UNO Events Focus on Awareness of Hunger, Culture

OMAHA – Fighting hunger and celebrating international culture will be the goals of two service-learning projects organized by the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Service Learning Academy this weekend.

#Milk4Kids

On Saturday, Feb. 21, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., students from Jeremy Lipschultz's Social Media Metrics class will team up with students for Norris Middle School, Skutt Catholic School and South High Magnet School and Omaha-area Baker’s supermarkets to collect gallons of milk for the Hunger Collaborative, a partnership of four area nonprofits: Heartland Hope Mission, Heart Ministry Center, Together, and Food Bank for the Heartland.

The project, called Milk 4 Kids and utilizing the hashtag #milk4kids, addresses a shortage in the No. 1 most-requested food item by those in need. UNO students will promote and monitor traffic on social media about the event.

Donation locations include:

- Baker’s at 132nd and Maple Streets, Omaha
- Baker’s at 120th and Center Streets, Omaha
- Baker’s at 888 South Saddle Creek Rd., Omaha
- Baker’s at 156th and Dodge Streets, Omaha
- Baker’s at 3614 Twin Creek Dr., Bellevue

Throughout the fall semester, students from UNO and partner schools researched the decline of donated dairy products to food pantries across the country to inform this project.

CultureFest 2015

On Sunday, Feb. 22, Omaha Public Schools will join UNO in hosting CultureFest 2015, from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Barbara Weitz Community Engagement Center (CEC).

At the event, which is free and open to the public, students from Beveridge Magnet Middle School and Omaha South High Magnet School, as well as community cultural groups, will come together to celebrate the diversity of cultures in Omaha through performances, exhibits, hand-on activities, food and dancing.

The planned activities are designed to immerse participants in the cultures of others and broaden our understanding of the world in which we live.

Both days' events are part of UNO P-16 Initiative. As part of UNO’s Service Learning Academy, the P-16 Initiative facilitates partnerships between three key groups:

- UNO students and their teachers
- Preschool-through-high school students and their teachers
- Community organizations and their members

Through these service-learning partnerships, P-16 brings the classroom into the community through application of education to find solutions to real-life problems.

For more information, please contact Charley Reed, UNO media relations coordinator, at 402.554.2129 or unonews@unomaha.edu.

About the University of Nebraska at Omaha

Located in one of America’s best cities to live, work and learn, the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is Nebraska’s premier metropolitan university. With more than 15,000 students enrolled in 200-plus programs of study, UNO is recognized nationally for its online education, graduate education, military friendliness and community engagement efforts. Founded in 1908, UNO has served learners of all backgrounds for more than 100 years and is dedicated to another century of excellence both in the classroom and in the community.

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