“Over the years, I have conducted dozens of community-based research projects (a form of service-learning). They have truly been some of my richest teaching experiences – because it gives our students invaluable learning experiences in conducting original research, while providing valuable research to our community partners that helps them to serve our community." - Dennis Downey, Professor of Sociology
Connecting Student Learning to the Community
Service-learning benefits student learning by enhancing course material through real-world application. This high-impact practice can provide students an opportunity to actively learn more about their community and the larger social, cultural and political issues while becoming civically involved. These learning experiences can then be used to strengthen resumes and/or graduate school applications, career exploration opportunities, and professional networking. and forge professional networks.
Benefits for faculty participating in service-Learning:
- Contributes to retention and graduation rates
- Increased student engagement with course curriculum
- Enriched student learning objectives and real world context
- Stronger connections to the community
- Opportunity for scholarship