Carmen Campbell

For Carmen Campbell, volunteerism is fundamentally an educational pursuit. On the one hand, explains the former kindergarten teacher, a volunteer has the opportunity to educate, perhaps by working one on one with clients or by sharing the mission with potential donors. On the other hand, volunteering is a means (the best means, Campbell might argue) of receiving an education by taking on challenging projects, encountering new people, and increasing social awareness.

If volunteer work equals education, Campbell is well on her way to a PhD. She’s been an active volunteer for a number of organizations, including the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Junior Achievement, the Children’s Home Society, the Alzheimer’s Association of Minnesota–North Dakota, and the Minnesota Orchestra’s Symphony Ball. She’s also heavily involved with the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota and, along with husband, Jim, recently provided an endowment to fund a Chair in Urban Education. “I guess no matter where I volunteer, education has always been my reason for staying,” Campbell admits.

Campbell’s most recent lessons have come from Cornerstone, a domestic-violence-prevention organization. The small but increasingly successful Bloomington–based nonprofit offers transitional housing and support for victims of domestic violence, as well as in-school and community education programs. What sets Cornerstone apart, and what initially took Campbell by surprise, is the group’s focus on the suburbs. As she explains, “It’s easy to hide domestic abuse in a three-story house.”

Campbell joined the group’s capital campaign in 2001 and was integral in raising $6 million to fund a new facility. Not surprisingly, she has been a passionate advocate for Cornerstone’s youth prevention education programs. Last year, she was elected to Cornerstone’s board of directors, and she’s active in the group’s strategic planning, fundraising, and daily operations. Campbell discusses Cornerstone’s long-term future with the excitement of someone who plans to remain involved for quite some time. “At this point, it just is my life,” she shrugs. “I just get up every morning and say, ‘I can make a difference today.’ ”