SCMA Professor Receives Global Service Award

In November 2024, Dr. Mark Congdon, a professor in the School of Communication, Media and the Arts (SCMA), accompanied by alumna Keresha Donaldson, attended the V Global Symposium Uniservitate in Rome. There, Congdon received the 2024 Uniservitate Global Service Award for his work in creating the Uniting Hearts initiative back in 2021.

Congdon was just one of two North American educators to win the award.

During the symposium, Congdon and Donaldson also had the opportunity to meet Pope Francis directly.

“I thanked Pope Francis for the hope and inspiration he provides and for always standing up for social justice for the marginalized,” Congdon said.

He presented his initiative in front of 30 award nominees from the United States and Canada at the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities conference in San Diego, Calif. prior to attending the symposium.

After being recognized for the global service award, Congdon was told he could bring one student on the trip. Donaldson played a significant role in the creation of Uniting Hearts and also spoke at the conference, making her the perfect fit.

“Keresha [Donaldson] automatically came to my mind because she was a grad student involved for multiple semesters who came back as an alum and volunteered her time,” Congdon said.

Today, Donaldson remains active on campus and teaches digital design at Warren High School in Bridgeport.

“After I graduated from SHU, the service-learning aspect of the class did not end, and [Prof. Congdon] asked me if I would still help. I live right in Bridgeport, and Sacred Heart is still a part of my community. It was a no-brainer to stay engaged,” Donaldson said in an interview with the Associated Press.

Before Uniting Heart’s implementation, Congdon saw the opportunity to address multiple disparities in his local communities right from his classroom. He launched the initiative as a service-learning unit in his undergraduate advertising and public relations (PR) class.

Uniting Hearts gets students actively involved in social work within their campus and local community.

“We, as individuals, play an active role as well as a passive role. You not doing anything, that’s still doing something,” Donaldson said, explaining how most students would never get involved in the first place if it were not for Uniting Hearts.

Annie Johnson, director of the Office of Community Engagement, emphasized the importance of student engagement, especially when it’s promoted in the classroom.

“I think it’s important for students to see that stepping outside their comfort zone, even a little, could have a great impact on their local community,” she said.

The Pope praised service-learning initiatives like Uniting Hearts, emphasizing their impacts on raising social awareness. According to the Associated Press, the pope said, “it signifies a commitment to cultivating a distinctive pedagogical style and teaching consistent with the teachings of the Gospel.”

After receiving recognition for the award, Congdon has been working towards institutionalizing Uniting Hearts in hopes of broadening its reach throughout the SCMA.

Working towards his goal, Congdon will be launching a student-integrated PR agency in the spring of 2025, called HeartFusion Media Collective Agency.

“It’ll help students not just with jobs, but also really applying their liberal arts education at SHU to advance their local community,” Congdon said.

“This can be something that lives beyond the Sacred Heart community. We can partner with other universities to unite,” said Donaldson.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

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