Public Service Week

Project Life Bone Marrow Drive

11:00 am - 3:00 pm | Tabling on the Southern end of Lawn, near Homer

The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and Student Council are teaming up for a Donor Drive on the Lawn. If you are 18 to 35 and in good health, you could be someone’s lifesaving blood stem cell or marrow donor. A transplant can cure nearly 100 conditions including blood cancer, sickle cell disease and inherited immune system disorders. Participants can arrive at any time and simply swipe their cheek to join the Project Life registry.

Cvillepedia Edit-a-thon: UVA History Edition

6:30 pm - 7:45 pm | Monroe 110 

From the Karsh Institute of Democracy and the Local Knowledge Working Group: Interested in making your mark on the community? Come edit Cvillepedia, a local wiki with thousands of articles about all kinds of people, places, and events in the Charlottesville area, including at UVA. Have something you would like to make sure is written about? Students are invited to drop by Monroe Hall, enjoy some food, and learn how to add to the site, or more about what Cvillepedia is and what it can do for you. Bring your laptop if you'd like to try editing during the event.

 Project Life Bone Marrow Drive

11:00 am - 3:00 pm | Tabling on the Southern end of Lawn, near Homer

The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and Student Council are teaming up for a Donor Drive on the Lawn. If you are 18 to 35 and in good health, you could be someone’s lifesaving blood stem cell or marrow donor. A transplant can cure nearly 100 conditions including blood cancer, sickle cell disease and inherited immune system disorders. Participants can arrive at any time and simply swipe their cheek to join the Project Life registry.

Lunch & Learn with the U.S. Forest Service 

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm | Brown Library room 133, Clark Hall

From the Office for Sustainability and Outdoors at UVA: Join us for a lunch and learn where we will hear from the U.S. Forest Service about their mission to sustain public lands, and learn about potential career pathways and volunteer opportunities right here in Virginia! Food from Feast! provided to the first 30 attendees. RSVP here. 

Intelligence Careers 101: Demystifying the Polygraph

1:30 pm - 2:30 pm | Great Hall, Garrett Hall 

From the UVA Career Center: Considering a career in intelligence, but want to learn more about the hiring process? Interested in learning from a UVA alumna on how she pursued public service work in the Intelligence Community? Come join members of the UVA Career Center's Public Service & Government team and UVA & NSA alumna Kim Harris for a session on intelligence careers and the security clearance process (particularly the polygraph)! Registration required. 

State and Local Government Alumni Drop-Ins: Chudi Obi

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm | Online 

Interested in learning more about careers in state or local government and how to get there? Join the Public Service & Government Career Community for a Virtual Alumni Drop-Ins! Meet Chudi Obi who currently works with Charles County Economic Development Department. Chat with Chudi in a one-on-one or small group setting about his current role, his journey to government work, how he his UVA experience helped him. Register on Handshake and join the Zoom call when you are free. Drop-ins will be first come, first served.

Language Learning in Community

5:00 pm - 7:00 pm | Language Commons, New Cabell 298

From the UVA Department of French: Why study a foreign language? So you can travel? Appreciate a wider array of cultural events? Meet new people? YES, AND. Have you ever considered the good that you can do with your language skills? Charlottesville is an incredibly diverse, international place, and there are many local organizations whose mission is to support new immigrants and celebrate their cultures. Come to the Language Learning Commons in Cabell to learn about these organizations; how you can get involved; and enter to win raffle prizes with international flavor!

 AmeriCorps to Public Service: Be the Change

3:00 pm - 4:10 pm | Bond House, Room 116 & 118

From the Karsh Institute of Democracy and the Virginia College Advising Corps: Are you looking to get your foot in the door for a public service career? Are you interested in using your skills to address community needs? Then AmeriCorps may be for you! Learn about the benefits of AmeriCorps service and discuss the role of community service in democracy with AmeriCorps alum and Virginia State Service Plan Coordinator Alex Vanik. You’ll also learn about the opportunity to serve with the Virginia College Advising Corps (VCAC), an AmeriCorps program based at UVA. The VCAC’s mission is to provide postsecondary pathways for students who are underrepresented in higher education. Join us to find your path to making change in your community!

Screening and Discussion: True Justice: Bryan Stevenson's Fight for Equality

5:30 pm - 8:00 pm | Monroe 124

From Theological Horizons and the Office for Academic Outreach: Get ready for Bryan's Stevenson's March 28th speech at John Paul Jones Arena. Bryan Stevenson hardly needs an introduction, and yet there is still much to learn about his beginnings as lawyer with the Equal Justice Initiative and his continued stewardship of this organization, growing it into an internationally prominent civil rights organization. Stevenson traces the bold line from mass incarceration back to segregation, racial terror lynching, and slavery, while also plotting a course toward a more just future. Join us at 5:30 for dinner, and at 6:00 for the screening.

 Resilience or Resignation? Panel and Discussion with Public Service Professionals

12:00 pm - 1:30 pm | Lower West Oval Room, Rotunda

From the Batten School, Karsh Institute of Democracy, and Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Outreach: "You can't pour from an empty cup." This is true for us all. For individuals working in healthcare, education, law enforcement, and many other fields, it can feel like the cup is broken. Brian N. Williams, Associate Professor of Public Policy in the Batten School, and PEGLLLLab Research Assistants Chloe Alpert, Zach Harris, and Scott Rykala will co-moderate a panel and discussion with professionals from these fields. For students interested in pursuing public service careers, this conversation will offer real-life takes on the challenges you may encounter and how you can persevere. Limited seating, so registration is required; please use the link above to register. Featuring panelists:

• Dwayne A. Crawford, Executive Director of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE)
• Valerie Lemmie, Director of Exploratory Research, The Kettering Foundation; Former City Manager of Petersburg, Cincinnati, and Dayton
• Richard Ridge, Assistant Professor of Nursing, UVA; Co-Director, Clinical Nurse Leader Program;  Commissioner of Workforce, Virginia Nurses Association
• Gerard Robinson, Fellow of Practice, Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture, UVA; Former Commissioner of Education for the State of Florida and Secretary of Education for the Commonwealth of Virginia

Education Career Pathways with Teach for America & the Virginia College Advising Corps

3:30 pm - 4:30 pm | Great Hall in Garrett Hall

From the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy: Are you interested in educational equity and access? Want to make an impact on the lives of young people directly upon graduation? Join us for a conversation on education career pathways with Teach For America (TFA) and the Virginia College Advising Corps (VCAC). You will learn the benefits of AmeriCorps service and learn directly from leaders at TFA and VCAC as well as alums what it was like serving in these roles and how it set them up for their future career paths. 

Broader Impact: Faculty, Staff, and Partner Reception

5:00 pm - 6:30 pm | Dome Room, Rotunda

For University faculty, staff, and community partners: Vice Provost Louis Nelson would like to invite you to an informal reception in the Rotunda Dome Room, in celebration of Public Service Week and in recognition of the faculty, staff, and community members who nourish university-community partnerships. Invitations to come.

History Department Alumni Career Panel

5:30 pm - 7:00 pm | Bond House

From the Department of History and the Career Center: Are you studying History or a related field and not sure what career options you have? Join us for an alumni panel with professionals across different industries for advice on the job search. This casual panel will allow time for Q&A, so bring questions! Food provided! Register here. 

Community Health Panel with Provost Ian Baucom

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm | McLeod Hall, Room 1020

For thousands of individuals, their first point of contact with the University of Virginia is through the UVA health system. For some, their contact begins upon entering as a patient. Increasingly, however, UVA Heath is meeting people where they are. In this panel discussion, Provost Ian Baucom will speak with Dr. Mohan Nadkarni and Dr. Karen Rheuban about their experiences working with communities for better health outcomes, both here in Charlottesville and far afield using telehealth practices. 

• Dr. Nadkarni is the Harry T. Peters Jr. Professor of Medicine and a David A. Harrison Distinguished Educator at the UVA School of Medicine. Dr. Nadkarni is co-founder of the Charlottesville Free Clinic and has been recognized for his dedication to service with a “Physician Volunteer Champion” award from the Virginia Association of Free & Charitable Clinics as well as the University’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service.
• Dr. Rheuban is a Professor of Pediatrics and senior associate dean for continuing medical education and external affairs at the University of Virginia. Rheuban is co-founder and director of the UVA Center for Telehealth, which was renamed the Karen S. Rheuban Center for Telehealth in 2016 in recognition of Rheuban’s significant contributions to the field of telemedicine.

Intelligence Alumni Career Drop-Ins: Kim Harris 

1:30 pm - 4:00 pm | Clemons Library, 2nd floor

Register to joins us for drop-ins with UVA alumna Kim Harris to learn more about her unique journey working with the NSA! Ms. Harris can share with students how her time at UVA helped her navigate this field of work and provide advice to students at UVA interested in careers in intelligence & security. 

First Years: Paving Your Path(way)

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm | Bryant Hall at Scott Stadium, Recruiting Room

From the Public Service Pathways program and the Career Center: Join members of both the Career Center Team and the Public Service Pathways Program to discern your next steps at UVA! Not sure how your interests map onto majors? Want to better understand how your commitment to public service can be realized in and outside of the classroom? Want to hear from peers who have been where you are today? Join us! Snacks will be served! Register in Handshake. 

'One Small Step' and StoryCorps' Conversation Program Seek Participants

Register to participate any time between March 20 and March 24

In recognition of Public Service Week (March 20-24), the Karsh Institute of Democracy's One Small Step and its StoryCorps partner seek participants from across UVA and the Greater Charlottesville community to respectfully engage in conversations across difference, particularly those who have public service experience. Since 2021, more than 100 such conversations have been recorded and archived in the Library of Congress, creating spaces for thoughtful dialogue and learning. Register here to participate during Public Service Week or here to participate another time.

Business Attire Drive

March 20-25, all day |  Programs Council Office and Student Activities Center, Newcomb Hall

Attention UVA Faculty & Staff! The Student Engagement office in partnership with Student Council Sustainability will be hosting a Professional and Business Attire Drive to support students who will be transitioning into full-time employment or internships. Accepted items include professional attire, nice shoes, and anything to help young professionals dress to impress.  Please support our students by bringing Business and Professional Attire to Newcomb Hall's PAC and SAC.

Peace Corps: Changing Lives, Including Your Own

March 23 - 25 | 9:00 am - 11:00 am | Various Locations

From the Career Center: Did you know that UVA is one of the leading sources of Peace Corps volunteers? Established in 1961, the Peace Corps sends thousands of American citizens abroad every year to live and work in over 60 countries around the world. If you're interested in learning more about the Peace Corps and joining in a long UVA tradition, stop by the Peace Corps info table to talk with recruiter Luke Gioiosa. You'll find him tabling at the following spots from 9AM to 11AM: 

• Thursday, March 23 - Southern end of Lawn, near Homer 
• Friday, March 24 - Newcomb Hall
• Saturday, March 25 - Newcomb Hall 

• Public Service Week 2020 Calendar of Events
• Public Service Week 2021 Calendar of Events
• Public Service Week 2022 Calendar of Events