Both of the Sophomore Seminar classes ventured out in their neighborhood to make a dent in the inevitable litter that has accumulated close to their campus as part of a Community Service project. Litter claw grabbers, plastic bags, gloves, and a bucket were provided by staff as we got to work with a project that initially seemed as arduous as digging out the Grand Canyon with a spoon! (There was a lot of litter that had built up over time especially after the snow finally melted this spring.) Students and staff filled up two garbage bags during the course of two classes from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM on Thursday, May 27, 2021. The Sophomore Seminar is co-taught by our talented instructors, Kathleen Murray and Emily Padula.

The Litter Collection Project actually began last week with the Volunteer Coordinator, Jesse Saperstein visiting the classes to deliver a PowerPoint about his passion for litter collection that began a few years ago after seeing his favorite New Jersey beach from childhood polluted by human debris. He went over the psychological benefits that come from having a cleaner city and demonstrated how to use the litter claw.

We are pleased to present images of both the Sophomore Seminar classes posing with the equipment and their accumulated haul! It is a fact of life that not everybody in any given community is going to be considerate about keeping their surroundings clean by looking for the nearest trash receptacles. The best we can do is roll up our sleeves once in a while to undo this damage.

The College Experience is proud to announce that part of Albany is now looking far more beautiful, thanks to the efforts of our students!