Meet the CCE Team
Professional Staff
Jeffrey Rathlef
Director for the Center for Community Engagement
jeffrey.rathlef@sru.edu
724.738.4764
Jeffrey Rathlef is the Director of the Center for Community Engagement at SRU. He earned a B.S. in Horticulture, a B.A. in History from Kansas State University; and an M.A. in International Affairs (Latin American Studies), and M.A. in Cultural Studies in Education from Ohio University. Jeffrey’s prior experiences include serving as a rural community development volunteer in Ecuador with the U.S. Peace Corps, Assistant Director for Latin American and Caribbean Studies at World Learning's division of study abroad (SIT), and the Director for Community-Based Service and Learning at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota. Under his leadership, Gustavus Adolphus College earned the 2015 recognition by the Carnegie Foundation as a classified community engaged campus. In his current role at SRU, Jeffrey's achievements include assisting the university with a successful 2020 Carnegie community Engagement Classification, the stewardship of faculty learning communities, the development and execution of student service and leadership programs, and the institutionalization of diverse community engagement practices in support of university-community partnerships and engagement.
Melissa Swauger, Ph.D. is the Academic Community Engagement (ACE) Fellow for Slippery Rock University’s Center for Community Engagement and a Professor in the Department of Social Sciences within the College of Liberal Arts. She brings 16 years of experience as a faculty member in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), including the past three years at SRU.
Dr. Swauger has extensive experience working with nonprofit organizations, serving as a board member, consultant, and leader of numerous community engagement and service-learning initiatives. She currently serves as Co-Chair of the SRU Strategic Plan Workgroup for Pillar #3: Commitment to Community Impact and Collaboration and as Co-Director of the Gender Studies Program.
As the ACE Fellow, Dr. Swauger supports faculty in integrating community engagement into academic courses through the ACE Pathway. This role includes assisting faculty in developing high-impact academic-community partnerships, offering training and professional development, and supporting best practices in engaged teaching. She also helps guide the use of assessment tools that measure student civic learning and the outcomes of university-community collaborations. Faculty participating in the ACE
Pathway benefit from built-in funding, outcome reports, and professional recognition through ACE Faculty designation and certification.
Through her leadership, Dr. Swauger advances the university’s mission to connect academic excellence with meaningful community impact.
Student Staff
Esra Rogers (she/her/hers)
RockServe Graduate Assistant
rockserve@sru.edu
Esra Rogers is the RockServe Graduate Assistant for the Center for Community Engagement and a graduate student in SRU's School Counseling program. In this role, she supports community partnerships and helps connect students with service opportunities through RockServe. Originally from Türkiye, Esra is passionate about helping others and is excited to make a positive impact in the Slippery Rock community.
Andrea Bauer (she/her/hers)
Civic Action Coordinator
Andrea Bauer is a Human Resource Management major with a minor in Leadership at Slippery Rock University. She serves as the Civic Action Coordinator for the Center for Community Engagement, where she supports the Civic Action Scorecard and helps connect students with meaningful community engagement opportunities.
Outside of the CCE, Andrea is an Army ROTC cadet and enjoys being involved in leadership and service initiatives both on and off campus. She is passionate about encouraging others, building strong community partnerships, and creating opportunities for students to become engaged in their communities.