CARE Program
Community Advocacy & Responsive Engagement - About the Program
The CARE Program is a student-led, four-year program in the Honors College, focused on developing students’ curiosity and care for the world they live in. Students in CARE are dedicated to improving lives in the community by responding to the economic, social, and structural challenges affecting quality of life in the city of Houston. Through their project-based service, students learn critical skills, including teamwork, leadership, advocacy, civic engagement, research and social inquiry, and project planning and management. Even more, they learn about the lives and stories of the communities they work alongside. CARE students serve on one of multiple student-led projects aimed at building collaborative community partnerships addressing education opportunity gaps, food insecurity, and more.
The CARE Commitment
CARE students come from all different majors and backgrounds, and pursue a wide variety of professions in medicine, education, law, science and technology, social work, and many more. But they all share a commitment to care about their Houston community and each other through teamwork and accountability. This four-year, student-directed program promotes personal, academic, and professional growth alongside experiential learning opportunities in direct service, vertical leadership, capacity building, and social action. They commit to serving 5-10 hours per week on their service initiatives and in personal and professional development trainings. After serving as a project team member, students are encouraged to pursue leadership positions on their service project and/or on program-wide initiatives, where they will receive mentorship and guidance from faculty, staff, and peers.
Get Involved
The CARE Program accepts applications from all students, all year round, as positions on service projects are available. If you are interested in joining CARE, fill out the application link below. Any questions can be directed to the CARE Program Senior Executives at their student-run email: uh.honors.care@gmail.com Apply to Join CARE
Meet the Senior Executives
Seniors in the CARE Program who have shown exceptional commitment and innovation as leaders in their service projects are invited to apply for paid positions as program executives. Senior executives undergo an application and interview cycle and are selected by the graduating senior executives in consultation with faculty. The executives work as a team to guide the direction of the program and its governance, expand opportunities for new projects, organize events, programming, and coordinate program-wide administration.
The CARE Program is supported by the Office of Community Engagement in the Honors College. Program direction is entirely student-led, with additional support and administration from faculty and staff advisors, Dr. Janet Lawler (jmlawler@uh.edu) and Cara Shokler (csshokle@central.uh.edu).
Accountability – Celeste Kennedy
Finance & Budgeting – Adrienne Nguyen
Project Development – Sigmund Haidacher
Research & Advocacy – Vi Pham
Communications & Events – Jessi Dixon
Current Service Projects
AmplifyHER
AmplifyHER: Aims to empower elementary school girls in leadership, self-advocacy, and develop academic and professional proficiencies through mentorship in public speaking skills. Instagram: @amplifyher.voice
Project Lead: Afzila Bhojani
Aspire
Aspire: All students deserve the chance to reach their full potential; by providing SAT tutoring and post-secondary prep mentorship to high school students, Aspire strives to mitigate achievement gaps and equip students with the knowledge and tools to break the cycle of poverty. Instagram: @uhaspire
Project Co-Leads: TJ Nguyen & Ayesha Baloch
Food Insecurity Team (FIT)
FIT: The Food Insecurity Team fights poverty in Houston by creating, developing, and sustaining solutions to food insecurity through hands on service, research, and nutritional education. FIT students work to build capacity at community-run food pantries, but also partner with Harris Health’s Food Pharmacy program to advocate for health through nutrition and education. Instagram: @fitatuh
Project Lead: Kailey Jirsa
Letting Everyone Achieve Dreams (LEAD)
UH-LEAD: Prepares middle school students for success by teaching them social-emotional skills and exposing them to new opportunities both inside the classroom and beyond. Working closely with Letting Everyone Achieve Dreams (LEAD) Houston, this project builds capacity and holds Saturday sessions for LEADers.
Project Lead: Dylan Bouyer
Science Mentoring for a Richer Tomorrow (SMART)
SMART: Science Mentoring for a Richer Tomorrow strives to alleviate educational disparities, improve science STAAR scores, and cultivate academic and personal confidence through hands-on science experiments and mentoring. By designing then teaching engaging science curriculum, SMART hopes to inspire a love for science for their middle school mentees. Instagram: honors.care.smart
Project Lead: Brandon Than
Math Confidence & Writing to Inspire Successful Education (MCWISE)
MCWISE: Math Confidence & Writing to Inspire Successful Education motivates elementary students to pursue academic success through mentorship, math tutoring, literacy education, and writing curriculum to bridge the education gap in schools, while building confidence that lasts. Instagram: @mc3.care & @bonnerwise
Project Leads: Sachitha Aithal (MC3) & Julianna Hamilton (WISE)
Current Students
Nikhila Achanta
Sachitha Aithal
Camryn Alberigo
Naumi Aparanji
Yahya Arain
Bryan Armbruster
Briana Azad
Ayesha Baloch
Brandt Bechtel
Sarah Belew
Mihret Beregen
Surya Bhat
Zahra Bhattacharya
Miguel Blanco
Dylan Bouyer
Tiffany Bui
Jenna Caratao
Tayann Cobo
Paul Daniel
Saptarshi De
Alumni Spotlights
Have Questions? Contact us!
Janet Lawler |
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