Urban Plunge
Urban Plunge 2023
Thursday, August 24 - Saturday, August 26
Urban Plunge is a three-day pre-orientation program directed by Fordham University’s Center for Community Engaged Learning. The program is designed for incoming students who are proactive thinkers and share a deep commitment to social justice advocacy.
During Urban Plunge, students are given an opportunity to explore New York City’s diverse neighborhoods through a lens of community, diversity, and engagement. Students learn about unequal access to opportunities in the context of the city's history, and engage with local social justice advocates whose initiatives work to foster universal goodness in today’s world. We fearlessly address systemic injustices and highlight the beauty that coexists despite it, encouraging students to experience the vibrant culture within all of NYC’s boroughs.
Throughout the program, we emphasize a complete integration of reflection, expression, and action. All students are encouraged to cultivate what we call “bothered excellence,” diligently pursuing the truth and daring to have the necessary, difficult conversations wherever injustice resides.
Urban Plunge at 30: Our Anniversary Theme.jpg)
This year, we celebrated Urban Plunge’s 30th Anniversary! For three decades, Urban Plunge has given students the tools to be active members of their communities for the entirety of their college career and beyond.
This year’s theme: to bridge, build, and begin.
Our students embraced New York as not just their campus, but also their home. Through Urban Plunge’s hands-on engagement, students actively bridged the gap between the University and the surrounding communities. Students built meaningful relationships with their community and each other. Our students — our bridge-builders —learned about those who lie on the margins to ensure that nobody’s story is ignored, dismissed, or diminished. We began a new story. We know that Urban Plunge 2023 was a spark igniting incoming students to begin their college journeys with an informed sense of mission grounded in love and justice.