
CUIMC Gives Back with Community Drives
Over the past few months, the Office of Academic and Community Partnerships has organized several campus-wide drives and volunteer initiatives supporting the local community.
The annual community food drive saw a remarkable increase in donations with more than 4,000 food items donated, thanks to the expanded ways for employees to contribute via the office’s Amazon Wishlist. As food insecurity continues to rise, our community partners have emphasized the critical need to keep local pantries stocked. In response, the office has extended the opportunity to donate throughout the year through the Pantry Amazon Wishlist.
This year’s toy drive and STEM Initiative were also successful. The CUIMC community donated more than 500 toys, and several daycare centers and Head Start programs expressed their gratitude through thank-you letters and pictures. The STEM Initiative this year was supported by individual employees, the Department of Neurosurgery, and the Office of the Dean at the Mailman School of Public Health. To further assist local schools in providing essential science supplies and resources, the Office of Academic and Community Partnerships is extending its efforts to equip the next generation of innovators in STEM fields. To support this initiative, please fill out this form.

The CUIMC community donated more than 500 toys during the annual holiday toy drive, benefiting local daycare centers and Head Start programs.
The CUIMC community also answered the call to serve during the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, demonstrating a strong commitment to supporting the local community. Thirty volunteers partnered with NYC Love Kitchen and the Young Men’s and Young Women’s Hebrew Association of Washington Heights and Inwood to package and distribute food and hygiene kits to underserved neighbors.
“Volunteering with NYC Love Kitchen was a truly uplifting experience for me,” says Tyliah Kekele, a volunteer from Mailman School’s Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health. “Coming together as a community to serve those in need always helps me reconnect with my 'why.' In a world that’s constantly changing and sometimes feels overwhelming, there’s something deeply grounding about uniting in one space with a shared purpose—to serve those we live alongside. It’s moments like these that remind me of the bigger picture and why we’re here.”

Thirty CUIMC volunteers partnered with NYC Love Kitchen and the Young Men’s and Young Women’s Hebrew Association of Washington Heights and Inwood to package and distribute food and hygiene kits to underserved neighbors.
For more volunteer opportunities and ways to support our neighbors, please visit the ACP website.
Donation Opportunities for February
The AIMS Council’s Warming Up NYC student-led clothing drive is collecting new and gently used winter clothing items through Sunday, Feb. 9 at campus drop-off boxes. All items will be distributed to people living outdoors through the Columbia Care Access Project.
The Office of Academic and Community Partnerships is also running a clothing drive collecting new and gently used items through Friday, Feb. 14. They are seeking coats, jackets, scarves, gloves, hats, socks, boots, pants, sweaters, shirts, and new men’s undergarments in teenage and adult sizes. Donations can be dropped off in the School of Nursing Building lobby (560 W. 168th St.). Click here for more information.
Donated clothing will be distributed to the Fort Washington Men’s Shelter, Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights, and George Washington High School for Media and Communications.