The Shriver Center and UMBC specifically, was one of the founding partners with what is now known as The Campus Compact Mid-Atlantic (formerly the Maryland-DC Campus Compact), a non-profit membership association of public, private, 2- and 4-year colleges and universities. MDCCC provides leadership to colleges and universities in Maryland and Washington, D.C. by advocating, supporting, and encouraging institutional participation in academic and co-curricular based public service and civic engagement programs. MDCCC strengthens the capacity of member institutions to enhance student learning and to meaningfully engage with communities. MDCCC is supported through a combination of institutional dues, federal and private grants, and in-kind contributions. The MDCCC office is housed by Hood College in Frederick, Maryland.
Campus Compact Mid-Atlantic VISTA programs join the mission of Campus Compact and AmeriCorps VISTA through projects that build campus-community partnerships to fight poverty. Through the Campus Compact VISTA program, we alleviate poverty by strengthening communities and developing our leaders.
Fariha serves as the CCMA AmeriCorps VISTA/Program Coordinator at Retriever Essentials. Retriever Essentials is an organization at UMBC that develops comprehensive programs of resources to eliminate the burden of food insecurity for UMBC members and connects them to ongoing support networks, in order to enhance their academic and career success. She is also a graduate assistant in the Applied Sociology program at UMBC and has completed post-baccalaureate certification in the Social Dimensions of Health and the Nonprofit Sector. Fariha came to the United States from Pakistan in 2012 and since then she has been living in Maryland. She completed her B.A. in Sociology with a minor in Political Science from UMBC. Her research foci include medical sociology, food insecurity and homelessness among college students, immigration policies in the western countries, and gender, work, education and family dynamics in Middle Eastern and South Asian countries. Under the mentorship of Dr. Dena Smith, in the SAHAP department, she is developing her thesis research topic exploring how premed students at UMBC understand the importance of social determinants of health. Fariha likes to sew clothes and read books on the Afghan culture in her free time.
PREVIOUS PROJECTS
2015-2018: The UMBC/Refugee Youth Project College Access Mentoring Program College JUMP (Journey Upwards Mentoring Program) created and implemented a near-peer college access mentoring program between high school refugee students and UMBC volunteers. By engaging students in college readiness workshops and activities, the project increased the number of refugee youth that successfully enroll in two and four-year institutions.
College JUMP Coordinator Alexis Logan-Brown was born and raised in Frederick, Maryland. She is a recent graduate of the College of 
Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina where she majored in International Studies with minors in Political Science and Psychology. While at school she studied various languages and was able to travel to the Middle East, which increased her interest in international and refugee politics. She was able to become the President of the Arabic Club and head a program for international students studying at her university. Through various organizations, Alexis has striven to increase the number of ethnic minorities on college campus’ and increase the information and networks available to minority students looking into higher education. In the future, Alexis hopes to be an advocate for refugee rights and international relationships with conflict-ridden countries.
2012-2015: Arbutus Achievers
To learn more about CCMA, visit: http://www.mdccc.org
To learn more about AmeriCorps VISTA, visit: http://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/americorps-vista