Muller Center for Multicultural and Civic Engagement
Explore Empower and Engage!
The Muller Center’s mission is dedicated to fostering a vibrant, inclusive community to engage deeply with the world around them. Through a variety of programs and sevices, we provide opportunities for students to engage with and learn from others, develop a strong sense of civic responsibilty, and explore their unique contributions to the world.
Programs and Events
Table Talks: An opportunity for students to share a meal with staff, faculty, and community members, to hear about their life journeys, and to discuss meaningful questions
Muller Film Series: Monthly film screenings of documentaries that profile pressing social issues and ethical questions, followed by an opportunity to reflect as a community
Religious Diversity Week: Held each spring in partnership with the Chaplain’s Office and the Office of Diversity Education, this week celebrates the gifts of the world’s many religious traditions
DEIB: Programs, leadership, and professional development opportunities around issues of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in collaboration with other offices and departments on campus
National Days of Service: Sponsorship of annual National Day of Service on Sept. 11 and Martin Luther King Jr. Day, organizing opportunities for students, staff and faculty to serve in the community.
Resources
Community Service: Bridging students to opportunities to serve in the community of Newberry and beyond through in-person support and the Helper Helper app
Community-Based Learning (CE) Support: Assistance with CE courses, from identifying relevant sites for serving to navigating logistics, such as transportation and background checks
Purpose Exploration: Resources and mentoring for students making decisions about declaring or changing a major, career goals, and civic engagement and leadership.
Strengths Assessment: Support for students in interpreting their Clifton Strengths Top 5 reports and applying insights to academic and professional goals
Professional Development: Workshops, trainings, conversation groups, digital resources, and a small library to promote the vocational vitality of staff and faculty
Community-Based Learning (CE) Support: Assistance in identifying community partners for collaboration, preparing students for ethical community engagement, and arranging logistics.
Mini-Grants: Small grants of up to $250 for faculty, staff, or departments to support student-oriented programs that advance at least one Muller value—vocation, ethics, or community engagement
Conference Support: Funding for faculty and staff to attend conferences hosted by NECU, NetVUE, and other organizations that foster professional development in vocational exploration and/or civic engagement
Communities of Practice: Resources and funding for staff-faculty groups to build professional capacity in an area of student need in the curriculum or co-curriculum
Student Volunteers: Assistance with recruiting students to volunteer for one-time events or on an ongoing basis
Community-Based Learning Partnerships: Opportunities to partner with Newberry faculty to design and implement long-term projects that bridge community interests and needs with students’ academic development
Community Partner Connections: Space for community partners to come together to exchange ideas, combine resources, and develop the collective capacity of local stakeholders to ensure a Newberry where all may thrive.
Muller Staff
Peggy Winder
Professor of Physical Education | Interim Director of Muller Center
Carlton Kinard
Associate Director for Multicultural & Civic Engagement
Muller Center staff are active on campus and in the broader Newberry community and collaborate frequently with other departments, offices, and agencies to build a better Newberry.
Dr. Peggy Winder, Interim Director & Professor of Physical Education
Dr. Peggy Barnes Winder is a native of Lancaster, South Carolina, and was educated in the public school system of Lancaster County. She began her teaching career at Newberry College in 1990 and has proven herself a solid professional inside and outside the classroom. In addition to her teaching duties, Dr. Winder works closely with faculty, staff and students to advance the College’s mission to build and maintain a diverse and inclusive campus community.
Winder is a pioneer in the Newberry College community. She is the College's first Black full-time professor and department chair, and in 1998, she was the first female inductee into the Newberry College Athletic Hall of Fame. In February 2024, she and Barbara Langford Davis '79 became the first women to have their Newberry College jerseys retired, both in basketball.
Winder is a two-time Student Government Association Professor of the Year (2003 and 2012); the Alumni Association's 2005 Outstanding Young Alumna; a 2011 recipient of the L. Grady Cooper Award for loyalty and devotion to the College; and a 2022 recipient of the Alumni Distinguished Service Award. She has also received the W.C. Carter Professorship Award in 2014 for selfless giving to students, staff, colleagues, and alumni. She was selected in spring 2012 to give the December commencement address. In 2011, she was inducted into the Bachman Honor Society. In 1999, The State newspaper named her one of "20 South Carolina Women Making a Difference for Women in Sports."
Mr. Carlton Kinard ’16, Program Coordinator for Civic Engagement
Kinard has served as Program Coordinator for Civic Engagement since August 2021. A native of Newberry, a proud graduate of the college, and a member of Newberry’s City Council, Kinard connects students, staff, and faculty to opportunities and events in the wider community and hosts community partners on campus. He is passionate about growing the relational bonds between the campus, especially students, and the community.
Kinard serves as an advisor to Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity and teaches in the College Life program. Among his many other roles on campus and off, he works as an Admissions Counselor and in town serves on the boards of the Building Thriving Communities Foundation, the YMCA, the Newberry Chamber of Commerce, and Newberry’s N.A.A.C.P. chapter.
Contact Us
Peggy Winder | Interim Director
803.321.5161 | peggy.winder@newberry.edu
Carlton Kinard | Program Coordinator for Civic Engagement
803.321.5615 | carlton.kinard@newberry.edu
Office: Keller Hall | 2nd Floor
Access Helper Helper
Mission and History
In keeping with the Lutheran liberal arts tradition, the Muller Center at Newberry College seeks to promote and practice the active engagement of all members of Newberry College and its community partners in moral discourse, vocational reflection, and civic involvement.
The Muller Center is funded by a generous bequest from Mr. John D. Muller, Jr., an alumnus of Newberry College as well as an environmentalist and historic preservationist. A committed Lutheran, Mr. Muller designated his funds to be used “to support students pursuing ministry to church and world.” It was determined that the establishment of a Center in his name would extend the greatest impact. The former Values Based Learning Program, directed by professor emeritus Dr. Joe McDonald, served as the foundation of the Muller Center’s volunteer and service-learning programming.
The Center has also benefitted from a Program Development Grant and a Vocation across the Academy Grant from the Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE), which is administered by the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) and generously funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc.
