Hundreds of NJIT Students to Help Newark Teachers Prepare for School Year

1000+ Participate in NJIT’s First Year Day of Service Across Essex County

NJIT's Day of Caring for college freshman
Malcolm X Shabazz High School Principal Naseed Gifted welcomes Superintendent Roger León to the high school along with NJIT President Dr. Joel Bloom and NJIT Chief External Affairs Officer Angela Garretson for NJIT’s Day of Caring for college freshman.

[NEWARK, N.J., Aug. 30, 2018] More than 1,000 incoming freshmen at New Jersey Institute of Technology will provide service to community agencies, including assisting Newark teachers as they prepare for the opening of the 2018-2019 school year, as part of NJIT’s First Year Day of Service on Thursday, August 30. In addition to supporting the Newark Public School system, NJIT students will travel to food banks, childcare learning centers, rehabilitation clinics and public parks to lend a helping hand.

NJIT students will be at the Bessie Mae Women and Family Health Center, the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, the Fairmount Heights Neighborhood Association, the Catholic Charities Immigration Assistance Program, the Grace West Manor Senior Tower and Children’s Community Center, the Greater Newark Conservatory, the Job Haines Home, Jersey Cares—Care of the Park, the Unified Vailsburg Services Organization, St. John’s Soup Kitchen, the Urban League of Essex County, the South Mountain Conservancy, Seamen’s Church, and Rebuilding Together, as well as the following schools:

  • Abington Avenue School
  • Avon Avenue School
  • Barringer High School
  • Belmont Runyon Community School
  • First Avenue School
  • Lincoln School
  • Luis Muñoz Marin School
  • Malcolm X Shabazz High School
  • Roberto Clemente Elementary School
  • Speedway Academy
  • Sussex Avenue School
  • KIPP NJ Life Academy
  • KIPP NJ Spark Academy
  • University Heights Charter School

NJIT President Joel S. Bloom and Newark Public Schools Superintendent Roger León will join students and new Principal Naseed Gifted (a 2001 electrical engineering graduate of NJIT) at Malcolm X Shabazz High School at 10 am.

“Community service is a critical component of our mission at NJIT, and this day of service is representative of the great partnership we have achieved with Mayor Ras J. Baraka,” said Bloom. “For the last six years, NJIT has engaged first-year, incoming students with the community through a day of service that has strengthened our university’s relationship with the City of Newark and its residents. This day provides an opportunity to foster meaningful relationships between students and community partners while creating a learning opportunity that demonstrates the value of community service.”

“I want to thank Dr. Bloom, Ms. Garretson and the NJIT freshman who have donated their time to help beautify and prepare our schools for opening,” said Roger León, Superintendent of Schools. “Community service is an essential part of the student experience in Newark. We look forward to partnering with NJIT in the future.”


About NJIT
One of only 32 polytechnic universities in the United States, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) prepares undergraduate and graduate students and professionals to become leaders in the technology-dependent economy of the 21st century. NJIT’s multidisciplinary curriculum and computing-intensive approach to education provide technological proficiency, business acumen and leadership skills. NJIT has a $1.74 billion annual economic impact on the State of New Jersey, conducts approximately $140 million in research activity each year, and is a global leader in such fields as solar research, nanotechnology, resilient design, tissue engineering and cybersecurity, in addition to others. NJIT is ranked #1 nationally by Forbes for the upward economic mobility of its lowest-income students and is among the top 2 percent of public colleges and universities in return on educational investment, according to PayScale.com.