Nearly 150 community leaders and volunteers converged on ETSU’s Culp Center Friday to find out what it takes to make a good community even better.
The conference, called “Campus as Catalyst: Tennessee Colleges’ Promises to Youth,” brought together local educators and leaders as well as students as part of an effort to get campus organizations involved in America’s Promise as a University of Promise.
America’s Promise is a national initiative to build the character and competence of the nation’s children by forming a cohesive support network of local organizations, businesses and volunteers.
The organization was founded after the 1997 Presidents’ Summit for America’s Future, when Presidents Bill Clinton, George Bush, Sr., Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford and former first lady Nancy Reagan challenged the nation to make youth a national priority.
“I always get a surge of excitement when I hear of a revolutionary new volunteer program, especially one that will motivate students,” said keynote speaker Tracy Hoilman, a drama teacher from Science Hill High School.
Hoilman was the recipient of the 2004 Tennessee Teacher of the Year award and was honored as a Social Services Hero by the Tennessee Department of Human Services for his Christmas gift project benefiting low-income children. He has been involved in a number of community and school service organizations.
“Volunteerism is a perfect educational tool,” Hoilman said.
Hoilman stepped in to replace former University of Tennessee President Dr. Joe Johnson as keynote speaker when Johnson was unable to attend.
The goal of the conference, said the event’s organizer, Dr. Deborah White, assistant vice president for Community Engagement, Learning and Leadership, was to strengthen the community outreach programs already in place on campus.
“We want to build on the service programs we already have,” White said. “It’s not about what we are doing – it’s about how we can make what we’re doing stronger.”
After the keynote speech, attendees gathered in groups for brainstorming sessions and workshops to provide them with the tools to help foster leadership and team-building skills.
Brainstorming sessions focused on finding ways the community can fulfill the five promises the organization centers around: Caring Adults, Safe Places, Healthy Start, Marketable Skills and Opportunities to Serve.
The “Caring Adults” promise, for example, is based on the idea that a “caring adult gives a young person a guide, a mentor and a role model to emulate,” and that “a sense of connection – within and outside the family – is a powerful factor that encourages good social skills, responsible values and a positive identity.”
“We want to embed this in the culture of the campus,” said White of the five promises.
Following the brainstorming sessions, a series of lectures were presented for attendees to learn about successful community partnerships, leadership teams, long-term organizational support and team motivation.
Within the month, White hopes to find out what campus organizations are doing by collecting as much information as possible from the organizations themselves. In doing so, she hopes to find ways to help the groups improve their efforts.
“It’s a matter of keeping groups connected; making sure they know what resources are out there; helping funnel information; and keeping tabs on what we’re doing as community,” said White, who will request an official designation for ETSU as a University of Promise by the end of November.
“I think we can take what we’ve been doing, and we can make it better.”

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