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United at the Rock – February 20, 3-5pm

Remember. Serve. Celebrate.United at the Rock Logo

United at the Rock is a time for the University of Tennessee Knoxville community to come together to

Remember who we are and where we have been as an institution, to

Serve because it is the Volunteer spirit, and to

Celebrate the unity that makes us a community. The events incorporated will center around unification in spirit and in service

Values: Unity, Inclusion, Community, Equality, Partnership.

Mission: To come together as a unified campus and community through remembering our values, working together to serve others, and celebrating the community in which we belong.

Vision: To create a campus community that recognizes the University of Tennessee campus as a community of unified individuals

History and Why

In 2018, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville was rocked by multiple expressions of violence and anti-Semitic, racist hate on The Rock that do not reflect our values or our community. United at the Rock is a time to remember who we are as a Volunteer family. That shared identity calls us to serve our community as Volunteers. We’ll then look forward to celebrating how we have lived our values when we gather as a community for dinner and discussion at the United at the Table, a long-table event on Pedestrian Walkway in late September.

What We Are Doing

On Wednesday, Feb. 20, we will kick off the event at 3:00 PM with a volunteer fair where students, faculty, and staff can receive information from community partners who have a need for volunteers in the Knoxville community. The fair will take place across from The Rock in the Student Health Center room 206AB.

At 4pm, we will have opening remarks and begin painting The Rock with multi-color hand prints to show our unity. Families and community members welcome!

At 5pm, we will have some closing  remarks, music, and information on some events related to diversity/inclusion, including a panel on free/hate speech and community dialogues about how to have respectful, meaningful conversation.

The event is organized by Faculty Senate, Campus Ministers Council, Leadership Studies, Student Government Association, Center for Leadership and Service, and the School of Music, with support from Athletics and the Vice Chancellor for Diversity and Engagement.

Related Events

Rocky Topics Kick-Off Event: “I’m a VOL and…”
February 20th – 5:30 – 7 p.m.
Executive Dining Room 377A (enter through 399 door)

Bending the Arc of the Moral Universe:
White Supremacy, Black Nationalism, and the Civil Rights Movement
February 28th – 5:30p.m. in the Lindsay Young Auditorium

Discussion Forum about Free Speech and Hate Speech
March 6th – 4 PM
Student Union, Room 272

Recent events on campus (and across the country) highlight the need for dialogue across difference. Dialogue aims to build understanding of one another, even when we don’t agree. Join us on March 6th, from 5:00 to 6:30 PM (362A Student Union) as we discuss needs and challenges related to sustained dialogue at UT, and work to develop and practice the skills for sustained dialogue at UT. For more information and to register, please click here.

#MeetMeAtTheRock

 

Volunteer Fair Community Partners
Keep Knoxville Beautiful
Bridge Refugee Services
CASA of the Tennessee Heartland
Whittle Springs Middle School Parent Resource Center
YWCA Knoxville and the Tennessee Valley
UT Recycling
Zoo Knoxville
Knoxville Head Start
Knoxville Knox County Community Action Committee Office on Aging
Beardsley Community Farm
Fulton High School
Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley
Big Brothers Big Sisters ETN
Emerald Youth Foundation
The Salvation Army
Horse Haven of Tennessee
Ladies of Charity
Volunteer East Tennessee
Knoxville Botanical Gardens