Campus Compact is pleased to announce that Star Plaxton-Moore, University of San Francisco’s Director of Community-Engaged Learning of the Leo T. McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good has been awarded Campus Compact’s Nadinne Cruz Community Engagement Professional Award. The award celebrates the ethical leadership and advocacy demonstrated by Community Engagement Professionals. Recipients have demonstrated collaboration with communities focused on transformative change; a commitment to justice-oriented work; and an impact on the larger movement to build ethical and effective community engagement locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally.
The award is named in honor of Nadinne Cruz, an innovative leader of community-based experiential learning and a pioneer of the movement for the public purposes of higher education. The Nadinne Cruz Award celebrates the ethical leadership and advocacy demonstrated by Community Engagement Professionals.
Plaxton-Moore is recognized for her transformational work supporting and advocating for critical and justice-oriented community-engaged learning. Her work focuses on building accountability and respect among faculty, community partner co-educators, and students. Through on-campus initiatives and her multiple publications, Plaxton-Moore has provided professional development for faculty across the country, resulting in engaged learning courses that are centered in social justice and sustain equitable and mutually beneficial relationships. Plaxton-Moore was also named the 2022-2023 Campus Compact faculty development fellow, and has continued her work supporting faculty in redesigning curricula to incorporate community-engaged learning.
“Star’s leadership, inspiration, ability to forge consensus among diverse stakeholders, work ethic and integrity have been instrumental in making the McCarthy Center one of USF’s beacons in our efforts to advance justice and promote more equitable outcomes in our communities,” said Anastasia Vrachnos, Vice Provost of Global Education, Immersive Learning and Strategic Initiatives at the University of San Francisco in a letter nominating Plaxton-Moore for the award. “Star leads with integrity, humility, and by example. She is widely admired and recognized as one of our university’s leading lights on civic engagement and community empowerment.”
Katie Haar, Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) Service-Learning & Civic Engagement (SLCE) Program Supervisor, was also presented with the Cruz Award this year.
The Nadinne Cruz Community Engagement Professional Award is presented as part of Campus Compact's Impact Awards, which recognize the outstanding work of individuals and institutions in pursuit of the public purposes of higher education.
Awardees will be recognized during a summer event series hosted by Campus Compact and IARSLCE to celebrate the recipients of each organization’s annual awards.
For more information contact:
Molly Leiper, Director of Communications, Campus Compact, [email protected]