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As part of Living the Mission Day, first year students involved with Meet CLE discover Cleveland through the lens of a particular neighborhood and organization in one of ten engaging and unique activities at community partner locations throughout the city. Each activity is followed by lunch on the banks of the Cuyahoga River, and an afternoon of walking, biking, or rowing to see another aspect of the city while getting to know each other.

The Center for Service-Learning and Social Action’s “Meet CLE”

Living the mission is all about relationships - connecting hearts and minds, connecting purpose and passion - and we want to communicate this to new students as the heart of the mission, the purpose of the day and the culture of ����AV.

First-year students spend a day getting to know each other, building community, and exploring all that Cleveland has to offer through our Meet CLE event as part of JCU’s Living the Mission Day. Students explored Cleveland by participating in one of 9 adventures which included delving into urban farming, supporting a community bike co-op in recycling bicycle parts, learning about the art of papermaking, digging in to the importance of composting, sorting and recycling computers to distribute to community members, learning from seniors at the Fatima Center and learning about the history of baseball in Cleveland and helping sort back to school supplies for children in need.  They learned, biked, hiked, and paddled their way around Cleveland.

What is the goal of the day?

“Meet CLE” is focused on building relationships on three levels, first, to support and encourage first-year students to really meet each other and get to know their classmates.  Secondly, we wanted students to meet our community partners and learn about their work so they can get involved during the year, and thirdly, we wanted students to meet Cleveland by touring the city by foot, on bikes, or by dragon boat as they learned a bit more about the history of Cleveland and what’s happening in the city today in an experiential way.

“Meet CLE” participants discovered Cleveland through the lens of a particular neighborhood and organization in one of nine engaging and unique activities.

Outcomes for “Meet CLE”:

• Context: Participants will understand the historical context and priorities of a local organization or neighborhood.
• Experience: Participants will explore the richness, context, and complexities of the Cleveland region, fostering questions and dialogue that extend beyond the program.
• Reflection: “Meet CLE” will encourage and equip students to connect their experience to the Jesuit mission by utilizing the JCU reflection model of prepare, analyze, and articulate learning.
• Action: Identify opportunities and pathways for students to stay engaged in Cleveland.

Why do we structure the day the way we do? 

We want students to experience many different facets of the City of Cleveland through a variety of interesting and dynamic encounters.  In the morning, students could choose from one of nine adventures with one of our community partners.  They learn about what that community partner or organization does, why it matters, and ways they can get involved in a hands-on experience at that site.  Goal of Meet CLE is to build community among a new cohort of students and to get to know how students can get involved in the community.