Interfaith Dialogue and Community Service: The White House Challenge

How can interfaith engagement support service to the community?

Last spring President Obama challenged American colleges and universities to take up the question. The President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge has since spurred creative efforts to generate interfaith and community service programming on over 240 campuses across the country.

The world’s great religious traditions share a commitment to social justice. Service projects with an interfaith dimension not only help the disadvantaged; they also promote greater understanding across faith communities.

Georgetown’s response to the president’s challenge – an extensive, year-long program of service in the DC community and reflection on campus focused on improving educational opportunity and reducing poverty – is designed to advance these joint practical and educational goals in unison, in keeping with the Jesuit ideal of “Men and Women for Others.”

During the fall semester,

> Over 500 Georgetown students participated in tutoring and mentoring activities with students in the DC community

>Hundreds of faculty, staff, and students participated in a Community Service Day, a “25 Days of Service” campaign, and a “Hunger and Homelessness Week”

>The Georgetown community contributed over 40 Challenge blog posts on topics related to faith and service

>Each month reflective interfaith roundtables were held on different themes to look back on work accomplished and to discuss next steps for the Initiative

>Major events included an Interfaith 9/11 Prayer Vigil, an Interfaith Thanksgiving Prayer Service, the new Religious Services Open House series, and student led “Faith in Conversation” series

Learn more about Georgetown’s response to the President’s Challenge, and the activities planned for 2012, by following the links below. If you would like to get involved or have any questions, contact Melody Fox Ahmed, the Center’s Assistant Director for Programs and Operations.

- Tom Banchoff

>> Georgetown President’s Challenge Hompage
>> Georgetown President’s Challenge Video
>> A Mapping of Interreligious Dialogue on US Campuses
>> President’s Challenge White House Homepage