New Student Orientation historically results in bins full of donations. Incoming students and their parents are encouraged to give an item or two in support of a local nonprofit. This year, the Dakota Center was the recipient of school supplies ranging from Post-it notes to pens.
However, it was the mass amount of pencils that caught the attention of Michael Miller, executive director of the center.
How many pencils were collected?
You guessed it: 1,850. Surprisingly, the number coincides with the year the University was founded.
“I had a double take when the number was told to me,” Miller responded, familiar with the significance of the number to the University of Dayton.
Melissa Flanagan, associate director of Student Transitions and Family Programs at the University, responded similarly saying, “There was divine intervention this year that the first-year students donated 1,850 pencils.”
The Dakota Center, located in the MacFarlane neighborhood in west Dayton, began with the partnership of Father Phillip Hoelle, S.M., and William Hoben, former dean of the University of Dayton School of Business Administration. The two hoped to create a place that reflected the Marianist approach to educating the whole person. Almost 60 years later, the vision lives on.
Flanagan said it was appropriate to choose the Dakota Center as this year’s beneficiary because of this longstanding partnership and the amazing work it has done in the community.
The community center offers homework help, summer camps, recreational activities and a social group for senior citizens. According to Miller, the school supplies collected during New Student Orientation 2019 will sustain the organization throughout the school year.
He expressed his gratitude saying, “On behalf of the entire board of directors, staff, volunteers, and most importantly, our children, we thank you for such generosity.”
The strengthened community partnership and the coincidental number of pencils may just point to a rewarding academic year ahead.