KSU Students Participate in Community Outreach Project
Amyn Panjwani and Winnie Patta, both business students in Kennesaw State University’s…
Georgia
(Jan 29, 2010) —
Amyn Panjwani and Winnie Patta, both business students in Kennesaw State University’s
Coles College of Business and active members of the KSU SIFE Team, were two of 10
college students selected to join the Liberty Mutual Responsible Scholars™
Community Project team in Los Angeles January 4th – 7th, 2010 to help communities
impacted by the 2009 California wildfires.
Panjwani, a finance major, and Patta, an accounting major, cleaned up a historic ranger
station, which had sat unused for decades in Angeles National Forest’s San Gabriel
Canyon, that will now serve as a meeting site and home base for the 200 local volunteers
who help the U.S. Forest Service. Their group also repotted more than 100 pine tree
saplings that will be used to replenish the forest; assembled more than 450 food packages
for homebound individuals; and worked at the L.A. Regional Food Bank. Photos from
the Project can be found on
Facebook.com/ResponsibleScholars
“Community service on college campuses has grown steadily over the past five years
as more and more students look for ways to help people in need,” said Maura Quinn,
University Relations Program Manager for Liberty Mutual Group. “The Community Project gives students like Amyn and Winnie another outlet through which they can put their
unstoppable energy and enthusiasm to work.”
According to Patta, “I thought the experience was very enriching. I really felt that
my participation in this experience made a difference in many people's lives and we
had a great team of scholars. I have friendships that I know I will treasure for years
to come. I hope Liberty Mutual will continue to provide this program to Responsible
Scholars because it is life changing for the participants and the impact was clearly
evident.”
Panjwani said, “Liberty Lends a Hand is an amazing program. Through it, we were able
to travel to Los Angeles and work in the Angeles National Forest and provide voluntary
service as well as learn a lot about the wildfire and its destruction. This experience
will be with me forever."
Forest Supervisor Jody Noiron stated: "The Angeles National Forest depends heavily
on the efforts of our partners and volunteers to manage the vital resources of the
forest. We appreciate the significant work the students from the Liberty Mutual Responsible
Scholars program performed during their visit with us. In just three days, they began
cleanup and restoration of a valued historical building. They also repotted several
hundred seedlings, and performed grounds maintenance on over an acre of landscaping.
It was an honor to host them."
Panjwani and Patta, who plan on graduating later this year, each submitted a two-minute
YouTube video explaining why they should be chosen for the trip and their stories
helped send them to L.A. Videos from all 10 students selected for the community project
are posted on Liberty Mutual’s Responsible Scholars YouTube channel at
www.youtube.com/responsiblescholars.
In addition to Kennesaw State, the other Community Project recipients hail from the University of Georgia, Bowling Green State University, Boston
College and Bryant University.
Students can also followLiberty Mutual, one of BusinessWeek’s Best Places to Launch
a Career, at Facebook.com/ResponsibleScholars or Twitter.com/RespScholars.
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In the photo, Winnie Patta (second from the left) and Amyn Panjwani (first on the
right)
A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 41,000 students. With 11 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia and the second-largest university in the state. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the region and from 126 countries across the globe. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.
