Scholars Present At Hawaiian Service Conference
(From left to right) Shailey Shah, Haley Shah, Kayla Ferreira, and Amanda Britter showcase their posters.
Earlier this month, four Smittcamp Scholars — Kayla Ferreira, Haley Shah, Amanda Britter, and Shailey Shah — went to Honolulu, Hawaii to present at the 2023 Western Region Continuums of Service Conference.
The conference, which took place on March 14th - 17th, focuses on bringing together individuals with a passion for service. As representatives of Fresno State’s Richter Center, these four Scholars were provided with the opportunity to present posters, listen to a variety of speakers, and engage in conversations on how to turn the tide against today’s prominent global issues.
Amanda Britter (left) and Kayla Ferreira (right) with their poster, “Engaging Students in the Community Through Technology.”
Kayla Ferreira and Amanda Britter presented on engaging students in service through technology. In this presentation, they showcased the Service-Learning Center on Fresno State’s campus, as well as the recruitment strategies they use for their programs.
Haley Shah (left) and Shailey Shah (right) with their poster, “Developing Leadership through Community Service: Peer-Guided Professional and Personal Growth for Students at Fresno State.”
Sisters Haley and Shailey Shah spoke about the Richter Center Service Leadership Academy. Haley worked on this project during the 2020-2021 school year, which, as she describes, is “designed to introduce incoming freshmen and transfer students to Fresno State's culture of service during a period of virtual instruction.” They also learned how campuses across the West Coast are implementing service and community partnerships within their own programs.
In addition to their presentations, these four Scholars had the opportunity to serve local Hawaiian communities and participate in site visits at various community partners throughout O’ahu.
Amanda Britter at a site visit in O’ahu.
Kayla and Amanda volunteered with Smart Trees Pacific’s Citizen Forester Program, where they learned about different trees in Waikiki by measuring and labeling the trees they found.
Haley and Shailey worked alongside other conference attendees at the Waikiki Community Center to build Genki balls, which help purify polluted bodies of water. They are made up of microorganisms, molasses, soil, and rice bran. These Genki balls were thrown into a local canal to aid in environmental restoration.
Kayla, Shailey, Haley, and Amanda strongly encourage students who are interested in service and networking opportunities to join the Richter Center Student Leadership Program.