Community Day Celebration connects the campus and the city

For the second year, UNC Charlotte’s Center City campus will host a Community Day Celebration. The celebration will be Saturday, Sept. 22, from 12 to 4:30 p.m. at the Center City building.
Those who attend will have the opportunity to participate in multiple interactive events, view performances and more.
Donell Stines-Jones, community outreach coordinator for UNC Charlotte’s Center City, planned the event both this year and last year. She says that the purpose of the event is to bring the community together.
““It’s in alignment with the purpose of the building, and that is to connect the community to the university. Internal staff and students to the community at large. That’s what we hope to do,” said Stines-Jones.
When reaching out to different groups to participate in the event, Stines-Jones says that those participating were willing to help make the event as dynamic as possible.
“The idea is that there is some sort of interaction, so the tables aren’t just stagnant and you aren’t just handing out fliers, but there is some sort of engagement with the community,” she said.
Activities lined up for this year include a performance by a brass band, a flash mob put on by fifth graders, a live DJ, an interactive mural, appearances by the Charlotte Checkers, an interactive photo wall and many organizations and groups who will set up various displays.
“It’s a very cool concept. There should be something there for everyone,” said Stines-Jones.
Last year, despite rain showers, she says about 200 people were in attendance, ranging from students involved at the university to members of the surrounding area. “The demographics were across the board. We were really happy,” she said.
Planning for the event took Stines-Jones about three months. She says she worked first with members of the UNC Charlotte community, inviting individual departments to the event. Then she focused on the student component. Finally she looked at the surrounding community to try to get them involved. “There’s like a three mile radius,” she said. “We try to reach all of them so they know that they can be a part of this as well.”
Stines-Jones one of the most valuable things for students regarding this event is the opportunity to network. She says students would have the opportunity to meet people from the community and even from the university that they would not normally have a chance to interact with.
“The social capital is probably making those connections and introducing great students to phenomenal students that we have here,” she said. “Charlotte has so much talent, but sometimes I feel like there are people who just stay in their pockets. This is kind of an event where the playing field is leveled, and everyone is welcome, and people just get to share.”

Tags: center city, community day, UNC Charlotte, uncc

Category: Campus, City, News