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MOMENTUM
A Web Letter from the Office of the Provost - August 2019

By Mary Jane Chew

Service Learning Fellowships boost curricula and community

Five service-learning projects that launched last spring will hit their stride this fall as faculty and students return to campus. The Service-Learning Fellows Program matches community partners with faculty and graduate students to fund service-learning projects through a structured mentoring program.

“These fellowship programs foster the development and institutionalization of service-learning courses and curricula, projects, and scholarly pursuits at Purdue,” said Lindsey Payne, director of Service-Learning and assistant professor, Environmental and Ecological Engineering. “Applying disciplinary skills to address real-world problems and gaining valuable professional skills by engaging with community members is truly an authentic learning experience for our students.”

Payne says that at Purdue, service-learning is a course-based, credit-bearing educational experience in which students:

  • Participate in an organized service activity that meets community-identified needs.
  • Use knowledge and skills directly related to a course or discipline.
  • Reflect on the service activity in such a way as to gain further understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of personal values and civic responsibility.

To apply, Purdue faculty and graduate students propose service-learning courses responding to needs expressed by community partners. Both entities then collaborate over the next year to connect student learning goals to desired community outcomes, set a course calendar, and assess student work. Each partnership receives up to $4,000 to fund its project.

“This is what being a land-grant institution is all about,” Payne said. “Through an engagement program like this, we’re able to learn from the community, while the community benefits from our involvement. It’s the best kind of win-win relationship.”

This year’s sponsored projects are a community health needs assessment, youth leadership program development, financial planning workshops for young professionals, community housing data analysis, and a marketing plan for local conservation efforts.

The 2019-20 Service-Learning Fellow and Sustaining Fellow awardees are:

HomesteadCS’ Financial Planning Project, Marie Morse, executive director

In partnership with Bob Kenley, associate professor of practice, Industrial Engineering

Northend Community Center’s Youth Educational Programming Project, Joey Wright, pastor

In partnership with Alankrita Chhikara, graduate student, Curriculum and Instruction and Adegoke Adetunji, graduate student, Curriculum and Instruction

In partnership with Jason Ware, clinical assistant professor, Honors College

River City Community Center’s Community Programs and Services Needs Assessment & 412 Leadership Academy Project, Terry Gilbert, community center director

In partnership with Laura Schwab Reese, assistant professor, Health and Kinesiology, and Andrea DeMaria, assistant professor, Consumer Science

In partnership with Susan Modlin, clinical assistant professor, Nursing; and Tera Hornbeck, continuing lecturer, Nursing; and Meg Sorg, visiting clinical assistant professor, Nursing

Wabash River Enhancement Corporation’s Marketing, Education and Outreach Project, Shannon Stanis, watershed coordinator

In partnership with Christi Eden, continuing lecturer, Communication

City of Lafayette Good Data, Good Decisions Project, Adam Murphy, Homeless and Community Outreach

In partnership with Elizabeth Geib, graduate student, English, and Carrie Grant, graduate student, English

For more information, visit their website.





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