement among student-athletes led to the creation of the SoCon Votes competition, the first of its kind in the country. Since its creation, Mercer has won the SoCon Votes competition three times for having the highest student voter participation. In total, about $25,000 has been allocated for VSP projects since 2015.
“Mercer University’s Visionary Student Panel continues in 2024-25 and has the support to be sustained for many years to come,” said Dr. Kathryn D. Kloepper, vice provost of engaged learning. “Its approximately 10 years of supporting undergraduates to make real change in their communities aligns with Mercer’s mission and strategic plan, and lessons we have learned from VSP implementation can readily transfer to other institutions.”
Shinholster will accept the award at the national meeting being held March 31-April 2 in Atlanta.
