Approximately 300 incoming freshmen at Lincoln University participated in the third annual Day of Service on Thursday, learning what it means to be a public servant in the Jefferson City community.
"I'm here to be a change in my community," said Isaiah Chigbogu, a freshman from Kansas City.
For the first half of the day, students were assigned to 11 United Way agency sites throughout the community to lend a hand in a variety of ways.
At one site, eight freshmen and one senior worked with Joy Sweeney, executive director at Council for Drug Free Youth, and fellow coalition members discussing the prevalence of alcohol and marijuana in this community.
Sweeney asked coalition members questions - like why they believed alcohol and marijuana were the two most problematic substances for youth in Jefferson City - which led to further discussions about ways to address young people's perception of the drugs.
Many coalition members noted access, normalization in society, taking a look at policy changes, misinformation, overall perceptions of marijuana and recognizing the cycle of abuse through generations.
Lincoln students were equally engaged, providing feedback as well as listening to the coalition members to see how they perceived problems in this community.
Jalen Edwards, a senior marketing major at LU, suggested law enforcement priorities have changed due to the severity of other crimes taking place in society.
This is Edwards' third year participating in the Day of Service. He plans to help increase people's awareness levels of issues similar to this in the future.
Freshman accounting major William Coleman mentioned youth leadership as one way to help promote the benefits of staying drug-free.
"It's so important to get their perspective because they really brought back home what we were doing," Sweeney said. "Hearing that they know what they need to do to help stay drug-free is extremely valuable because it helps us to plan and empower more youth to make those choices."
Sweeney noted all of the information logged Thursday would be implemented into the CDFY action plan.
Coleman and fellow freshman DeCory Stamps said it was surprising to hear professionals in the community care about issues like this, working together to create a change.
"I really enjoyed the day of service we had through the university," said Mar'Che Boggess, a freshman journalism major. "It allowed me to get involved in the Jefferson City community and learn how I can provoke change while I'm away at college by networking with other people who may help me later on in life."