Campus Compact Blog REMEMBERING GEORGE PT. 2
January 25, 2017
I had the pleasure of working with George Dennison for nearly 20 years at the University of Montana. His visionary leadership and support for civic engagement programming provided the basis for all of my professional work at UM and statewide. Under his leadership, UM’s service learning and civic engagement initiatives were launched and institutionalized. In addition to being one of the founding presidents of Montana Campus Compact, he also created UM’s Volunteer Action Services office which later became the Office for Civic Engagement. Thousands of UM students each year continue to engage in volunteer and service learning activities because of the foundation and infrastructure of support he built. It is noteworthy that while George is known for the many physical buildings he built at UM, he was also responsible for laying the structural foundations for many programs and initiatives that also have endured over time.
I always appreciated George’s straightforward leadership style. Even though it was intimidating at times, it provided clarity for direction of programming and partnerships. His legacy of engagement will live on throughout UM and Montana for a long time to come and we will always be grateful for his leadership in this field.
