The winners of the 2001 Office of Community Service Learning's Community Service Student Award:

Leah Grass volunteered at the Youth Guidance Center Girls Services Unit for San Francisco County, where she assessed the need for a diversion program for female youth. Grass went beyond her responsibilities of the class by also planning and developing such a program. Now she is working on a grant to secure funding for the program, which will provide young female prostitutes with viable options. Her professional goal is to continue working with youth as she has done the last decade.

Stephen Chun, a therapeutic recreation and nonprofit administration major, enrolled in a course titled "Care Break," which focuses on the development of community service learning projects as an alternative to spring break. Instead of taking a week of vacation, Chun helped paint benches in an historic Chinatown alley and shared his cultural perspective of Chinatown with fellow students. Chun hopes to someday start a nonprofit organization.

Juslyn Manalo, a senior majoring in Asian American studies and women studies, began volunteering as a freshman when she worked with preschool children in San Francisco's Bayview/Hunter's Point area. Recently she has drawn attention to the plight of Filipino American World War II veterans stripped of their benefits because of the 1946 Rescission Act. The veterans are awaiting passage of the Veteran's Equity Bill, which would reinstate their status and give them the medical and burial rights they deserve. Manalo encouraged hundreds of students from SFSU, City College of San Francisco and UC Davis to capture the personal stories of these elderly veterans before they pass away. To date, more than 250 SFSU students have recorded 150 oral histories. Manalo's dedication to the community also garnered her an additional award from the California State University system, as she was one of only 21 students in the state to receive such an honor for outstanding community involvement.

Maria Elena Martinez, who grew up in Acapulco, Mexico, and is the first in her family to enroll in a four-year university, produced and presented a social advertising campaign for the TransFair USA, a nonprofit agency that promotes fair trade for small-scale farmers and artisans in developing countries. Martinez is majoring in social psychology and broadcasting and electronic communication arts and someday hopes to enhance community consciousness through the media.

Computer science senior Matthew Ong is a member and officer for Alpha Phi Omega, serving the SFSU community by implementing Multicultural AIDS Awareness Day. Ong has chaired more than 100 service projects on and off campus, including a children's center cleanup, career fairs, blood drives, student outreach and assistance at the J. Paul Leonard Library.

Dennis Williams, a computer science major, has assisted the Women's Building in San Francisco by building an economic network backup system and creating a secure file-sharing environment. Barry Levine, his computer science professor, said Williams has provided a very important contribution to the staff by enhancing its ability to deliver services more effectively. Levine added that the service work has also motivated Williams to integrate community service learning into his personal goals. Professionally, Williams hopes to continue helping communities fighting for human rights.

Urban studies senior Martina Gillis has a long history of community service, which began when she became a parent advocate. She organized parents and facilitated neighborhood forums on children's issues. In 1997 Gillis founded and later became the executive director of the Coalition for Ethical Welfare Reform, where she established child and family advocacy groups, especially those serving public assistance recipients. Gillis and her organization are known nationwide to advocates, educators and congressional members. Gillis, the mother of two children, recently was nominated for the national Howard R. Swearer Student Humanitarian Award.