Professional Development

Service-Learning is a reciprocal teaching and learning strategy that allows students to serve their college, local, and global communities through meaningful civic engagement integrated with instruction and reflection. Service-Learning allows students to address real world challenges and opportunities that make academic learning relevant. Service Learning enhances social skills, analytical ability, civic and ethical responsibility, self-efficacy, and career development.  

Research shows that including a service-learning component in course curriculum can positively influence student retention, persistence, academic progress, personal growth and career opportunities. With this in mind, a Faculty Fellow in Service-Learning will lead a formal professional development program during the fall 2022 semester designed to assist faculty in incorporating service learning into their courses. Topics to be covered will include types of service learning strategies, their goals and benefits, available resources, and how to assess outcomes and effectiveness.

The Service Learning Professional Development program is a two-semester experience, beginning with a fall semester course, followed by a spring semester mentorship led by the Faculty Fellow in Service Learning that is open to all faculty. 

Spring 2023 Meeting dates (the spring 2023 dates will be scheduled to accommodate the schedule of the participants):
1. Program Orientation - TBD
2. Teaching and Learning Workshop #1 - TBD
3. Teaching and Learning Workshop #2 - TBD
4. Wrap-Up Session - TBD

Faculty who complete the program may use their participation as professional development activity towards tenure and promotion. Embedding service learning assignments in a course also satisfies the faculty Student Support Goal. Finally, faculty who complete the professional development program and incorporate one year of service learning in their course(s) are eligible to apply for the Faculty Fellow in Service Learning, a leadership opportunity.

To apply for participation in the Service Learning Professional Development Program, complete the application (linked below) and return to Susan Wheeler. The application deadline for participants is January 31, 2023.

Please contact Susan Wheeler or Dr. Don May with questions.

Benefits:

- Greater engagement in the process of learning​

- Greater self-efficacy​

- Greater preparedness to work in profession​

- More practical experience for job applications​

- Greater compassion, insight, and ability to solve social problems¹​

- Expanded horizons, opportunity to see social issues first hand and work with diverse cultures²
 

1. Bradley CL, Saracino M. The Case for Service-Learning: Overcoming the Obstacles. J Fam Consumer Sci. 2013;105(2):41-43.​

2. Roofe N. Impact of Service-Learning on Undergraduate Dietetics Students. J Fam Consumer Sci. 2012;104(4):28-33. 

• Employers say they are much more likely to consider hiring recent college graduates who have completed an applied learning or project-based learning experience​
  • 94% Internship/apprenticeship​
  • 87% Senior thesis/project​
  • 80% Collaborative Research Project​
  • 69% - Service Learning Project​³

3. Fall Planning Welcome Back Presentation. Tia McNair. Daytona State College. Daytona Beach, Florida. August 22, 2016.

Student Testimonials:

• “I enjoyed learning about ways I can apply my education and skills to help the community.”​
• “I enjoyed the service learning because I am the type of person that learns best with hands on involvement. It helped me to be more motivated in my work and it kept my attention through the course even though I am not very fond of the…subject.” ​
• “The service learning project opened my [eyes] about the community around me. I did not know about the organization[s] in my local community that reach out and help many people that are in need. I think more people should learn about how they can give back or help those around to make a difference in the future.”