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| Thanks to city grant funding and LSU, the Old South Baton Rouge community has a new voice. LSU's Community-University Partnership, or CUP, which was formed to serve the Old South Baton Rouge neighborhood located between the campus and downtown, has released its first newsletter. Currently titled "The LSU-Old South Baton Rouge CUP," the newsletter is being distributed through some 50 churches in the area, as well as the Leo S. Butler Community Center on East Washington Street, various neighborhood businesses and in the Chancellor's Office at LSU. The newsletter was made possible thanks to funding from Baton Rouge's CAN DO Neighborhood Small Grants program. The first issue includes messages from LSU Chancellor Mark Emmert and Judy Bethly, coordinator of the Community-University Partnership, as well as information on grant-writing workshops, CUP-sponsored fix-up projects and a new legal clinic conducted by students at LSU's Paul M. Hebert Law Center. According to Bethly, the newsletter represents a true partnership between LSU and the community. Community members are encouraged to provide information or articles, and one of LSU Assistant Professor Renita Coleman's Mass Communication classes works on designing and writing the newsletter. There are plans to produce two issues of the newsletter per semester. "Soon after CUP opened its doors, we became aware of a problem: The lack of a communication tool in the community," said Bethly. "We had no means of informing community members of important events that could affect their lives and we felt that a community newsletter could aid us in this endeavor." Bethly added that the newsletter will serve as a "bridge" between the university and the community and will keep area residents and university community up-to-date on CUP initiatives. Eddie Johnson, director of the Leo S. Butler Community Center, agreed with Bethly. "CUP is nothing new to me because I was there when it was organized, but there are people out there who are not aware of what is happening," he said . "Now that we have the paper, people are going to be kept abreast of what projects are going on in the area." The Community-University Partnership sprang from a $400,000 Community Outreach Partnership Centers grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The grant, awarded to LSU and various community partners, marked the first COPC grant to any institution in Louisiana. The Community Outreach Partnership Centers program is administered by HUD's Office of University Partnerships. Established in 1994, the Office of University Partnerships is a catalyst for joining colleges and universities with their communities in a shared effort to work on solving pressing urban problems. HUD's annual COPC grants, awarded on a competitive basis, help colleges and universities provide technical assistance, training and applied research to community-based groups and local governments. The activities are chosen and designed jointly by the schools and neighborhood groups. The CAN DO program offers Baton Rouge neighborhood and civic associations an opportunity to apply for limited grants for various neighborhood projects. It is funded by the City of Baton Rouge and private partner. For more information on CUP or its newsletter, contact Judy Bethly at 225/389-8566 or jbethly@lsu.edu. -30- |
LSU Media Relations
225-578-3871
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