Service Learning Opportunities

Service Learning Faculty Symposium and Showcase
Marquette University, Alumni Memorial Union, 1442 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee, WI
May 21, 2008
The Service Learning Faculty Symposium and Showcase is a Midwest regional conference for service learning faculty to share and showcase their service learning practice and projects. It is being co-sponsored by Marquette University’s Service Learning Program, Wisconsin Campus Compact, Marquette’s Institute for Urban Life, and the Manresa Project.
Keynote Speaker: Ken Reardon joined the Cornell University faculty after leaving the Urban and Regional Planning Department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. For his role there in establishing and directing the University of Illinois’ highly regarded East St. Louis Action Research Project, he was awarded the 2000 American Institute of Certified Planners President’s Award. His research interests focus on community-based planning in severely distressed urban neighborhoods, alternative approaches to community development, urban social movements, and municipal government reform. At Cornell Dr. Reardon is working with the Colleges of Architecture, Art, and Planning; Human Ecology; and Agriculture and Life Sciences to strengthen urban outreach activities in Ithaca, Rochester, and New York City.
Conference Features

♦ Morning Keynote and Faculty-led Workshops

♦ Afternoon Showcase of service learning practice and projects, with cash prizes

♦ Faculty Roundtable with sharing of best practices in service learning
Contact: Bobbi Timberlake at bobbi.timberlake@marquette.edu
Webpage: http://www.marquette.edu/servicelearning/upcomingevents/symposiumover

For Community's Sake: Maximizing the Community Impact of Service Learning
University of Wisconsin-Baraboo
June 6th, 2008, 8:30-4:30
Contact: Randy Stoecker, rstoecker@wisc.edu , 608-890-0764 or Charity Schmidt, cschmidt2@wisc.edu
Website: Will be available soon for more information and registration. Until then see contacts above.
Goal: A draft plan to maximize the community impact of service learning in Wisconsin and elsewhere.
This gathering will focus on maximizing the community impact of service learning. While our focus is on Wisconsin, the knowledge we intend to build will be relevant to anyone doing service learning anywhere. Our focus will be on the community, not the classroom, and the community resident, not the student. We will have a paper exchange and will create space for some formal presentations, but we are de-emphasizing the usual conference presentation format in place of a more participatory process. We will have two sets of participatory knowledge building sessions where people will come together to collectively develop knowledge around specific questions related to the community impact of service learning. Each of the participatory knowledge building sessions will then bring the ideas they generate to a drafting session at the end of the day.
This will be a different kind of gathering, designed to collectively shed light on the long-neglected community side of service learning. Registration will be$20 to cover food costs, and will be open soon.
How can you help:
1. Facilitators: do you have experience with community impact of service learning and the skills to draw out the expertise around you? We need eight of you to facilitate participatory knowledge building sessions. The best facilitators are those who don't think they already have the answers and want to find them.
2. Expert sessions: do you have a specific experience you would like to share with others? We are inviting people to offer sessions during an extended lunch break. We will use sign up sheets that day to assign rooms for large groups and suggest informal spaces for smaller groups.
When the registration opens you will be able to sign up for either of these options.
Co-sponsored by University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Rural Sociology and Wisconsin Campus Compact

Campus Compact 2008 Professional Development Institute
Location: Oglethorpe University, Atlanta, GA
July 28 - August 1, 2008
Website: http://www.compact.org/initiatives/csd_institute/
Four and a half days of must-have knowledge for new community service and service-learning professionals! Designed specifically for professionals in their first five years in the field, this institute offers four and a half days of must-have knowledge, from some of the most respected practitioners in the field. This unique gathering offers participants the chance to learn and understand key information and principles in service, service-learning, and higher education; and allows them to discuss with experienced practitioners the critical questions and skills needed to be successful.

2^nd Annual International Institute on Student-Centered Learning and Engagement
Portland, OR
Date: May 20-23, 2008
Website: http://www.pdx.edu/cae/institute.html
Faculty and administrators from around world will convene to learn the theory and practice of engaged pedagogies from Portland State University’s award-winning faculty. Appropriate for novice and advanced faculty and program/educational leaders, the Institute provides participants opportunities to think deeply, critically, and creatively about building new or enhancing existing courses or community engagement programs.

Call for Proposals
Fall 2008 issue of Academic Exchange Quarterly, Vol. 12, #3
Deadline for submission: May 31, 2008 –
Articles on various topics plus special sections.
Service-Learning Feature Editor: Judith Hope Munter, Associate Dean for Research, College of Education, University of Texas at El Paso, E-mail: jmunter@utep.edu
Focus: Service-learning, a community-based approach to teaching and learning provides opportunities for students to discover linkages between theory and practice in authentic settings. Educational research and practice have provided numerous examples of service-learning as a tool for 'expanding the walls' of the traditional classroom, providing opportunities for active and cooperative learning, interdisciplinary projects, and multicultural experiences grounded in local community issues that enliven the teaching/learning processes. Many of the studies on student outcomes indicate that the combination of service with learning enhances student development, multicultural awareness and academic achievement. This special issue invites researchers and practitioners to submit articles and essays on service-learning in higher education with a special focus on the individual and institutional impacts of established service-learning programs. Qualitative and quantitative studies that can contribute to the growing knowledge base on the potential of this teaching/learning strategy are especially welcome. Other issues to be addressed include assessment and evaluation, social justice concerns, and the mission of the university in 21st century society.

Call for Submissions
New Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education
Deadline for submission: June 30, 2008
A new on-line refereed journal exploring community engagement and community-based learning experiences, The Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education has announced its first call for papers. Sponsored by Indiana State University's Center for Public Service and Community Engagement, this new journal is intended to serve as a forum for the review of research and practice by professionals in higher education in the fields of community engagement and engaged learning practices.

Also Seeking Associate Editors
The journal is also seeking qualified individuals to serve on the editorial board. Responsibilities of the editorial board include: Encourage authors to submit articles and promote JCEHE on her/his campus and through professional networks. Review three to four manuscript reviews per year as assigned by the editor. Provide a detailed written analysis of each manuscript with recommendations regarding publication. Associate editors are not precluded from submitting manuscripts.
Interested individuals should submit an email of interest and an abbreviated copy of their vita to: Nancy Brattain Rogers, JCEHE Editor, nancyrogers@indstate.edu 812-237-2334

Service Learning Grants Available
$5 Million in Grants Available for Student Service and Service-Learning Projects
More than $5 million in Learn and Serve America grant funding will be available to support community service and service-learning through three new grant competitions, the Corporation for National and Community Service The three funding opportunities are:

· 2008 College Student Social Media Initiative: Approximately $2.3 million is available to facilitate better engagement of college students in service through the use of social media such as Facebook, MySpace, Ning, podcasts, blogs and other social media tools. Successful applicants must demonstrate how their program can use these tools to engage increased numbers of college students, especially in partnership with other nonprofit or for-profit entities. An estimated 12 grants will be made for a project period of up to three years. Applications are due at 5 p.m. eastern time, May 7.

· School-Based STEM: Approximately $2 million is available to qualified organizations that will provide financial resources, training, and other assistance to local education agencies to implement service-learning projects as part of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) curriculum in grades six through 12. An estimated four grants will be made for a project period of up to three years. Eligible applicants include grant-making entities, which are public or private non-profit organizations that can make subgrants in two or more states. Applications must be submitted by 5 p.m. eastern, April 30.

· Indian Tribes Drug Abuse Prevention Initiative: Approximately $1 million is available to Indian Tribes to implement service-learning programs focusing on drug-abuse prevention, especially methamphetamine. Applicants must propose to work with one or more local schools to support youth conducting service-learning projects, as well as working with their local methamphetamine task force supported by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, so that the youth service is linked with existing local drug abuse prevention efforts and coordinates with other federal funding targeting methamphetamine. An estimated six to eight grants will be awarded for a three-year period. The application deadline is 5 p.m. eastern time, April 30.

For further information and to apply, visit http://www.learnandserve.gov/for_organizations/funding/nofa.asp.

The Corporation for National and Community Service improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. Each year we engage 4 million Americans of all ages and backgrounds through our Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs. For more information, visit NationalService.gov.

We the People Challenge Grant Opportunity
As part of its We the People initiative, NEH invites proposals for challenge grants designed to help institutions and organizations secure long-term improvements in and support for humanities activities focused on exploring significant themes and events in American history. NEH is particularly interested in projects that advance knowledge of the founding principles of the United States in their full historical and institutional context. For more information see www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/wtpchallenge.html
Contact: challenge@neh.gov Phone: (202) 606-8309 Deadline: On-going opportunity

The Coca Cola Foundation
The mission of the Coca-Cola Foundation is to improve the quality of life in the community and enhance individual opportunity through education. The foundation supports educational programs primarily within three main areas: higher education, classroom teaching and learning, and international education. For more information see http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/citizenship/foundation_coke.html
Phone: (404) 676-2568 Deadline: On-going opportunity

Towson University’s Institute on Teaching and Research on Women has available The Handbook on Service Learning in Women’s Studies and the Disciplines. The book brings together educators from several disciplines (English, Political Science, Economics, Sociology, Women’s/Gender Studies) who teach a women’s studies service learning course, or a course with significant attention to gender and diversity. This collection of service learning syllabi, assignments, and essays provides the reader with numerous methods and examples of how service learning can be incorporated into a wide array of courses differentially situated within the curriculum of a college or university. For example, teaching a women’s studies course that is also a general education course requires a somewhat different logic and set of practices than an upper level women’s studies course within the major, or a course which serves as a culminating experience for the major. Also addressed is how to transform spring break and internships into service leaning options and how to create a summer camp that serves the community. Guidelines, advice, and lessons learned provide the reader with the information and confidence necessary to initiate a service learning course.
http://www.towson.edu/itrow/2%20-%20Major-Degree%20Requirements/
ITROWServiceLearningHandbook.asp

The Wisconsin Campus Compact AmeriCorps*VISTA Community-Based-Learning Project is funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service and allows 35 AmeriCorps*VISTA members to serve as community-based-learning coordinators throughout Wisconsin. The project goal is to increase the capacity of local community organizations to provide services that will assist members of low-income groups to escape from poverty.
For more information contact:
Francesca Smith
AmeriCorps*VISTA Program Director
(262) 595-2760
smithf@uwp.edu

M3C Fellows AmeriCorps Education Award Program
A nine-state AmeriCorps program designed to improve college student retention by involving them in meaningful community work in cohorts of at least seven.
For more information contact:
Kim White
M3C Fellows Program Director
(262) 595-2514
kim.white@uwp.edu

Student Civic Leadership Institute (SCLI)
SCLI is made possible through a Learn and Serve America grant awarded to Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin Campus Compacts. The Fellows program and the SCLI support and promote students as powerful citizen leaders. Fellows network with their peers, apply and further develop their skills, organize civic dialogues to address critical public issues, and work on local and campus initiatives. The SCLI is an intensive retreat that provides students with time and tools to do critical inner reflection on their ideas of leadership, citizenship, and coalition building. Students from colleges and universities throughout the Upper Midwest (Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) identify their own growing edges, learn strategies for institutional change and community organizing, and teach each other through intensive dialogue around issues they have identified. Students leave with an understanding of resources available to support local civic initiatives, with contact information of student leaders across the region and with other print and web resources to aid their work in creating campus and community change.
For more information contact:
Dr. Pamela Proulx-Curry
Wisconsin Campus Compact Executive Director
(262) 595-2048
pamela.proulx-curry@uwp.edup