Athens, Ga. – Faculty, staff and students from the University of Georgia’s Public Service and Outreach units will fan out across Athens-Clarke County on Nov. 18 for the second annual PSO Day of Service.
Last year, nearly 200 people provided 235 hours of service, donated 189 coats to the Salvation Army, and collected much needed supplies for Mercy Health Center and the Athens Area Homeless Shelter as part of the first PSO Day of Service.
The 2016 event provides more opportunities for employees to make a difference in the communities where they work. Projects vary from gardening at local schools to cleaning up grounds at Dudley Park and Lake Herrick to volunteering at organizations like the Northeast Georgia Food Bank and Children First. UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant will also hold cleanup events in Savannah and Brunswick, and Archway Partnership communities will collect supplies to help schools in their areas.
A school supply drive began on campus earlier this month with collection boxes located at the Georgia Center, J.W. Fanning Building, Chicopee Complex and Lucy Cobb Complex.
“We work every day in communities throughout the state, making Georgia a better place for its citizens,” said Jennifer Frum, vice president for public service and outreach at UGA. “This is an opportunity for our faculty and staff to personally make a difference in the lives of the people in the communities where they live and work.”
UGA’s eight Public Service and Outreach units work throughout the state helping create jobs, developing leaders and addressing critical issues in Georgia’s communities. In the past year alone, the Small Business Development Center helped launch 369 new businesses and assisted in creating more than 2,700 new jobs. The Carl Vinson Institute of Government enrolled about 118,000 registrants in online and traditional training, and non-training services. More than 164,000 registrants participated in continuing education courses through the Georgia Center-representing 60 countries outside the U.S.