Strengthening the Fabric of Our Community
Lehigh is privileged to be a part of a community rich in history and culture, and we hope to continue to foster strong relationships with community organizations. Building and developing a positive relationship with the South Bethlehem community through service is one of our primary objectives.
Community Service Programs
For the past 20 years, Lehigh’s Community Service Office has helped build the mutually-beneficial relationship between Lehigh students, faculty, and staff and the larger South Bethlehem community. The roughly 120 community service programs Lehigh supports range from after-school tutoring, food drives, and service in local soup kitchens to major events such as the annual Spooktacular and Spring Fling that bring thousands of local children and their parents to campus.
Community Fellows Program
Lehigh’s Community Fellows work for a participating agency for 15 hours per week while taking classes toward a Masters degree in Environmental Policy, Political Science or Sociology. To date, Community Fellows have served 67 government and/or community organizations including the cities of Allentown and Bethlehem, Lehigh Valley Hospital, Lehigh Valley Social Impact Center, St. Luke’s University Hospital, Community Action Development Corporations of Allentown and Bethlehem, Nurture Nature Center, and Safe Harbor Easton.
Support for Community Events
Each year Lehigh supports various community events in and around SouthSide Bethlehem, including Spring on the SouthSide, the SouthSide Film Festival, and the Mayor’s SouthSide Clean-Up.
Fostering a Healthy, Sustainable Community
Lehigh defines sustainability as the integration of social equality, environmental stewardship and economic prosperity into campus-wide administrative, academic and operational processes. We recognize that the decisions we make impact the health and well-being of our community, so we work hard to ensure that our actions result in positive benefits to Lehigh and the community at large. In our efforts to contribute to a sustainable future, Lehigh envisions campus-wide engagement toward sustainable practices through policy, analysis, implementation and action.
In May 2016, Lehigh adopted its “Campus Sustainability Plan 2020” to advance the integration of environmental stewardship, social equity and economic responsibility into our intellectual footprint. The Plan outlines several ambitious goals including: reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2020; establishing building design and construction guidelines to ensure new buildings meet LEED Silver or equivalent standards; managing grounds in accordance with a sustainable landscape management program; increasing the number of employees who carpool, walk, bike, use public transportation or telecommute to work by 10%; and supporting disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises and local community-based businesses.
Held annually each spring, Lehigh works in partnership with the City and many other community organizations to help remove and/or recycle litter, debris and recyclables from public spaces around SouthSide Bethlehem. In 2017, Lehigh’s co-ed community service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega also helped organize a fall cleanup event where nearly 200 Lehigh students and staff pitched in to help keep the SouthSide clean and beautiful.
Located at Lehigh’s Farrington Square, the Bethlehem Farmers’ Market is a local, producer-only market offering fresh produce, lunch items, baked goods, natural soaps and more to Bethlehem and Lehigh Valley residents. The Market operates as a community service to SouthSide Bethlehem, with the goal of making fresh local produce and food readily available to residents of the SouthSide. The Market runs from May through October each year and is a proud member of Buy Fresh Buy Local - Greater Lehigh Valley.
Partnering with the Bethlehem Area School District and St. Luke’s Health Network, Lehigh’s Counseling Psychology program operates the Community Voices Clinic (CVC), a community-schools-based mental-health counseling and supervision clinic at Broughal Middle School and Donegan Elementary. The clinic is fully staffed by Lehigh graduate students who incorporate evidence-based practice, multicultural competence and social justice in their free therapy services to uninsured and underinsured residents of South Bethlehem. CVC also provides weekly group sessions for senior citizens and career counseling and vocational training at the Hispanic Center of the Lehigh Valley.
In the face of enormous need for effective treatment services for children with autism, Lehigh University recently opened an Autism Clinic that will use state-of-the-art methods to help youngsters gain language skills and improve how they interact with others. Faculty and graduate students in the university’s new Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) program under the College of Education also provide evidence-based intervention techniques for preschoolers in the region.
Supporting Those in Need
Part of Lehigh’s mission is to further develop our students, faculty and staff as active citizens who value and contribute to their community. By supporting experiential service learning opportunities in the community, we help students create positive social change at the local, national, and global level.
Day of Caring
For 25 years, Lehigh’s Day of Caring program has matched faculty and staff volunteers with various social service agencies working to improve South Bethlehem. Agencies benefit by getting much-needed projects done for only the costs of materials, while volunteers gain an understanding and appreciation of the work of these important partner organizations.
Campus United Way Campaign
Lehigh faculty and staff are proud to support the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley through an annual campus-wide giving campaign. Lehigh is also a regular sponsor of United Way events and programs.
Manufacturing Expo
The department of mechanical engineering and mechanics and the TE Connectivity Foundation help hundreds of local kids learn about engineering as a potential career choice—and have a lot of fun in the process.
America Reads/Counts
Each year approximately 100 reading and math tutors make a difference in the lives of children, from pre-school through eighth grade.
CHOICES
Lehigh’s Charting Horizons and Opportunities in Careers in Engineering and Science (CHOICES) program allows middle school girls to learn about engineering and science in a format designed to foster an interest in science, technology, engineering and math.
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Spring on the SouthSide
With live art demonstrations, free crafts for kids, live music and and the famous Chili Cook-Off, there’s something for everyone at Spring on the SouthSide.
SouthSide Film Festival
The SouthSide Film Festival is an annual five-day event showing international and locally produced films, with guest filmmakers, juried selections and seminars for filmmakers and fans of independent film.
Great SouthSide Sale
Held annually each spring, Lehigh works in partnership with the City and many other community organizations to help remove and/or recycle litter, debris and recyclables from public spaces around SouthSide Bethlehem.
Spooktacular
Every October the CSO hosts the Spooktacular event with Halloween themed events for the Bethlehem families, including pumpkin carving, haunted houses and more.
Spring Fling
The Community Service Office's longest running program is a day of food, crafts and entertainment on the university’s front lawn.