Perkins Recognized for Local Impact
13 July 2016 Perkins Recognized for Local Impact
For his significant work to enhance the understanding of local youth, Professor of Sociology Wesley Perkins has been awarded the Community Collaboration Award from Success for Genevas Children, a local organization dedicated to mobilizing the community to improve the health and well-being of local children and their families.
For the third time in eight years, Perkins has advised student researchers in data acquisition techniques and strategies which detail the characteristics and needs of community youth. The data books have been crucial for delivering information on the health and wellbeing of local children, as well as for helping to bring in grant support. Perkins was recognized during the annual Success Breakfast Leadership Forum hosted by Success for Genevas Children.
The Executive Board of Success notes that the data books have helped procure close to $4 million of grant funding to support school success endeavors in the Geneva community, says Katie Flowers, director of the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning who serves on the board of Success for Genevas Children. Professor Perkins is most deserving of the Community Collaboration Award and the board is grateful for his commitment to Success.
The data books are comprised of facts and figures drawn from local, regional and national sources and data bases. They also compare social and demographic information regarding Geneva and its children with that of the wider county and state.
As part of the efforts with Success for Genevas Children, Perkins advises a team of HWS students who assist with field and archival research, as well as formatting for the data books. This spring, Ryan Mullaney 16, Danielle Mueller 16 and Erica McLaughlin 16 were involved with the project.
Anna Hineline 11, who graduated cum laude in international relations and now serves as a technologist at Legal Assistance of Western New York, worked on the project in her senior year and says the opportunity inspired me to seek AmeriCorps opportunities within the Geneva community. The skills I acquired under the direction of Professor Perkins were invaluable in helping me further appreciate Geneva, and secure a position with Legal Assistance. Other alums, who worked with Perkins, echo Hinelines appreciation such as Dr. Christina Kinnevey09, who believes the work helped her get accepted into the School of Medicine at University of California, Davis, and Lily Farnham11, who feels it aided her in landing a teaching position at Tyler Elementary School in Washington, D.C.
Perkins is a graduate of Purdue University and received his M.A., M. Div., M. Phil. and Ph.D. from Yale University. He is the author of dozens of journal articles and is editor of a book on the social norms approach to substance abuse prevention, and has been honored with national awards for his work in preventing alcohol and drug abuse at colleges and universities.
More information for Success for Genevas Children can be found at http://successforgenevaschildren.org/.