Special dorm floor at Ill. State for students who want to serve mankind

The (Bloomington) Pantagraph

NORMAL, Ill. -- While many college students learn about the world's ills, students living on a special floor of an Illinois State University dorm are committed to doing something about them.

Many of the 55 students living on Manchester Hall's Service and Leadership lifestyle floor have examined their passions and formed small groups to help a community. The community may be as small as the campus or as big as the whole world, said Kate Schenk, a faculty mentor for students on the floor and assistant director for community service.

Some groups are working to:

* Provide healthy food options for on-campus dining.

* Recruit and retain minorities in higher education.

* Combat juvenile diabetes.

* Promote cancer awareness.

* Help elderly people.

Each of the groups receives $200 to $300 in starter money from a Caterpillar Foundation grant. If they need more money, they can raise it or seek grants.

The lifestyle floor work does not offer academic credit.

Students met homeless people coming to the Compassion Center in Bloomington to wash clothes, relax and have a quick bite to eat. Students slept at the center that night and worked for the center, Habitat for Humanity, YMCA and the Safe Harbor homeless shelter during the day.

Among their biggest challenges was trying to find food for a group of six to 10 people with only $5.

Even before their college years, each of the students has been involved in community service.

Murray, who plans a career in construction management, twice has helped build barns and done home renovations in West Virginia. He has also been on a mission trip to the poorest parts of Chicago and to Italy to work with a group started by Mother Teresa.

"They were all kinds of sad when we got there, and bright and happy when we left," he said of children he helped.

DeMonte, who is seeking a career in special education, worked in soup kitchens in Chicago and helped with Toys for Tots. Her high school required 24 hours of community service -- she put in 230 hours.

"My parents split for a while. We went though hard times. I know what it's like to go through a hard time," she said.

Dorner's community service efforts often revolve around seniors and students in special education, and Goldberg also was active as a student leader in high school.