EFSC Student Honored for Campus, Community Work

Eastern Florida State College bachelor's program student Susan Slaton has won a prestigious state honor for her volunteer work on campus and in the community.

Slaton, a student assistant on the Cocoa Campus, is the recipient of the 2018 Florida Campus Compact Student Excellence in Service Award for the 28-member Florida College System.

A grandmother and the first member of her family to attend college, Slaton was cited for a wide range of work that benefited fellow students and residents of the Space Coast.

She has volunteered 900 hours with the college’s Service-Learning and Civic Engagement program, advising students and working with the college’s Rotaract Club to help disadvantaged youth.

Her involvement with other civic organizations includes Brevard Children in Need, which helps 1,600 homeless children, Crosswinds Youth Services, Junior Achievement and United Way Brevard.

“For me, volunteering is a way of life, and an act of self-definition. I enjoy helping others in our community, but I also feel that it is part of my responsibility as a member of that community,” said Slaton.

“I learned more about diverse cultures and communities while exploring social issues and their causes, as well as how I can help address them locally and globally. By addressing public problems, my time was impactful in the community.”

Slaton was honored as a Service-Learning program Citizen Scholar when she received an Associate in Arts Degree from EFSC in 2016 and is now studying for a Bachelor’s Degree in business.

In 2017, she received another major statewide honor – the Florida Campus Compact Newman Civic Fellows Award.

The Newman Civic Fellows Award is given to students for what the Compact calls their ability to inspire and mobilize others and tackle the root causes of social issues in their communities.