{"430481":{"#nid":"430481","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Hirsch Named Director of Sustainable Communities Educational Initiatives Office","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp class=\u0022p1\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003E[Editor\u0027s note:\u0026nbsp;the title for the Sustainable Communities Educational Initiatives Office has been changed to the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/serve-learn-sustain.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ECenter for Serve-Learn-Sustain\u003C\/a\u003E.]\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p1\u0022\u003ETo implement Georgia Tech\u2019s new quality enhancement plan (QEP) for student learning, Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain, Georgia Tech is establishing a new unit within the Office of Undergraduate Education and welcoming its inaugural director.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EBeginning August 17, Jennifer Hirsch will join Tech as director of the Sustainable Communities Educational Initiatives Office (SCEIO). The office is part of the Institute\u2019s plan to institutionalize Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain and will be physically co-located with the Center for Academic Enrichment in Clough Commons.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EHirsch is an applied cultural anthropologist specializing in sustainable communities. Based in Chicago, Hirsch has worked at Northwestern University, The Field Museum, and most recently as an independent consultant. Over the past eight years she has focused on bringing together diverse populations, including students, administrators, faculty, policymakers, and community leaders, to build on community assets to address community sustainability challenges. She also has experience in higher education administration, focusing on international and experiential education.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cI couldn\u2019t be more excited about moving to Atlanta and Georgia Tech to launch Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain,\u201d Hirsch said. \u201cThis innovative initiative is destined to become a national model for university engagement in sustainability, as an environmental, social, and economic imperative. It is an honor to be involved from the very beginning.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EThe search committee for Hirsch\u2019s position included students, administrators, and faculty from all six colleges.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cThe committee recognized that Dr. Hirsch\u2019s specialization in community sustainability, asset-based community development, and network building \u2014 as well as experience working with communities, municipalities, museums, universities, and business to address sustainability challenges from a socio-technical perspective \u2014 made her an ideal candidate for this new role,\u201d said Colin Potts, vice provost for Undergraduate Education. \u201cI am excited to have her joining the Office of Undergraduate Education.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EServe\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain is Tech\u2019s new QEP, a key component for reaffirmation of accreditation in which a university must develop a long-term plan to support student learning that also reflects the Institute\u2019s mission. Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain will improve undergraduate education by developing academic courses and experiences that combine community engagement with sustainability. Beril Toktay and Ellen Zegura co-authored the QEP and are executive co-directors of Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cI\u2019m very excited about Jennifer\u2019s vision of Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain as an initiative that will not only transform undergraduate education at Georgia Tech, but will have a very strong influence nationally,\u201d said Toktay, professor and Brady Family Chair in the Scheller College of Business.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EEllen Zegura, professor of computer science in the College of Computing, said, \u201cJenny brings to the position many years of experience in the intersection of community engagement and sustainability working in communities such as Chicago and with universities such as Northwestern. The Georgia Tech effort will benefit greatly from her on-the-ground involvement with projects like those we will develop.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003EHirsch holds a B.A. in American Culture from Northwestern University and a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology from Duke University. Her doctoral work examined grassroots network-building across the U.S. South, including Atlanta and the state of Georgia. She also studied abroad at Japan\u2019s Waseda University, and she spent three years working in Japan in government and business.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp class=\u0022p5\u0022\u003E\u201cOne of my first orders of business will be meeting with people across campus and Atlanta to explore how sustainability is related to their disciplines, their work, their lives, and other things they care about,\u201d Hirsch said. \u201cAnyone who would like to grab a cup of coffee should please give me a call!\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech is establishing a new unit within the Office of Undergraduate Education and welcoming its inaugural director.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Georgia Tech is establishing a new unit within the Office of Undergraduate Education and welcoming its inaugural director."}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2015-08-03 11:12:40","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:19:19","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-08-03T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2015-08-03T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"430471":{"id":"430471","type":"image","title":"Jennifer Hirsch","body":null,"created":"1449254381","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 18:39:41","changed":"1475895169","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:52:49"}},"media_ids":["430471"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/serve-learn-sustain.gatech.edu","title":"Serve\u2022Learn\u2022Sustain"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"479","name":"Green Buzz"},{"id":"137131","name":"jennifer hirsch"},{"id":"137141","name":"office of sustainable communities educational initiatives"},{"id":"171470","name":"SCEIO"},{"id":"167070","name":"serve\u2022learn\u2022sustain"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:victor.rogers@comm.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EVictor Rogers\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}