Saint Anselm College and Girls Inc. have won The Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Partnership Award for Campus-Community Collaborations.
The award was presented by former First Lady Rosalynn Carter 
at a dinner Nov. 6 that marked the 10th anniversary of Campus Compact for New Hampshire.
Father Jonathan DeFelice, O.S.B., president of Saint Anselm and chairman of Campus Compact, accepted the award on behalf of the college, along with Patricia Barss, head of Girls Inc. It was the highest of the three awards presented to campus-community partnerships, and carries a $10,000 prize.
“The former president and first lady exemplify the true meaning of civic commitment and leadership. So we are deeply honored that they have recognized the partnership between Saint Anselm College and Girls Inc.,” said Father Jonathan.
“As president of Saint Anselm, I am proud of the work we do. As chairman of Campus Compact for New Hampshire, I am also proud of the efforts of our 
member colleges and universities and their partners,” he said. “My congratulations to Keene State College and Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Monadnock Region and Colby Sawyer College and the Kearsarge School District for their Carter Partnership Awards.”
Saint Anselm and Girls Inc. have worked together since 2000, when the organization started serving the Greater Manchester area with its mission to inspire girls to become “strong, smart and bold.” While the Meelia Center for Community Service primarily manages the partnership for the college, the Office of Residence Life, the New Hampshire Institute of Politics and such academic departments as nursing, computer science and physics also collaborate with the organization.
The partnership not only enriches the lives of more than 100 girls, but also of the college students who work with them, said Daniel Forbes, Meelia Center director.
In all, more than 75 volunteers and service learners from Saint Anselm work with Girls Inc. every year, offering a variety of benefits and experiences. The Dana Center provides girls and their families with free tickets to performances.
Nursing students offer nutrition and wellness workshops. Computer science students teach software use and physics students helped “The Lego Chicks” become the first all-girl team to enter in the First Robotics New Hampshire Lego League tournament. The Meelia Center raised money to create Café Lauren, which provides dinner for girls and their siblings. Meelia Center volunteers also serve dinner at the café.
Campus Compact for New Hampshire is a consortium of higher education presidents and private sector partners who are committed to the civic purposes of higher education. Father Jonathan served as the organizations founding chairman in 1997 and since that time CCNH has distributed over $1 million in grants, supporting nearly 300 community collaboration projects. CCNH is responsible for providing 1.8 million hours of volunteer assistance to New Hampshire civic and charitable organizations every year.
“I am so impressed by this Campus Compact,” Rosalynn Carter said. “I think New Hampshire has to be one of the best Campus Compacts in the nation.”