Center for Social Concern

Get Involved through Campus Ministry's Center for Social Concern

If you keep up with the news, it's easy to get cynical and try to hide from the world. Faith calls us to the opposite response: hope and action. Feed the hungry. Shelter the homeless. Care for the sick. Tutor the kids who need help. Protect the vulnerable. Care for God's creation. Learn more about social problems. Lobby political and economic leaders to make positive changes. You can answer your call by getting involved in the multitude of CSC opportunities.

Ongoing Service

Searching for ongoing service opportunities? Look no further. From urban farming to religious education programs, we have compiled a list of local agencies that are looking for your help. You can find the list here!

Prayer and Action

Please continue to pray for our sisters and brothers who have been impacted by the devasting natural disasters that have occurred in recent weeks. We pray for both those in need of aid as well as those who are providing comfort and aid directly to those in need.

Please consider making a donation to assist with the relief efforts:

• Catholic Relief Services:    https://www.crs.org/
• The Red Cross:  https://www.redcross.org

Fall BreakOut: Salyersville

"When most people think about UD BreakOuts they really envision a place, somewhere that they are traveling to. However, when I think about the BreakOut to Salyersville, all I see are the people. This BreakOut was an opportunity to experience love through raw, real, and genuine people. It was one of those experiences that reminds you about life—about existing simply and joyfully in companionship—realizing that being human is messy and hard, but also so very beautiful." (Annie Brinkman, Salyersville BreakOut: Fall 2016)

In this rural Appalachian experience,  students  get a glimpse into the UD Summer Appalachia Program (UDSAP) by visiting the local residents and learning of their rich culture, while building relationships. Participants will stay at the “UDSAP house” in Salyersville, visit families, visit the nursing home, spend time with the children and teens, hear from local experts on culture, and enjoy a simpler way of life. This small Appalachian community welcomes UD students each year and has a great willingness to share its culture. Kentucky BreakOut’ers will likely find some time to go hiking through the mountains, too.

Fall BreakOut: Buckhorn

Buckhorn Children and Family Services is a non-profit organization located in rural eastern Kentucky in the Appalachian region. They are a faith-based agency founded by evangelist minister, Rev. Harvey S. Murdoch, who visited the Appalachian Mountains in 1901.  After attending a tent revival in the area now known as Buckhorn, Kentucky, he felt called to establish a school, church, and orphanage here.  When asked “why” by the congregation of his home church in Brooklyn, New York he responded simply, “because the need is greater there.”  The school officially opened its doors in 1903.

More than 100 years later, the needs of children and families remain greater than ever. In Kentucky, over 6,000 children live in out-of-home settings, many of them victims of severe abuse, neglect, and debilitating developmental disorders. Buckhorn is known for taking on the toughest youth, building a personalized program that works for each child, and sticking with the child throughout the treatment process.  We provide compassionate treatment and trauma-sensitive care within a variety of settings, including: residential treatment, psychiatric residential treatment, treatment foster care and adoption, and family preservation/reunification services. 

Buckhorn Children and Family Services currently has 2 residential campuses in Kentucky serving youth between the ages as 12-18 years.  Each campus has a total of 4 cottages which focus on differing populations.  The campus at Dessie Scott Children’s home has 2 male residential cottages which are able to accommodate up to 24 clients and 2 cottages dedicated to males with developmental disabilities (DD/ID).  The campus at Buckhorn Children’s Center houses 1 male and 1 female residential cottage, as well as 2 psychiatric residential treatment facilities (PRTF). 

The fall BreakOut to Buckhorn will offer much needed upkeep to the residential cottages as well as interaction with the youth and spending time with them in games and conversation.

REAL Dayton 2017

Where community meets the community.

This off-campus experience over Fall Break combines service, reflection, encounters with our neighbors in Dayton, visits to cultural centers, and education about the gifts and challenges of our city. Learn how to make a difference and get involved in YOUR city of Dayton!

Cross-cultural Immersion in Zambia

Thanks to Miranda Melone for a couple seconds of each day from the Summer Cross-cultural Immersion trip to Zambia this past summer:

Experiential Learning at UD

Campus Ministry's Cross-cultural Immersion Experiences are one of the many experiential learning programs featured in this excellent video. But there are many more service, social justice, retreat, liturgy, small faith community, Bible study, etc. opportunities available through Campus Ministry that could have turned this this short video into a "Lord of the Rings" length film.

Tu Luz Trasciende

Tu Luz Trasciende (Your Light Transcends)

I was moved by her raw emotions as she shared her story and own experiences during the dictatorship, which lasted from 1973 to 1990. When we left the location of the mural, she gave us all hugs and said how she was so grateful we wanted to hear her story. She also said that giving her hugs gave her a sense of solace and hope for her father. The respect and compassion she showed us, without knowing us for very long, reminded me that caring for the people around me is one of the most important things in life. Your light transcends ( Tu Luz Trasciende).

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The Word is Alive Today

The Word is Alive Today

Seemingly out of the blue, my newfound friend turned to me and said, "Well, don't you see it? The Word is alive today."

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Immigration Guided Reflection 1

Immigration Guided Reflection 1

Lately there has been a lot of discussion around Immigration. Campus Ministry’s Center for Social Concern thought it might be helpful to reflect on what US Catholic Bishops have to say! So, we put together a reflection guide, for you to use in your own time, to prayerfully read and contemplate where the Catholic Church stands on issues surrounding Migration.

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Immigration Guided Reflection 2

Immigration Guided Reflection 2

Welcome to the second Immigration Reflection Guide. Lately there has been a lot of discussion around Immigration. Campus Ministry’s Center for Social Concern thought it might be helpful to reflect on what US Catholic Bishops have to say! So, we put together a reflection guide, for you to use in your own time, to prayerfully read and contemplate where the Catholic Church stands on issues surrounding Migration.

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Romero Award: The Least Among Us

The Least Among Us

What a privilege and blessing to present the Blessed Óscar Romero Human Rights Award to the National Conference of Brazilian Bishops' Pastoral Land Commission.

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Peace Corps

Peace Corps

I came to college pre-determined to major in Pre-Medicine with the intention of going to medical school, but the complexity of one particular experience prompted me to change my thoughts about my future. It was the summer after freshman year, when I went on a Cross-cultural immersion trip to Cameroon through Campus Ministry.

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Campus Ministry Calendar

Here's what's coming up in all of Campus Ministry, including the service and justice programs sponsored by the Center for Social Concern.