Why is Detroit Service-Learning Academy Special?

Written by: Jaylon, Detroit Service-Learning Academy

Hello! My name is Jaylon, I am in the 7^th grade and I go to Detroit Service-Learning Academy (DSLA). DSLA is special because the school has a lot of after-school activities like skating parties and dances. It is also special because the Junior Academy all participate in service-learning together.

Last year I did a service-learning project helping the 8^th graders. The project helped 8^th graders decide what high school they wanted to go to. We did a research presentation on each school, and we helped them to see the kinds of classes each school offered. We then surveyed the 8^th graders to see what they thought about each of the schools. This service-learning project helped them plan their future.

Another special thing about DSLA is that we have SMART boards (interactive white boards) in all of our classrooms, and we use them for service-learning projects. For example, when we did the high school research project we were able to show each of the high school’s websites and navigate right on the board.

I really like service-learning because it teaches me a lot of things and it helps my community. It also helps classes work together where younger students get to work with older students, and vice versa. This allows us to get to know one another both inside and outside of our classroom.

About DSLA: DSLA is made up of three academies; Primary Academy grades K-2, Elementary Academy grades 3-5, and Junior Academy grades 6-8. DSLA practices a “full inclusion” teaching model, which encourages all teachers (both general and special education) to work together for the common good of all students. To learn more, visit their website: http://www.detroitservicelearning.org/.

About Jaylon: Jaylon is one of Learn and Serve – Michigan’s 23 Service Learning Youth Council (SLYC) members. He attended the retreat in early December, and can even be seen rapping in the video posted with last week’s post.

Service Learning Youth Council Retreat a HUGE Success!

Written by: Ellen King, Learn and Serve – Michigan AmeriCorps*VISTA

In early December, members of the Service-Learning Youth Council (SLYC) joined the Learn and Serve – Michigan team at the Michigan Community Service Commission’s office for a retreat. SLYC is the Michigan Community Service Commission’s youth advisory group. SLYC (pronounced "slick") was created in 2002 to connect young people with the organization’s youth-focused grantmaking program, Learn and Serve - Michigan. Each Learn and Serve - Michigan school-based grantee is eligible to nominate one young person to serve on SLYC. SLYC members work with the Learn and Serve team at the MCSC to further public support for service-learning in schools and communities across Michigan.

The SLYC members are a very diverse group, to say the least. They are students in the seventh to 12^th grades, come from as far as Traverse City or as close as Ionia, and every area in between. Out of 23 members, there are six returning from last year who attended this retreat and they include: Tylar, Jackson, Jackson, Shane, Cinque, and John. There were just three members who did not make it to the retreat. Also of note, one member who did make it recently returned from Europe the day prior to the retreat.

And who am I? My name is Ellen King, and I am the new Learn and Serve – Michigan AmeriCorps*VISTA. As a VISTA, I am supporting low-income communities by providing resources that encourage service-learning. One of my many responsibilities is coordinating the members of SLYC by hosting conference calls, assisting them with outreach, and guiding them in their development of service projects. I am really looking forward to serving these students.

The retreat focused on jump-starting the members on their 2011 Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) projects and helping them get to know each other through several team building and icebreaker activities. One of the first tasks they had was to identify problem areas within their communities which could serve as potential project ideas. This list was eventually narrowed down to child abuse, community violence, education, and environmental stewardship. Members joined the group they were most passionate about in order to brainstorm possible service projects.

SLYC members also discussed the importance of community partners, and how they can contact their teachers, peers, parents, and community organizations for assistance with this service project. They were broken into groups and asked to present valuable service-learning information as if they were presenting to one of those four resources. It appeared to me that after these presentations there was a light bulb that turned on in each of the student’s heads, as if they knew their project could include as many people as they wanted.

As an exploration of how they can use video for outreach and presentations, each student created a video explaining why service-learning is important to them and why others should get involved in service-learning. We distributed Flip video cameras, and asked the members to start recording. Before we got started with this project, I gave a presentation on the different types of leadership styles in Hollywood. This served to allow the students to have an idea of where each person was coming from as they worked together for the video creation project, but also in general, to start thinking about their respective leadership style. The four styles were: Director, Producer, Analyzer, and Editor. For me, it was important to convey to the members that knowing your leadership style is crucial to understanding how you work with other people at home, school, and as a SLYC representative – and for forming roles in their video teams.

The videos from the students were an enormous success. We had two distinctive groups rap about service-learning, one group included an underlying message of paying it forward, and two videos consisted of interviews of why the members participate in service-learning and why it is important to them. These videos, and many more from the weekend will be posted to the MCSC’s YouTube channel in the coming weeks and months. We will be sure to let you know when more are put up! In the mean time, check out the featured video below.

Another of the expectations of the SLYC members is to write a blog for the Learn and Serve – Michigan’s Resources Blog. The blog topics will range from their 2011 GYSD project ideas to telling their story about their interest in service. Stay tuned, because over the course of the next few weeks, you will see blog posts from Jaylon, Danielle, and Christopher. These posts are just the beginning of many to come!

College-Based AmeriCorps Members are GETTING THINGS DONE in Michigan!

Written by: Renee Miller Zientek, Executive Director of Michigan Campus Compact

There is nothing more inspiring than being witness to people helping one another with enthusiasm, genuine care, and basic kindness. In recent months, Michigan college campuses have recruited and placed campus-based AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps*VISTA members, reminding me of how much support these and other national service members offer to our communities. At any given time there are more than 75,000 national service members around the country working to improve community life in the United States. AmeriCorps members make a big difference by helping others and meeting critical community needs. These individuals are adults of all ages and backgrounds who serve through a network of partnerships with local and national nonprofit groups. Their service helps to make our communities safer, gives our children a second chance, and helps protect the environment. These are volunteers that get things done.

Through strong partnership, close teamwork, and a rich tradition of supporting and advancing civic engagement among Michigan’s college students, Michigan Campus Compact (MCC), with support from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and the Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC) has placed 300 AmeriCorps members on college campuses and in communities across the state through the Michigan Service Scholars AmeriCorps Program.

These 300 members across Michigan are serving to achieve maximum impact in the following three areas:

Teacher Preparation – Student teachers who will implement service-learning through pre-service teacher training in K-12 classrooms.

College Positive Volunteers – Students who will volunteer in youth-serving nonprofits and exposing youth to higher education through College Positive Volunteerism techniques.

Community-Based Service – Students who will serve in community/faith-based nonprofits with a focus on addressing local community needs through direct service and volunteer recruitment.

If you are a student who would like to join with other AmeriCorps members through the Michigan Service Scholars Program to make a difference in Michigan’s communities, please inquire with the community service office at your campus. Only campuses that are members of the Michigan Campus Compact are able to place students through the Michigan Service Scholars Program.

If you are a community member who would like to know how these AmeriCorps members might connect with partners in your community, please contact Michigan Campus Compact. We are more than happy to connect partners in all communities.

For more information about the Michigan Service Scholars Program, contact Shannon Zoet at szoet@micampuscompact.org, Assistant Director of Campus Partnerships for Michigan Campus Compact.

A Service-Learning Success Story

Written by: Jonathan Orlansky, LA Green Corps Crew Leader

Service-Learning can empower individuals to make a difference not only in their communities but in their lives as well. This story comes from the Louisiana Green Corps, a program that uses service to teach employment skills to disadvantaged youth. It is a great example of how service and learning can change a life.

After Chris Condy received his certificate of completion from Grace King High School in 2006, three years passed. In those years, Chris worked for wages a total of one week, milled around his house, and had social interactions with only a handful of relatives. Chris was stagnant.

“I guess I was just figuring out what I was doing,” he says of the period. “I knew what I liked to do, but I didn’t think I had the experience for a job. I didn’t know how work would be.”

Chris was born with a vaguely defined cognitive disability still referred to as “mental retardation.” He was in special education programs his entire life, and completed school with minimal ability in reading and math. His one job, as a stock clerk at Winn-Dixie, had ended after a confusing and embarrassing argument about sweeping the floor. In some ways, his trepidation about joining the real world was well founded.

Then, Chris caught wind of the Louisiana Green Corps, a program that teaches green deconstruction and salvage tactics to unemployed, underemployed, low income, or other disadvantaged youth in New Orleans. A cousin, aware of his fondness for working with his hands and concerned about his inactivity, alerted him to the program and helped him through the application process. Within a week, Chris and his mother had met with program director Suzy Mason, and he was in. In one month’s time, Chris would begin his first real job.

Chris took all this basically as it came. He was pleased with the idea of working with tools and being around people, and, appreciating the job as an abstraction rather than reality, undeterred by the startling newness of the experience to come. That aspect hit Chris squarely on his first day of orientation.

Chris walked into a room full of strangers; holding notebooks, reading, talking about long-term goals, hours accumulation, wages, and he was staggered. He needed to be prodded and cajoled into attending the week’s training. I met him that week, and along with a few other staff members, feared he might not last in the program.

My initial fears were buoyed in the first week of field work. He appeared listless and bored the first couple days, and outright upset the next few. We took long walks and talked about what was blocking him and how he might get over it. He seemed content, driven even, to go back home and watch DVD’s for the rest of his life. I tried to present the situation in the most dire of terms, that if he didn’t choose to grow up and be independent now, it would never happen. It appeared to be an argument I would lose. Every day he showed up in those first weeks, I was surprised.

Then, a stroke of luck. I figured the only way we could get Chris really involved was to give him the most exciting, involved job our work had to offer, and at what appeared to be the breaking point of whether he stayed or went, we started knocking down walls. I lined Chris up next to me, another crew leader, and two other corps members, and we pushed the west-facing wall of the house we were working on clear off the foundation. Looking up from the shattered glass and cloud of dust, I saw Chris really smile for the first time.

“It was like, when I pushed that wall down, I was knocking down my fears,” he says. “Once I broke through that wall, I was okay. It’s like a metaphor, or whatever.”

The smile didn’t dissipate. A total transformation of character and attitude occurred. Chris was energized. He became the most enthusiastic and hardworking member of not only my crew (the participants with disabilities), but of the entire 20-person corps. He also showed a natural gift for woodworking, and became a mainstay in our shop after hours working with the table saw on personal projects. He earned the universal admiration of supervisors and peers, received multiple accolades within the group, and was the first recommended for a new internship opportunity with TCA (Total Community Action) when it arose.

“It was an absolute joy to watch Chris grow from an unsure, quiet guy who didn’t want me to take his picture on the first day of work into our most productive and reliable crew member,” says Greg Aycock, Chris’s supervisor. “Chris’ work ethic and desire to learn will undoubtedly lead to him being successful in any endeavor he takes on.”

When asked how he felt about his well-earned praise, Chris responded “Probably real good. I have a lot more confidence; a big ego boost. You can never get too many compliments.”

I take heart in Chris’s accomplishments. The fact we could provide a circumstance where a young man discovered an outlet for his potential and is now functioning on a successful and independent level is a source of tremendous pride for my co-workers and myself. As long as Chris’s work ethic doesn’t fade, the compliments are likely to keep coming.

What Happens When You Engage Youth in the Funding Process?

Written by: Glenn McLaurin; State Farm Youth Advisory Board Member, Mid-Atlantic Zone Representative

Every year, the 30 young leaders from across the U.S. and Canada who comprise the State Farm Youth Advisory Board (SFYAB) convene to discuss how to best promote school-based service-learning and empower students and teachers to conduct outstanding projects that create lasting change in their communities. The Youth Advisory Board does more than talk, however; with the support of the State Farm Companies Foundation, the Board coordinates a $5 million-a-year service-learning funding program, administering grants ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 to support community-based, youth-led service-learning initiatives.

State Farm’s innovative service-learning funding model empowers young leaders to support fellow young leaders. SFYAB members lead every step of the grant administration process, from designing and marketing the annual Request-for-Proposals to reviewing the grant applications and selecting the recipients. This opportunity for an intensive, hands-on approach to supporting high-quality, youth-led service-learning projects is a learning exercise for Board members as well. Members gain insight into the needs and challenges of communities across the U.S. and Canada, and are exposed to the creative, inspiring approaches employed by teachers, nonprofits, and young leaders to find sustainable solutions and reduce social ills.

The Youth Advisory Board funds projects that address a range of community issues. The funding targets for the 2009-2010 grant cycle were financial education, access to higher education/closing the achievement gap, teen driver safety, environmental responsibility, and natural and societal disaster preparedness. Across this range of topics, however, all the projects funded shared several key traits – the initiatives clearly embraced the tenants of service-learning, sought to achieve sustainable solutions through intensive community engagement, partnership building, and a critical analysis of the root causes of the issues they sought to address, and were led by, rather than simply involving, K-12 youth.

The youth-leadership element of the projects funded by the Board is one of the most valued aspects of the YAB’s mission to promote service-learning in schools and communities across the U.S. and Canada. The SFYAB does not just believe in the potential of youth to make a difference, it invests in the ability of young leaders to serve as agents of change.

Allowing young people to lead service-learning initiatives amplifies both the educational and service benefits of the experience. With greater responsibility and a more personal investment in the project, youth gain a better understanding of the root causes of the issues they plan to address, and remain more dedicated and committed to overseeing the successful implementation and sustainability of their initiatives. The State Farm Youth Advisory Board encourages greater youth participation and representation in community and education-oriented organizations and agencies – students will benefit from the opportunity to become more active in their communities and schools, while receptive institutions will gain not just from the passion and energy of youth, but from their creativity and insight as well.

Several organizations exist which promote youth leadership through service and innovative education programs. Youth-led service and service-learning opportunities are routinely funded through Youth Service America and its programs, including Global Youth Service Day, Get Ur Good On™, and Semester of Service. Students seeking to realize their leadership capacity through exploration of their passions would do well to participate in The Roadtrip Nation Experience, an innovative curriculum designed to inspire young people through participant-led interviews with successful athletes, entrepreneurs, and politicians. The SFYAB encourages educators and students alike to explore these resources, and engage in critical conversations about the contributions young people can make to their schools and communities through dedicated service and leadership.

The State Farm Youth Advisory Board is committed to supporting youth-led service-learning initiatives, and invests in the power of young people to create lasting change in their schools and communities. Opportunities for funding will be available on February 1, 2011 and can be found at www.sfyab.com.

What Service-Learning Means for Dropout Prevention

Guest Blog by: Marty Duckenfield, National Dropout Prevention Center

For nearly 20 years, the National Dropout Prevention Center has advocated service-learning as one of the most effective dropout prevention strategies. Many think students drop out due to academic failure, and this is true, as many do. Service-learning provides a way to learn that is engaging and meaningful for young people, and thus academic success follows naturally.

But there are other risk factors as significant as academic failure, and these have a huge impact on student dropout. Interestingly, service-learning meets the needs that are implicit in these risk factors: students who are disengaged with school, who don’t participate in extracurricular activities, who are involved with high risk peer groups, and who show patterns of misbehavior. There are students who don’t come to school since they don’t feel safe there. Many come from families that don’t value education, are unsupportive of the school. And many of these families are often dealing with challenging issues such as drug or alcohol abuse and frequent disruptions, such as moving or divorce.

By looking at these and other risk factors, we can readily see how participating in meaningful service-learning can provide the kinds of experiences that foster resilience and develop those characteristics in young people where they can overcome. And so, the National Dropout Prevention Center looked at all the research on resilience – what are the characteristics that young people have that enable them to succeed even when the odds are stacked against them?

Service-learning provides experiences that foster those characteristics of resilience; relationships, independence, competence, creativity, and optimism (RICCO). These characteristics, when enhanced through service-learning, have provided the edge young people need to help them become successful in school and in life.

There are no silver bullets in dropout prevention, but I have to say, service-learning comes pretty close!

Animal Tales: Inspiring Humane-Themed Service-Learning

Most educators know that students of all ages are often captivated by both stories and animals. Stories have been used since ancient times to awaken the imagination and impart community virtue by creating powerful visual images and connections with the characters. This connection takes the listener or reader to a new place. A place where it is OK to "try on the shoes" of another and contemplate new morals or actions. We can harness the power and passion inspired by both stories and animals to create humane-themed service-learning projects.

First, let’s examine exactly what encompasses humane education. Humane education includes animal welfare, environmental issues, and social justice. At the present we will be discussing the animal welfare aspect of humane education and how humane-themed realistic fiction can inspire service-learning in any academic subject area.

Buddy Unchained, the story of a dog who was rescued from a life chained outside and now lives with a loving family, is a perfect example of humane-themed realistic fiction. The reader gets to understand Buddy and his body language and see how he struggled to stay out of the weather, to have water to drink and food to eat, and to have companionship. Buddy is not anthropomorphized or personified; we get to see him as a sentient, companion animal in need of care. We get to relate to the idea of being cold, hungry, and lonely. And what makes the story perfect for inspiring service-learning is that by the end of the tale the reader is excited about Buddy finding a new home and the reader wants to help other dogs have the same outcome. This natural transition gives project ownership and a real voice to the students and lets them choose how they can share the message of responsible pet care in their communities. The academic and social-emotional skills used during the project act to reinforce multiple areas of intelligence and there are numerous activities that can be part of the service-learning work.

Examples:

• Create Public Service Announcements about why dogs should not be chained outside and air them on the school or local radio.
• Write letters to newspapers and legislators asking for anti-tethering laws and explaining why tethered dogs not only suffer from a lack of care, but also why it endangers the community.
• Create a presentation or puppet show about proper pet care that older students can perform for younger students.

There are many ways you can create a community partnership with an animal welfare group who can help with or benefit from projects. Contact local shelters, wildlife conservation groups and rehabbers, environmental organizations, and national animal welfare organizations to find out their needs and how they can be part of your service-learning project.

If you would like to incorporate humane-themed literature into your service-learning work, a great place to find book titles is http://www.humanesocietyyouth.org/awards/best_books.asp. You can obtain free service-learning projects and ideas at http://www.humanesociety.org/parents_educators/mission/ and http://www.humaneteen.org/?q=node/694.

To learn more about this powerful teaching tool, please email youth@humanesociety.org with the subject line “Stories and Service-Learning.”

Why We Want Your Story!

Written by: Learn and Serve – Michigan Team

You may notice it seems like everyone wants your story. From the Corporation of National Community Service to NPR to here at Learn and Serve – Michigan, people are begging to hear your story. Why? Because stories are powerful! They can teach us, empower us, and change our minds. They connect people to the mission and vision of an organization. Your stories are some of the best resources an organization can have!

We have heard people tell us again and again they don’t have a good story to share. That can’t possibly be true! The truth is we are all have stories, but probably share them in different ways. A story, like a piece of art, is simply a product of our experience, hopes, and ideas. The building blocks can be found in anyone. Perhaps some of us have more technical skill to document them, but all of us have the ability to produce them. We all have stories to share; it is just getting ourselves to find the right words and the courage to share them that is the trouble.

We all have stories that define us. We just have to bring them out. One way to do that is to answer the question “Why do you do what you do?” In fact there is a worldwide art project [http://www.wdydwyd.com/] to answer the simple question “why do you do what you do?” The project combines an image and text in a creative way. It can be a great way to help you find your story. Take out a piece of paper and free write for five minutes on Why you do what you do. At the end of it see what comes up. You might just find the beginnings of a great story.

Once you have a story, consider your main message. What is your message? For instance in our message about the Michigan Community Service Commission [http://michiganslyc.blogspot.com/2009/12/michigan-needs-recruits.html] the message was “Service is the solution to move Michigan forward.” So what is your message? Is it “Youth should have a voice in the community?” Is it “Service-learning can reach children currently being left behind in the classroom?” What do you want to tell us?

Everyone wants your story and you should want to tell it to them! A good story can help you get funding, support from key stakeholders, and new volunteers. So develop your stories and once you do tell us so we can get them out there!

If you have a good story to share about service-learning or youth service, email it to Angelia Salas at salasa@michigan.gov.

Grand Blanc’s Native Garden

Written by: Learn and Serve – Michigan Team

Grand Blanc Community Schools do a lot of partnering between schools for their service-learning projects, so it came as no surprise when the elementary school and the high school decided to partner to build a native Michigan garden.

Elementary students helped with the garden by learning each plant had a particular purpose. They talked about the garden in their history classes and discussed what plants were used for what in relation to different time periods.

The elementary school and high school students then came together for a solar picnic to celebrate the environment and to share what they had learned. They intended to cook hot dogs with a solar cooker but subsequently learned that solar cookers take a while to cook food!

The garden is an ongoing service-learning experience that can be used year after year to teach students about Michigan and the environment we live in. Asa result, students have a sense of pride and ownership. They are willing to share with the Grand Blanc school board and the local community everything they have learned in relation to working with plants and working with their peers and other students.

Going green is so important. Michigan is focused on green initiatives and green jobs. It is in the forefront of our education. Recently, the state has taken on a leadership role in the field and around the state there are more and more service-learning projects involving the environment, solar energy, and the green movement.

Service-learning is great at incorporating real-world relevance into academics. It builds relationships and takes the classroom out of the school and puts it into the community.

Hear the story of Grand Blanc Community School’s Native Garden below:

Learn and Serve Challenge

Written by: Learn and Serve – Michigan Team

Learn and Serve Challenge [http://www.learnandservechallenge.org] is here! This week the Learn and Serve – Michigan team is giving you three ways you can celebrate Learn and Serve Challenge.

1. 1. Present to Your School Board

Your school board can be an important ally for your service-learning program. Present to your school board and show them the power of service-learning to increase academic achievement and strengthen school and community bonds.

Before any presentation it is important to know your audience. Luckily there are good resources out there that can help you develop your presentation. Take a look at this guide: http://nslp.convio.net/site/DocServer/TalkItUp09.pdf?docID=182 on how to make your school board your ally. Here is an excerpt:

“Because today’s school boards are focused on standards, testing, and accountability, advocates have to convince them that service-learning is an important vehicle for achieving both district and wider social goals.”

Show your school board research that service-learning can help increase academic achievement, attendance rates, and other important indicators. The National Service-Learning Clearinghouse has great fact sheet [http://www.servicelearning.org/instant_info/fact_sheets/k-12_facts/impacts] compiling the research on service-learning. Once you are ready to create your presentation they have a guide for presenting to school boards [http://www.servicelearning.org/filemanager/download/bll_tipsheets/Present_SL_to_your_School_Board_or_at_Another_Public_Meeting.pdf] as well.

1. Engage Your Local Media

Let your community know about the good work your school is doing. There are a lot of resources out there that will help you tell your service-learning story and build relationships with the media.

Perhaps the best resource is Sharing Your National Service Story [http://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/Media_Guide.pdf]. This guide walks you through how to build relationships with reporters, draft press releases, deal with different mediums, and more.

1. Use Social Media to Promote Service-Learning

This week Learn and Serve – Michigan is celebrating Learn and Serve Challenge online. We’re using Twitter, Facebook, and this blog to get the message out. You can do that for your school as well.

Social media is a free way to promote your service-learning efforts but you need marketing know-how to make a splash. Take a crash course in promotion with the National Service-Learning Clearinghouse’s guide to Marketing 101: Using Social Media and Web 2.0 to Highlight Your Program [http://www.servicelearning.org/instant_info/marketing_101].

Learn and Serve Challenge is a great week to go out and show the world the great things you are doing in your service-learning programs. You don’t have to exhaust yourself with planning ambitious events and programs. Just choose one thing to do to help promote service-learning this week.

Speak Out for Understanding

Written by: Maureen Charron-Shea, speech-language pathologist in South Duxbury, Vermont

A few years ago, my friend Maura told me a story. That story planted a seed that changed my life.

Maura, whose son has Down syndrome, told me how heartbreaking it is when she hears the word “retard” used as a putdown. I thought about that and I knew things had to change. Around the same time, I discovered service-learning, an instructional approach through which students research and address real issues by applying skills and knowledge from their school curriculum. This approach enables students of varying abilities to work and learn together in meaningful contexts. It also gives students’ learning relevance. So, I gathered a group of high school students and asked:

• What if students with disabilities told their stories?
• Would they be treated differently?
• Would they be better understood?

The students decided to create a film to raise awareness about the challenges facing individuals with disabilities. The result was an award-winning documentary titled Speak Out for Understanding.

The film centers on four students who told their own stories for the purpose of bringing about change. It explains their challenges as students identified with Attention Deficit Disorder, Dyslexia, Down syndrome, and other disabilities. Problems with discrimination, stereotyping, difficulty learning, and social isolation are brought to light and students suggest actions to overcome these challenges.

Speak Out has been credited with starting a movement at our high school. Students are writing books, creating another documentary, composing rap music, and sharing their stories publicly and with pride. Thank goodness times have changed!

Disability awareness has now become my passion. My hope is for this project to be replicated to benefit and empower others. I see Speak Out as more than a learning experience and using communication skills to raise awareness. It’s about citizenship and engaging our community in meaningful dialogue. It’s about advocacy and speaking out for yourself and others. It’s about social justice and promoting a culture of tolerance and equity. Yet, at its heart, Speak Out for Understanding is about the power of individual stories to bring about change.

Maureen Charron-Shea, MS, CCC-SLP, speech-language pathologist at Harwood Union Middle/High School in South Duxbury, Vermont; and her students, winners of the 2009 State Farm National Service-Learning Excellence Award, have presented around New England, at the National Service-Learning Conference, and received awards and accolades for their creative service-learning work. For more information or to obtain a copy of Speak out for Understanding, check out:

http://speakoutforunderstanding.pbwiki.com/ 

http://www.tolerance.org/magazine/number-36-fall-2009/speak-out-understanding 

Email: charronm@harwood.org

I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends

Written by: Pamela Gent, Author of Using Service–Learning and Differentiated Instruction to Help Your Students Succeed

The Beatles sang, “How do I feel by the end of the day? Are you sad because you're on your own? No, I get by with a little help from my friends.”

At the end of the day, many students with disabilities are sad because they are alone. We all know of the benefits of service-learning in terms of academics, school attendance, and development of character traits. What we often don’t think about is that service-learning can help develop friendships. Developing friendships in school is critical for students with disabilities. Research shows many students with disabilities have no friends and are often rejected by their peers in school and, as a result, grow up to experience profound, soul crushing loneliness as adults. While we can’t make students befriend students with disabilities, we can make the situation ripe for the development of friendships by using inclusive service-learning where students without and with disabilities work together in service.

Experts tell us friendships are more likely to develop when students see each other as competent and similar, when they are in proximity to each other, when opportunities exist for continued interaction, and when appropriate supports are in place. Students without disabilities may have done a lot of helping of students with disabilities. This “helper/helpee” relationship unfortunately reinforces the idea that students with disabilities are not competent.

By jointly carrying out the same service, students without disabilities begin to see the abilities of the person with disabilities and the perception of competence is enhanced. By jointly carrying out the same service, students with and without disabilities have opportunities for sustained interaction and conversation. This, in turn, can help students see how they are similar. By using the support of structured reflection, students can see how they share many of the same feelings.

Inclusive service-learning doesn’t guarantee friendships will develop, but it does greatly increase the opportunities for the friendship seed to be planted. If we continue to use inclusive service-learning where students with and without disabilities share equally in the service, we can literally change the life stories of people with disabilities. Instead of lives overwhelmed by profound loneliness, people with disabilities will be able to say, “I get by with a little help from my friends.”

Inside the Outdoors

Written by: Kim Casey, Orange County Department of Education

Early in my junior year of high school, I tentatively raised my hand to become project leader for a service-learning project. The project was vaguely described to me in less than two minutes by representatives of an environmental education and service group, Inside the Outdoors as “essentially creating scavenger hunts in local parks.”

My high school, Sage Hill School, has melded service-learning into school curriculum and has students partake in projects ranging from cleaning up local beaches to avocado gleaning. Determined to find a project I would be passionate about, I jumped at the chance to do something with the outdoors. Four other students joined me and, along with our faculty advisor, we began with no idea where our efforts would lead us as this project was far more elaborate than simply picking up trash or packing food into boxes. Almost two years later, NSI (Nature Scene Investigators) has blossomed into a program that has been implemented in 11 Orange County, California parks and is complete with guide books, rubbing posts, a website, and prizes. (http://www.getoutdoorsoc.com/nsi.php)

The project’s success is due to a number of factors. It was created in collaboration with many other groups like Orange County Parks; the Orange County Health Agency; Orange County Libraries; the Latino Health Access; Friends of Harbors, Beaches, and Parks; and REI. The ability to harness all these different groups’ help was instrumental.

Orange County (unbeknownst to many who only know of the area in context of shows like ‘The OC’) is home to great and diverse parks with the potential to be used as locations for fun family activities. The balance our small group of dedicated students possessed really played a big part in our success. We had a strong, effective group dynamic and the right combination of people with various talents, including public speaking and art.

Being involved in the development of this program from day one has been an incredibly gratifying experience and taught me valuable lessons of how the real world functions. Coordinating efforts between private and public groups gave me great insight into bureaucracy and how nonprofits and government agencies function. Previous service-learning projects I had been involved in had obvious service components but always left me questioning whether I had actually learned anything from the experience. This project proved very educational and at times left me feeling like I was gaining more from the project than what I was putting in.

The most important lesson I learned is the key to any project’s success – in service, business, or anything else – is passion about what you are doing and willingness to see the project through to success.

Surfing AND Serving

Written by: Andrea Yoder Clark, Program Manager of SurfAid International U.S. Schools

SurfAid International is a nonprofit, humanitarian organization, whose mission is to improve the health, well being, and self-reliance of people living in isolated communities connected to us through surfing.

In 1999, physician and surfer Dr. Dave Jenkins went on a surf charter to the Mentawai Islands with one goal in mind: to find perfect waves. The surf was everything he hoped for, but he also found the Mentawai people dying from the ravages of malaria and other preventable diseases. Dr. Jenkins was unable to walk away. It was a defining life moment. He sought support from Dr. Steve Hathaway, an epidemiologist friend, and in January 2000 they co-founded SurfAid International.

Today, SurfAid develops health projects that enhance local capacities and promotes community-based self-help solutions, guided by the aspirations of its beneficiaries. SurfAid believes development should be sustainable; encompassing the social, spiritual, cultural, and economic well being of its beneficiaries.

SurfAid's primary programs include the Malaria Free Mentawai program, the Community Based Health program, and the Emergency Preparedness program.

Prior to SurfAid, malaria control and treatment in the Mentawais was virtually nonexistent. In 2001, SurfAid began piloting the Malaria Control Project in one village. By 2004, SurfAid had expanded the project to more than 13,200 people in 17 villages led by 24 local field workers. Today, SurfAid's Malaria Control Project has resulted in a 90 percent reduction in malaria-related death and suffering in target areas.

Now schools can get involved in these important efforts through the SurfAid Schools Program. This program offers service-learning opportunities for schools through free online curriculum targeting teachers in grades fourth through 12^th. This curriculum uses SurfAid International as a case study for examining global health issues and integrates service-learning with global issues such as malaria, environmental education, and global citizenship.

The best part is the curriculum is available for free! For more information contact the SurfAid International US Schools Program Manager, Andrea Yoder Clark at andrea@surfaidinternational.org. Or visit the SurfAid Schools Program website at http://schools.surfaidinternational.org.

Seeds for Change

Written by: Kathrine Levensailor, Inside the Outdoors

In November 2008, the Freeway Complex Fire burned 30,305 acres of land between Corona and Brea, California. More than 350 structures were destroyed, including buildings at Brea Canyon High School. As a result of the fire, both Brea Canyon and Brea Olinda High School campuses lost all their landscaping. It was the goal of the school administrators and 50 members of the Friends for Change Club at Brea Olinda High School to restore the schools’ landscaping with California native plants. But there was only one problem: where would they get the 4,000 plants needed to complete the restoration project?

Less than a year later, more than 4,000 native California plant seeds were being planted by VoluntEARS at Disney’s D23 Expo. During this Disney Fan Convention, thousands of VoluntEARS worked with Inside the Outdoors, a program administered by the Orange County Department of Education, to get the planting done. Disney donated more than $2,000 to provide the seeds and planting materials. The intent was to use some of these plants for a teaching garden for Inside the Outdoors while the remaining plants would go to local schools to introduce students to native plants and their role in the local ecosystem.

Shortly after the event, The Friends for Change Club at Brea Olinda High School contacted Inside the Outdoors as a result of a newspaper article about the D23 Expo and VoluntEAR project. The club members wanted to develop a student-led service-learning project to restore a portion of the Brea Olinda and Brea Canyon High School campuses. The timing could not have been better! The students’ idea for the restoration project matched the mission of Inside the Outdoors. The project would create awareness and knowledge about the environment and give the community a chance to put the knowledge into action. Working with Inside the Outdoors, the connections were made once again with Disney.

Once Disney heard about the club’s goal they jumped on board as a partner to support and facilitate this large scale restoration project. On March 28, 2010, more than 100 volunteers, including Disney VoluntEARS, came together to work on this project. The event was put on with the support of the Brea Olinda High School Friends for Change Club, Inside the Outdoors, Disney’s Friends for Change: Project Green, Disney VoluntEARS, Village Nurseries, Tree of Life Nursery, and California Native Plant Society.

Even Nicole Anderson from Disney’s “JONAS” came out to get these plants in the ground!

Approximately 2,000 plants that had started out as seedlings at the D23 event were planted on the once burnt hillside. Looking at the hillside, there is no doubt these plants are where they were meant to be. Inside the Outdoors is currently working with the Brea Olinda High School Friends for Change Club’s presidents: Lauren Kelley, Andrew Daedler, and Jacqueline Cortes to finish planting the remaining 2,000 plants. The work of these students is inspirational and sets a high standard for future service-learning projects.

When Students See a “Call to Action”

Written by: Learn and Serve – Michigan Team

Three years ago the community of Inland Lakes was not recycling. Other communities were but Inland Lakes had opted out. But the town was holding a vote to discuss this, and the students of the community saw this as the perfect call to action.

As a result, the students started to recycle in their school. They handed out signs and cookies and attended the meeting. They put up signs in their schools. They raised awareness about the impact recycling could have on their community.

When the township board voted it was passed overwhelmingly – thanks in part to the work of the Inland Lakes students. But their work was not done yet! Now they have to get people to use the system. They encourage their parents to recycle and teach their peers about the value and importance. As a result of their work Inlands Lake is now recycling.

Service-learning brings kids’ studies home and it makes it real. Even the students who have trouble engaging on a day to day basis do better when they’re getting hands-on learning. The students of Inland Lakes learned they could make a real difference and that inspired them to take action.

Hear the story of Inland Lakes’ Recycling Project:

A History of Service-Learning

Written by: Julia Sewell

At seven years old, I was introduced into a world that has now become my source of light, passion and inspiration. Service-Learning entered my life at an early age, when I began to see the many issues that affected my inner city community of north Minneapolis, Minnesota. I noticed the disparities that existed among our inner city youth. I began to volunteer my time and my service and realized these actions were the things that made my heart throb and pump.

Following my heart, I began making lunches for the homeless, volunteering at soup kitchens, and then began writing and performing poetry on these issues and reading about the issues my community faced. From here, I was invited to attend the National Youth Leadership Training in Sandstone, Minnesota, at the age of 14. This training is held every year by the National Youth Leadership Council and is designed to bring the top youth leaders together for a week-long training on youth leadership, service-learning, and prominent social issues. At this camp, I learned the true meanings of service-learning and how I, as a young agent of change, could fully and effectively utilize it.

After attending this training, doors began to open up nationally and internationally. I became involved in an international leadership program called Youth Leaders International (YLI). This program brought together top leaders from across the world to delve into creating effective youth leadership strategies in our home countries. I represented the U.S. and was able to travel to France and Great Britain to discuss major social change and leadership issues with my counterparts. Following this, I was selected to be on the National Youth Leadership Council's Youth Advisory Board, the State Farm Youth Advisory Board, as well as the Youth Partnership Team for America's Promise Alliance. Through my participation with these boards, I had the opportunity to assist in granting $5 million to service-learning projects across the U.S. and Canada, I was able to travel and perform at service-learning conferences, and acted as a consultant to major national organizations. All of this was done before I was 18-years-old. I had found, at a young age, my passion. Working with and for young people was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

At the age of 15, I began motivational speaking and spoken word performing. Through this endeavor, I have traveled the globe, giving engaging and life-changing presentations on a variety of topics (i.e. poverty, service-learning, educational reform, domestic abuse, youth voice). I recently started my own not-for-profit, E.M.P.I.R.E., which is an organization that allows young people from around the country to use their voice and arts as a motivation to their own communities.

Service-learning, to me, is the examining of the issues that affects one's community and then creating a youth led project to address these particular issues. Service-learning has truly transformed my life because it has helped me to realize my specific art and how I can utilize it to truly navigate and more so motivate local, national, and international change.

I am now a 22-year-old college graduate of Augsburg College. I am currently doing a year of service in Detroit through the City Year program. Following this, I have plans to do research on resilience in Jamaica through the Fulbright Program and then to pursue my speaking, performing and training full time. Long term, I have plans to obtain my PhD in educational psychology and urban schooling.

For more information about the work that I do or the services I provide, please feel free to look at my following websites: www.sewellspeaks.com or www.empireproductions.org.

See Julia Sewell’s work below:

Also, for more information about service-learning and available projects including this, please check out www.nylc.org.

Community Records – A community partner with a beat

Written by: Justin Fenwick, CRL3C

As a community partner, we are eager to work with service-learning programs. Community Records L3C (CRL3C) focuses on building communities through music. The built-in learning goals of a service-learning program fit well into the educational outcomes and connections to community issues we strive to make while taking individuals through the creative process.

Our Healthy Habitats project with the Willow Run School system through Learn and Serve - Bright Futures was a prime example. Our project involved Elementary, Middle, and High School students. (This includes gifted students, advanced placed students along with regular education students). The goal was to help the students develop awareness that they can impact the community and environment around them.

By focusing on a creek in the Huron River Watershed, the students investigated to find out what was needed to make it "healthy," including a process of taking water samples. CRL3C helped the students put music to their learning. By encouraging students to use their creativity in music, they begin to develop the internal power and skills needed to change the world. This works well with any issue that is tangible to a student, like the rivers in their own back yard. Music and songwriting provides a creative process that allows youth to better express themselves and learn from the project at hand.

“Creativity is more than a component of coping; it is a facet of our inner selves that enables us to develop perspective & flexibility, both of which help us to be more resilient. As I have watched my children grow, I have seen first-hand how creative expression can give kids a voice to articulate their emotions as well as a way to lose themselves in the act of creation.”

- Kenneth Ginsburg, MD from Building Resilience in Children & Teens
(American Academy of Pediatrics, 2006)

The ability to collectively write, record, and share music pairs responsibility and learning with fun.

CRL3C has partnered on other service-learning projects; including topics of community gardening and the respect of animals. We use music as a tool to better reach youth and give them voice into a community, often for the first time.

CRL3C is a social mission organization that builds local community, inspiring and creating relationships by bringing together diverse populations through collaborative participation in music & music education. This includes songwriting and music production, artistic collaborations, supporting local music, consulting using the creative process, and a deep commitment to community involvement and events. We create relationships with people, organizations, and communities to produce creative solutions to social barriers using art. We promote positivity in music workshops, producing music that is suitable for young people and families.

"We support you creating the most beautiful image of your world."

CRL3C can be reached at (734) 213-2733 or info@crl3c.org.

Grand Blanc Poetry Garden

By: Learn and Serve – Michigan Team

Situated between the upper and lower elementary was a plain patch of grass. Well…sometimes there wasn’t even grass. The students and teachers at the elementary schools wanted to turn the space into a place their community would want to spend time in, but the right idea hadn’t been proposed. While attending a professional development on service-learning one of the teachers hatched an idea. The plain patch of grass could be a poetry garden and it could be integrated it into their literature curriculum!

Today the garden is thriving and features trees, benches, and podiums where the children’s poetry is displayed. It has become a place of inspiration. They have a strong sense of pride and ownership of the garden. Their strong connection with the garden remains long after they have moved on to middle school and compels them to keep coming back to see how their garden grows. It holds memories for them and pride that their poetry was recognized in such a powerful way.

An authentic audience is always a motivating force for learning. It gives them relevance for their writing exercises. They know their poetry can have an effect on the world outside of the classroom. The poetry garden has become a place of creativity. They have turned a patch of grass into a wonderful learning environment.

You can hear the story of Grand Blanc Community School’s Poetry Garden below:

Read about additional service-learning projects at Grand Blanc – including their Michigan Native Garden – in the Michigan Community Service Commission’s December 2009 e-newsletter: http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs090/1102444973205/archive/1102849297554.html.

H2O for Life – We have a project for YOU!

By: Patty Hall, Executive Director of H20 for Life

H2O for Life, a United States based nonprofit, provides service-learning opportunities for schools, service clubs, and church groups to partner with schools around the world that are in need of WASH in Schools projects (water, sanitation, and hygiene education).  Schools select a global school partner from a list generated by our non-governmental implementing organizations and begin studying the issues surrounding the clean water crisis. With the help of our NGO’s, we are able to share photos and a WASH project summary to our U.S. school partners. Students are able to experience a global connection through photos, and we also provide the opportunity for students to communicate through pen-pal letters.

H2O for Life provides curricular resources and ideas for teachers to raise awareness about the global clean water crisis, and also provides a variety of engaging fund-raising activities. Students not only research and study the issues prevalent in developing countries around the world; but also study issues we are facing in the United States. Conservation and good stewardship of the earth’s resources are very important issues addressed through our school connections. Perhaps the most exciting part of our project is the creativity we see from every individual school. With more than 160 schools participating with us this year, all are providing unique learning experiences.

Once U.S. students have investigated issues surrounding water, they ramp into action to raise funds to help provide a WASH in Schools project for their partner school. Our NGOs have generously agreed to find donors to fund half the project costs while H2O for Life Schools provide the rest of the funds. Project costs include “sweat equity” provided by the local community, and ALL projects are planned with in-put from the local community. Use of appropriate technology, sustainability, and local “ownership” are priority goals.

Teacher Celina McGee, from River Road Middle School in North Carolina, has the following to say:

“In our rapidly changing world, it is more important than ever for students to become globally aware and socially responsible citizens. Our students have increased their compassion for others and recognize THEY can, and have, made a difference. We are so very proud of them.”

Her students raised $2,450 for Sipili School in Kenya. Another U.S. School, Skyview Middle School in Colorado, also raised funds for Sipili, contributing another $2,400; while Wisconsin Middle Schools filled in the gap with a contribution of $2,100. Schools working together can raise a significant amount of funds!

Students plan and implement a variety of fund-raising events to raise money. The Principia in St. Louis, Missouri held a talent show complete with singing, dancing, and comedy. They single handedly raised $6,950! Teacher Bob Yeates summed up their project with the following comment:

“We love that the day our water project is operational, we start saving babies’ lives, we keep young girls in school, and personal hygiene will become a reality. This project is a ‘real-time’ project. It is living in the ‘now’.”

A consortium of schools in Wisconsin banded together and raised more than $11,000 for water. Some schools held “Drop in the Bucket” days, where students brought in coins. Many students walked miles carrying water to experience what their partner school students must do daily. It was a learning experience for all, and their efforts will make a big difference in the lives of students at recipient schools.

The First Presbyterian Church’s Junior and Senior Youth groups in Newton, Kansas, also raised $6,950 for Ndururi School in Kenya. Following a PowerPoint presentation given by the youth, the group sent home an empty water bottle with each member of the congregation. The label on the bottle explained their project and challenged each person to drop a nickel in the bottle each time they used water – washing hands, flushing the toilet, washing clothes, etc. This continued for six weeks! A lot of money was raised, but they also raised the awareness about the amount of water being used. The bottles were returned on “World Toilet Day,” November 19, which was celebrated with a festive meal and games. The games all focused on water and sanitation. For example:

· Throwing a roll of toilet paper through a toilet seat hanging from the ceiling.

· Guessing the distance to the nearest bathroom, as measured by the number of squares of toilet paper needed.

· Decorating a toilet seat.

The room was decorated with toilet paper streamers and centerpiece stacks of toilet paper that held facts about sanitation. A local plumber donated a new Kohler water efficient toilet that was used as an auction item. It was a very successful event.

The students continued to host a church dinner every month that had a theme – with proceeds supporting their WASH project. Students were engaged with the project, and worked hard to raise all the funds needed for Ndururi School. Youth Advisor, Michelle Coffman, relayed:

“The experience was a good one, not just for the youth, but for a sleepy congregation who needed to perk up and support a cause!”

The mission of H2O for Life is two-fold and both missions are extremely important. Educating the youth in the United States about the water crisis, and providing them with the opportunity to take action and make a difference is something we know will change their lives! We also know that by helping to provide WASH in Schools projects around the world, we are helping to provide opportunities for students in developing countries to have access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene education that will change their lives as well. Water = Peace, and we hope this generation of children will make that happen! H2O for Life is proud to partner with reliable NGOs and all of our schools, groups, and individual donors in their efforts to provide safe drinking water, sanitation, and hand-washing facilities at schools. We hope to continue our joint efforts to allow ALL children access to a clean drink of water!

For more information, visit: http://www.h2oforlifeschools.org/.

Learn and Serve – Michigan’s Resource Blog Author Wins National Award

By: Robyn Stegman, Learn and Serve – Michigan AmeriCorps*VISTA

As I’ve said before, helping with this blog has been one of my favorite parts of my service year. I get to hear so many great stories, ideas, and models of service-learning. So it is my great pleasure to share that June 23’s guest blogger, Janis Klein-Young, won the 2010 Learn and Serve Spirit of Service Award, a national award given to one exemplary Learn and Serve grantee each year. I was in attendance at the “It’s Up To You” Awards Ceremony where the award was given as part of the 2010 National Conference on Volunteering and Service. I was so excited to see this amazing woman get the recognition she deserves.

Janis Klein-Young has taught for 30 years and has built the amazing program at MacArthur South where 98 percent of the students have juvenile justice records. During the awards ceremony they shared the amazing success of her service-learning program. Over time, school attendance of participating students has rose 15 percent. Their GPAs have gone from an average of 1.02 in 2008 to 2.57 in 2009. This past academic year approximately 90 percent of participating 12 graders graduated an unheard of percent for this population.

“Being needed by others helps these young people understand they do have a purpose,” said Philippe Cousteau when he presented the award.

Janis Klein-Young proves the power of service-learning is not just that it can engage students and empower them to reach new heights of academic achievement, but it can also grow them as a person and change their lives for ever. It is a powerful story and I am happy to see it receive national attention.

“Without service-learning my students would become victims of their past. Instead they become victors of their future,” Janis Klein-Young said. Her story proves the life-altering effects of service-learning on some of our country’s most disadvantaged students.

You can watch the entire “It’s Up To You” event and awards ceremony at: http://www.volunteeringandservice.org/.

MacArthur South – A Service-Learning Academy

By: Janis Klein-Young, MacArthur South & Robyn Stegman, Learn and Serve – Michigan AmeriCorps*VISTA

Recently I came across an amazing school in Florida: MacArthur South, an alternative school and service-learning academy. Many of the students of MacArthur South have committed serious criminal offences such as fighting, substance abuse, gang activity, and truancy. They enter the school impulsive, aggressive, and hostile with failing test scores and serious attendance problems.

MacArthur South is located in Homestead, Florida, a community that has seen many troubles. The youth of Homestead make up for 75 percent of the crime rate, a result of their struggle with substance abuse and gang violence. Sixty percent of students drop out of Homestead’s schools, which ranks far below others in academic performance.

In 2005 MacArthur South was selected to totally restructure its curriculum under the districts “Secondary School Reform” initiative. The school decided to expand their pre-developed arts-based service-learning program and transform the entire school into an alternative high school emphasizing service-learning.

In one program students attend weekly workshops with local artists-in-residence who teach them South and Central American indigenous art techniques. They learn sculpting, painting, quilting, pottery, and more. These students become responsible for keeping these dying art forms alive.

The students revitalize their community with these skills. Their artwork is used to revitalize their abandoned downtown district. The body of work of these young people reflects profound statements about social change, legacy, and cultural enrichment. Their work has become a catalyst for Homestead’s resurgence. It has stimulated tourism, employment opportunities, and economic development.

Throughout the year these students teach these vanishing techniques, as well as create their own original artworks that inspire others to pick up these art forms. The students conduct workshops in homeless shelters, special education schools, hospitals, and assisted living facilities to help people with brain injuries, mental illness, and disabilities.

Other MacArthur South classes also work with local partners. Spanish classes read a local Hispanic newspaper to the elderly. The Language Arts classes read books to the local individuals and interview and help write their biographies to share in the school newspaper. The culinary arts class has opened an intergenerational café after being trained by a nationalist to provide age-appropriate food to the elderly. Science classes raised a travelling amphibian petting zoo to bring to each center. Math classes plan and sew quilts, build kites, and play interactive math games designed and built by the woodshop class. Physical education students conduct adaptive exercise classes for immobilized partners at the park. Horticulture students plant a campus butterfly garden. Art students have constructed a ceramic butterfly mural alongside the garden where all students can spend time reflecting in their service-learning personal diaries.

The students integrate lessons learned with art into lessons learned at school. The student’s have been shown to have higher grades, better test scores, and improved behavior. A fewer number of students in this program drop out. These students are changing the way the community perceives its youth by changing the way they see themselves.

Rethinking the Process of Qualifying Service-Learning Partner Sites

By: Gary Kosman, Founder & CEO of America Learns

My friend Andrea is a high-powered, super smart lawyer and do-gooder in Los Angeles who cringes at the idea of working for a small, community-based nonprofit.

When Andrea was engaged in service-learning, the site where she was placed provided her with an incredibly exciting project that was supposedly going to add a ton of value to the organization. While Andrea’s supervisor loved Andrea’s deliverables and while Andrea’s professor awarded her with an “A” for her service, the project Andrea spent countless hours on was never actually used at her organization. Why, thought Andrea, should I spend my time somewhere when the organization doesn’t have the capacity or formal plans to implement the “really important project” they asked me to work on?

This experience led her to steer clear of the idea of working for a community-based organization.

The Problem Doesn’t Stop with Andrea
Last year; a university approached America Learns with a problem: its students were living Andrea’s service-learning experience. Students were being placed in nonprofits, completing supposedly important projects (databases, implementation plans for special initiatives), and then finding that while their projects received rave reviews, their host sites never asked themselves, “Do we really have the capacity to implement what these students create for us?” Nor did they ask, “What steps are we going to take to ensure the projects these people work on will truly help us to realize our mission while giving our those in service-learning a meaningful experience?”

The Host Site Qualifying Process
After listening to the concerns of the university, we spent some time creating this document. Here’s what happens when this document is used:

1. The host organization confirms, even pledges, the project the service learners will work on has real value for the organization. By doing this, we take steps to ensure those involved in service-learning walk away from their experience with the knowledge they really made a difference, hopefully inspiring them to continue making a difference in their community.

2. We try to make sure the host site has the student’s interests in mind. We ask the organization to clearly define the purpose and intended outcomes of the experience for those in service-learning, not just for the organization.

3. The host organization holds one person accountable for the project being successful, both for the organization and for the student. The organization identifies the one employee who will be held accountable for the student receiving everything that’s needed to achieve the project-based and student-focused outcomes described earlier in the application. By holding one person accountable in advance for the student’s success, we make sure the organization itself is not only held responsible for its commitments to the student, but that there’s a single face, a real person, that teachers and professors can hold accountable for how the student is treated on-site. Setting up group meetings or calls to figure out “what happened” should problems arise shouldn’t be necessary.

4. The organization states up front that it has already developed a plan to implement the student’s project (so long as it meets expectations and other variables affecting the organization have not changed). The organization actually submits that implementation plan as a part of the application, and also lists any factors that may hinder the project’s implementation.

This qualifying process would obviously need to be modified for non-project based service experiences (e.g., providing tutoring or mentoring services), but we encourage the organizations we serve to qualify their partners in a similar way by:

· Making sure a student’s service has the potential to deliver real value to the organization;

· Making sure the organization has the capacity to really benefit from the student’s service and has created a plan to really benefit from the student’s service; and

· Making sure the organization’s team members are committed to ensuring that the student truly benefits from the service experience.

Bonus!
Once you have this document, you also have clear criteria that can be used to evaluate the project’s impact.

Technology Integration in 21st Century Service-Learning

By: Heather Wells

“Education is the foundation of our democracy -- the stepping-stones for our youth to reach their full potential.”
- George Lucas

It may not be an obvious fit for some, but technology integration and service-learning go hand in hand. Both capitalize on the 21^st Century Skills our students need to reach their potential to individually grow, socially develop, and create a better world.

At this year’s National Service Learning Conference there were clear examples of how students were embedding technology into their service-learning projects. Pioneer High School was one of the leading schools for utilizing technology and social media. As part of the onsite service-learning projects they promoted a mobile phone application to students and the conference community called Cause World that allows people to log “Karma Points” when visiting participating businesses. The points are then converted to dollars backed by corporate sponsors Citi, Kraft, and Proctor & Gamble the user can donate to charitable organizations, such as Carbonfund.org. This is just one example of how one technology tool can be used for service but it has the potential to go much deeper then that.

When thinking about technology integration, educators must think about changing the way they teach. The George Lucas Education Foundation, Edutopia, has some great resources to begin rethinking the process. Project Based Learning (PBL) is just one area Edutopia supports and provides one way for creating a richer experience for students. PBL offers the opportunity for educators to create lessons that are hands on and relevant to the students’ lives. Both technology integration and service learning are key components to successful PBL. Where traditional education is often irrelevant, applying both Service-Learning and Technology Integration gives students the 21^st Century Skills they need to be successful in the future economy.

There are many technology-enhanced, service-learning opportunities out there. Two projects that utilize h.323 videoconferencing are Alex’s Virtual Lemonade Stand and Stand up. Speak Out. Lend a Hand! These projects are coordinated by the Mid-Atlantic Gigapop in Philadelphia for Internet2 (MAGPI) and open to all schools that have h.323 equipment.

Global Kids is another fantastic organization that has some great tools and offerings for using technology with service-learning. They are on the cutting edge for the tools they integrate and are proponents for video game development that approaches global situations differently and with depth that engages students to creatively solve problems.

Other popular social media tools such as Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Flickr all are great for communicating and sharing resources. They are popular tools and utilizing them will get the word out to a larger community at a faster pace. There is a plethora of tools out there; it can be daunting to try to tackle all of the information at once. My advice to teachers just starting and considering the use of technology is to start with one tool for one purpose. And remember that your greatest resource for learning is your students – and also remember that all of this will not just go away, technology is here to stay.

Engaging Families in Service-Learning

By: Jenny Friedman, Executive Director of Doing Good Together

Horace Mann was an educational reformer, so it’s not surprising the school in St. Paul, Minnesota that bears his name is leading the way on school wide community involvement. Working with Doing Good Together (www.doinggoodtogether.org), a nonprofit I began in 2004 to encourage family service, Horace Mann Elementary created a Family Service Committee charged with organizing events and providing resources to enhance service-learning efforts, build school community, and support local nonprofits.

The school’s annual winter Family Service Night, for example, consists of six to eight “stations” scattered around the building where families can work on a service project together, such as making sandwiches for a local shelter or creating blankets for a local hospital. Each station is stocked with materials to enrich the experience – including talking points to jumpstart family conversations, children’s books on issues like homelessness, and suggestions for other community volunteer projects to delve into.

The Horace Mann program is just one example of how parents and families can be a valuable component in a school’s service-learning efforts. Family-centered programs are great for modeling service for students, encouraging student participation in service, contributing time and talents to current initiatives, and deepening the culture of service. In turn, service-learning offers parents and families the chance to become engaged in schools and community organizations in unique and powerful ways. Yet it can be difficult to find meaningful roles for parents and to encourage busy families to weave service into their lives – two essential ingredients for engaging your students’ families as partners in service-learning. Below are a few tips for getting started:

• Introduce families to the concepts of service and service-learning through simple in-house events such as Family Service Night. (To learn more about holding this event, visit http://www.doinggoodtogether.org/index.php/resources-and-services/family-service-night/)

• Act as a resource for families by providing simple ideas for how they can integrate service into their lives. The Blake School in Hopkins, Minnesota, posts a list of family service opportunities on its website each month. One school has students add a loop to a paper chain for each service project their family completes. This “chain of caring” circles the cafeteria, a visual reminder of all the community work families are doing.

• For a richer experience for families, incorporate service-learning principles into your family service efforts, include families in planning and celebration, and encourage reflection.

• Consider using surveys and interviews to determine the talents and skills each family could contribute and how they’d like to be involved. Options could include: assisting with service-learning planning, networking with community organizations, providing transportation to service sites, helping with fundraising or promotion, documenting projects, and acting as mentors to youth. More experienced parents could also act as resources and mentors for new parents and families.

These resources (some the result of my organization’s own experiences) can be helpful as you contemplate ways to engage families as service-learning partners:

• Doing Good Together (www.doinggoodtogether.org)

• Engaging Families in Service: Broadening Service Learning’s Reach, Impact and Support (National Service Learning Clearinghouse, 2009) by Gene Roehlkepartain and Jenny Friedman http://www.servicelearning.org/instant_info/fact_sheets/cb_facts/engaging/expanded.php.

• What Is Service Learning? A Guide for Parents (National Service Learning Clearinghouse, 2007) by Cathryn Berger Kaye http://www.servicelearning.org/filemanager/download/What_is_service-learning_guide_for_parents-updated2009.pdf

• Doing Good Together: 101 Service Easy, Meaningful Service Projects for Families, Schools and Communities by Jenny Friedman and Jolene Roehlkepartain
(Free Spirit Publishing, August 2010; available for preorder at www.amazon.com or www.freesprit.com)

You’ll find that with a little focus and effort, enlisting families as partners in service-learning will enrich your service-learning programs, build community, and help nurture compassion and community involvement in young people. If you’d like information about engaging families into your service-learning efforts, you’re invited to contact me at jenny@doinggoodtogether.org.