Digital Commons Network^™

Fundraising For Local Nonprofits: Raising Money To Grow Our Roots-Chrysalis Women's Transitional Living, Brent Steven Beckwith

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

This project was a partnership between myself and Chrysalis Women's Transitional Living in Boise, ID. The goal of this project was to raise awareness of the organization in the Boise, Meridian, and Nampa communities as well as the rest of the Treasure Valley. In addition to raising awareness, other goals included raising a financial donation amount of $5,000, item and furniture donations.

Book Club For Communication: Bringing The Four Agreements To A Trauma Recovery Group, Taylor Renee Dobson

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

This service learning project started a book club within the Idaho Community Outreach Behavior Services (COBS) program; a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, that aims to help victims of sex-trafficking get the trauma care they need and helps them with a safer lifestyle and living situation, if necessary. The book The Four Agreements was provided for each woman to read the assigned weekly section, and come to the group each week prepared to discuss what they read and how it relates to them personally. Participation in an open discussion would allow each person to share while also following the theme of the …

Sleep Savvy Student Solutions Blog, Cassandra M. Hinnenkamp

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

This service-learning capstone project, Sleep Savvy Student Solutions Blog, addressed the prevalent issue of insufficient quality sleep among college students. Through this blog, the goal is to educate students about the importance of quality sleep and its direct impact on academic success. By providing valuable insights into the connection between sleep and academic performance, practical recommendations and strategies are offered to help college students achieve better sleep. The project is aimed to empower students with knowledge and tools to optimize their sleep patterns, ultimately contributing to improved overall well-being and academic achievements. A follow-up survey was sent to the blog …

Creating A Nontraditional Wellness Blog, Tawni M. Rising

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

This service learning project researched sources of shame humans feel about their bodies. So often what we see in the media is curated, seemingly perfect, and fake. I created a non-traditional wellness blog and website called tawnsclaimtoshame.com where I used my background in psychology, biology, anatomy, as well as research, to debunk how culture and the media defines the perfect body. The link for my blog was shared on multiple social media platforms and accessed by many different stakeholders. My blog addresses eating disorders, diet culture, the medicalization of fatness, implicit biases about weight, disparities in sex education, the flaws …

A Blog On Building A Backyard Garden, Carrie N. Mccashland

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

My capstone project involved building a backyard garden and writing a blog to include my innovative approach to gardening. In the past few years, there have been disruptions in the food supply chain and the price of food has skyrocketed due to inflation. I can teach people how to grow food their family will enjoy in their own backyard. Fewer people will have to depend on the food provided in the grocery store. People will have a greater knowledge of what they are eating and how it was made. Those people who live in more rural areas will not have …

A Guide To How To Start A Keto Diet, Julia A. Smith

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

My capstone project revolved around creating a straightforward guide to starting a medical-grade ketogenic diet for families and children with epilepsy (seizures) or metabolic disorders (Glucose Transporter Type 1 Deficiency Syndrome). The booklet gives individuals, families, and caregivers an interactive guide to exploring websites, videos, and other resources to understand the complexities of the keto diet. The booklet also features recipes adapted to a six-year-old and approved by her, along with resources for dining at restaurants and fast food establishments.

Creating Smiles And Cards For Meals On Wheels, Rhonda L. Carson

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

My capstone project was a service learning project involving Caldwell Meals on Wheels. Students around the Treasure Valley created “thinking of you” cards for those who receive meals from Caldwell Meals on Wheels, to be delivered with their meals. Its purpose was multifaceted. Participating in this project brought awareness to high schoolers about those in the community who are shut-ins. The cards are intended to bring joy and brighten the day to the Meals on Wheels recipients. Three keywords that represent my project are volunteer work, community, and service learning.

Differences Aside, Dzanela Husic

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

The capstone project concerns cultural diversity at an elementary school, specifically at a 2nd-grade level. I interviewed my daughter and her teacher for my research. I involved my daughter in the book because she comes from a different culture and is being raised in another. She is the perfect example for my project because she has a cultural background, and she is not aware that people around her don't recognize that culture. I interviewed her teacher because she is emotionally intelligent and recognizes that cultural awareness is needed in classroom settings. Part of my research involved reading extensive literature about …

Bas/Ips Student Advisory Committee Internship Course, Serena C. Henry

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

Throughout my time as a Multidisciplinary Studies student at Boise State University, I was encouraged to participate in multiple student leadership opportunities, all of which elevated my academic pursuits and positively impacted my educational experience. Through the relationships I’d established with faculty, I was invited to take the lead on a new student initiative for my final capstone project in the Interdisciplinary Professional Studies program.

I was responsible for developing a new Student Advisory Committee for the Bachelor of Applied Sciences (BAS) and Interdisciplinary Professional Studies (IPS) programs. The committee will serve as a focus group tasked with providing valuable …

Latinx Community Language Barriers: Local Food Sustainability And Food Insecurity, Joan C. Echols

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

This service learning project researched food sustainability and food insecurity issues with a focus on the local Hispanic community. Often the available resources to combat food insecurity do not get to the communities that need them the most due to language barriers and accessibility of information. I created a newsletter in English and Spanish and posted it on my website TelaWeb.Org. The link for the website was shared through social media, and provided to various stakeholders involved in the project to share on their own social media pages or websites. This newsletter addresses the value of food sustainability, provides information …

Volunteer Programs & Service Learning Annual Report 2021-2022, Office Of Volunteer Programs & Service Learning

News, Magazines and Reports

Early in the fall semester, we welcomed Colin Petramale to the VP&SL team as the new Coordinator for Community Partnerships, Faith and Justice! Colin manages the frst year Pioneer Service Grant program, in addition to building and maintaining the relationships with our of-campus community partners.

We strengthened the commitment to our partners by on boarding with GivePulse, our community engagement tracking sofware. Nonproft organizations receive free access through their afliation with SHU, allowing them to publicize partnership opportunities; SHU students, staff and faculty can connect with these partners by searching and signing up for upcoming activities. It’s a win-win situation! …

Enhancing Teamwork Skills Through An Interdisciplinary Engineering Service Learning Collaboration, Pilar Pazos, Francisco Cima, Jennifer Kidd, Stacie I. Ringleb, Orlando Ayala, Kristie Gutierrez, Krishnanand Kaipa

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

The purpose of this research paper is to explore whether participation in an interdisciplinary collaboration program partnering Preservice Teachers (PST) and Undergraduate Engineering Students (UES) results in an increase in teamwork effectiveness. The interdisciplinary collaboration was designed as a service-learning project within existing undergraduate programs that included the development and delivery of engineering content to a K-12 audience. The collaborations were integrated into existing courses in two colleges, engineering and education. The Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS) version of the Comprehensive Assessment of Team Member Effectiveness (CATME) was used midway and at the end of the project to evaluate teamwork …

Volunteer Programs & Service Learning Annual Report 2019-2020, Volunteer Programs & Service Learning

News, Magazines and Reports

It has been another extraordinary year for the Office of Volunteer Programs & Service Learning! Beyond welcoming a record-setting number of first-year students to campus, VP&SL collaborated with students, faculty and staff in all colleges across the university on advocacy, direct service and philanthropic initiatives. We are proud to share that Volunteer Programs & Service Learning has been selected for the 2020 Best of Fairfield Awards in the category of Colleges & Universities!

Impact Or Impasse: How To Measure University Student Effect On Community Organizations, Joel Mcreynolds

University Research Symposium

This applied research project examines the impact that student engagement has on the goals of a university’s community partners. A pilot study conducted in 2019 draws upon questionnaire and interview data gathered from administrators of seven community organizations that are longtime partners with Illinois State University. Key findings that emerge from descriptive statistics and thematic analysis of the data suggest that the positive impact students have on community organizations far outweighs any challenges the organizations may experience. The project concludes with recommendations on how to enhance the research tool for future evaluations and how to further improve the beneficial impacts …

Metamorphosis Inside And Out: Transformative Learning At Portland State University, Vicki Reitenauer, Katherine Elaine Draper-Beard, Noah Schultz

Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this article, the authors (a faculty member and two former students) describe the trajectory that Portland State University has taken over its history to institutionalize transformative learning opportunities within its comprehensive general education program, University Studies. Following a description of the institutional changes that resulted in the community-based, experientially focused courses at the heart of University Studies, the authors explore one particular community partnership involving both a state agency and the national Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program, dedicated to offering transformative experiences in which incarcerated and non-incarcerated students learn together inside correctional facilities. Finally, each author shares a reflective essay …

Community Engagement E-News - March 2018, Parkland College

Service Learning Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Wesley Food Pantry: Fighters Of Food Insecurity, Katherine Wennerdahl

A with Honors Projects

This student essay is a reflection paper on the process, observations, and interpretations of an ethnography project on student gaming at Parkland College.

Professional Nursing Value Development In Nursing Students Who Participate In International Service Learning, Heather Ferrillo

Nursing Faculty Publications

Background: International Service Learning (ISL) is becoming widely used in nursing education as a means to provide global learning opportunities. Concrete outcomes for these experiences have not been clearly supported in previous research. Determining if ISL experience facilitate the development of Professional Nursing Values (PNV) can support the use of ISL as a viable pedagogy. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to determine if there were a difference in PNV development in students who participate in ISL as part of their clinical experiences compared to those who do not. The hypothesis was that there was a difference in the …

Thinking And Acting Both Globally And Locally : The Field School In Intercultural Education As A Model For Action-Research Training And Civic Learning., Douglas D. Perkins, Benjamin W. Fisher, Holly L. Karakos, Sharon L. Shields, Elizabeth D. Gilbert, Meaghan M. Patterson

Faculty Scholarship

We present the Field School model of intercultural civic education, service-learning, action research training, and collaboration (with local academic and community partners) based on field work in applied anthropology. Theoretical and methodological foundations of the Field School also include experiential learning and immersive pedagogy, multiculturalism and cross-cultural communication, international education and study abroad programs, collaborative international development, participatory research, and in-depth knowledge in one’s own specific discipline. The primary goals of these intensive, short-term action research projects in other, less-developed countries or regions are benefits for community partners that are as sustainable as possible and to foster and assess learning …

P-16 Initiative, Uno Service Learning Academy

Newsletters 2015-2016

This newsletter features: Gaining Perspective: Race & Our Juvenile Justice System; Mapping Histories: Learning Across the Ages; College & Career Readiness Characteristics Found in Service Learning; Service Learning Around the World; Student's Collaboration Leads to Environmental Sustainability; Multiple Collaborative Projects Created Diverse Experiences for Students; Students Learn to Speak Mandarin; Infusing Rigor into Service Learning: A K-12 Teacher & UNO Professor's Perspective; A Lesson in Ethics: What Would a Boys Town Middle School Student Do? and Letter from the Program Coordinator.

Service Learning Enhances Conceptual Learning In A Rn To Bsn Program, Henny Breen, Melissa Robinson

Faculty Publications

A qualitative study using transcript analysis was conducted to examine the effectiveness of service learning in enhancing conceptual learning in RN to BSN students. As part of their capstone course in an online program, students engaged in 64 hours of service learning in their local community. The transcripts of asynchronous discussions and journal entries formed the data for analysis. The findings illustrated that the student’s conceptual understanding was enhanced from the service learning experience. Further, the students demonstrated higher-level thinking by linking concepts that could be applied to nursing practice. Service learning reinforced the community-based philosophy of the School of …

Uno And Ops Service Learning Partnerships, Uno Service Learning Academy

Programs and Brochures

UNO and OPS Service Learning Partnerships

Education For Life, Praveen Roy

Teacher India

We all want our students to achieve to their full potential, to learn to think critically and work collaboratively, but also to become good human beings, as Praveen Roy explains.

Three Legs On The Stool: Service Learning Projects, Community, And Library, Karen Schmidt, Deborah Halperin

Scholarly Publications

Illinois Wesleyan University’s Action Research Center launches many different service learning projects in the Bloomington-Normal community. Often these projects originate from the community, and employ the action research model that imbeds the participant-researcher in the organization or program that is being studied. The IWU library has seized on opportunities to integrate library research and critical thinking skills into service learning projects. Some are obvious - working with faculty and students in senior seminar classes to assist with research papers and presentations - while others are more subtle. Using a service learning project as a case study, the authors discuss the …

Cyaf 382: Parenting—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Natalie A. Williams

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

This benchmark portfolio summarizes the process and results of a reflective inquiry into the teaching of CYAF 382 Parenting. The primary goals of this portfolio were to: (1) refine the course to enhance participants’ experience by connecting course goals/objectives and course activities, (2) document the impact of the course of student learning outcomes, and (3) identify specific changes that can be made to enhance the learning of future students.

A Critical Analysis Of Volunteer Tourism And The Implications For Developing Communities, Haley A. Garrison

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The practice of volunteer tourism has recently experienced a rise in both popularity and participation, along with research into the effectiveness of the approaches to service taken in foreign countries. This type of tourism is commonly described as an eco-friendly and economically sustainable alternative to traditional methods of international travel. Participants typically express altruistic motivations behind their desire to travel, as conventional touristic activities are paired with various forms of volunteer work. Though this paper describes significant benefits associated with this growing industry, many critiques have also explored the limitations of a voluntourism approach to community development. In contrast to …

Sustaining A Successful Community Partnership: A Ten Year Retrospective Of Quality Practices And Sustainability Applied To Service-Learning At The Douglas County Department Of Corrections, Donna Dufner, Judith Monarrez Diaz-Kelsey

Presentations

• One of the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s three stated strategic goals is to be “…recognized for its outstanding engagement with the urban, regional, national, and global communities.”
• Starting in fall 2004 the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s (UNO) implemented a service-learning course that takes college students into the Douglas County Department of Corrections (DCDC) to teach basic computer skills to inmates. To date over 200 undergraduates and 600 inmates have completed the course.
• Quality practices (NYLC 2008) such as progress monitoring, duration and intensity, participant voice, partnerships, meaningful service, link to the curriculum, reflection, diversity, planning, and impact used …

A Decade Of Self-Discovery Through Service Learning, Donna Dufner, Judith Monarrez Diaz-Kelsey

Presentations

• Introduction
• Best Practices
• Link to Curriculum
• College Student Voices/ Reflections
• Duration and Intensity
• Diversity
• Partnerships
• Monitoring/Debriefing
• Meaningful Service
• Video
• Review of Artifacts
• Q&A

Supporting Community Transformation: Becoming A Community-Engaged Academic Library, Patrick Griffis

Library Faculty Presentations

• Community engagement and service as third mission
• Targeting who to engage in community
• Community organization needs
• Academic library community services
• Benefits of community engagement
• Challenges of community engagement
• Supporting infrastructure
• Community engagement strategies
• Supporting community engagement initiatives of academic institution
• Co-curricular experiential learning community projects
• Service learning courses
• Small business development centers
• Developing academic library community outreach initiatives
• Going out to the community
• Bringing the community in the library
• Business by the book workshop series
• Following up & closing the loop
• Communicating the value of community engagement initiatives

Building Civic Participation Of Undergraduates: Umass Boston’S Civic Engagement Scholars Initiative (Cesi), Rajini Srikanth, Aminah Pilgrim, Office Of Faculty Development, University Of Massachusetts Boston, Office Of Community Partnerships, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Civic Engagement Scholars Initiative (CESI) is a professional development program that supports faculty and community partners to effectively engage undergraduate students in service-learning and community-based research activities. CESI aims to reinforce classroom learning, foster civic habits and skills, and address community-identified needs.