The Serve America Act was signed into law in April 2009. The Act provides for many opportunities to serve and learn for pre-college youth, college students and graduates, and even baby boomers. It dramatically increases intensive service opportunities by setting AmeriCorps on a path from 75,000 positions annually to 250,000 by 2017, focusing that…

There is a case to be made for the integration of the Project Based Service Learning (PBSL) process and the design and construction of educational facilities. A growing body of research supports the notion that the formulaic educational system of the last hundred years may no longer serve the learning styles of new and future generations. Their…

Although the title of the course, Combating Loneliness among Older People in Contemporary Society, states a clear goal, our service-learning class was shaped by five guiding parameters. By avoiding certain things, we allowed the course to self-organize and evolve into a learning experience beyond the one originally envisioned. This paper…

A comentoring project paired students in a lifespan developmental psychology course with older adults to conduct a life review. The intergenerational paring was designed to increase students' knowledge of older adults, the aging process, and development across the lifespan. Students developed a paper that included their partner's life history, a…

Over the past 25 years, there has been a call for change within American higher education, with an increasing number of foundations, national organizations, and individual researchers pushing for institutions of higher education to become more involved with the surrounding communities and American society (Campus Compact, 2011; Glass &…

Interest in whether real-world problems or a service learning context increases students' academic performance and intent to find careers in engineering is gaining momentum. The belief that diverse student populations resonate with the idea that "engineers can contribute to improving society" is found throughout the literature,…

There is a need within health, physical education, recreation, dance, and sport programs to increase community engagement via experiential learning. The Chase Charlie Races are presented in this article as a model pedagogical strategy to engage community youths and families in a training program and running event to help promote fitness. Key…

At a time when the OECD (2007) is advocating more local engagement for higher education institutions, this study looks at a number of community initiatives in Australia where local universities have played a key role. All were studied as part of the PASCAL Universities and Regional Engagement (PURE) project, which involves a total of 19 regions…

Freshman honors students in a service-learning course tutored low-income English Language Learning kindergartners, first-, and second-graders in reading. We conducted two separate data collections, one assessing college students' attitudes and motives (Study 1) and one exploring the benefits for elementary school children (Study 2). We measured…

This dissertation examines the issue of academic preparation of future professional instructional designers in the context of higher academic institutions. It is presented in nontraditional dissertation format as approved by the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Iowa State University. The dissertation is comprised of three publishable…

Statement of the problem: This research study examined the impact of international immersion programs upon undergraduate students at Jesuit colleges and universities. Students return from immersion experiences claiming that the experience changed their lives. This study offered an assessment strategy to give greater evidence as to the impact of…

This dissertation studies the creation and implementation of service learning policy and the implications of these programs for democratic citizenship and political participation. The project focuses on service learning centers at three universities in the Los Angeles area, framing the creation and implementation of these campus-wide centers as an…

This study describes the collaborative partnership between a Big Brothers Big Sisters organization, an elementary school and the College of Education at a public university. The partnership utilized a mentoring system consisting of elementary students, college students, elementary teachers and university faculty. Benefits of the various…

The University of Maine at Farmington (UMF) has undertaken a commitment to establish a culture of environmental sustainability. With two new Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified buildings on site, a green building curriculum has been developed. This multidimensional curriculum involves university faculty, students, K-12…

Institutionalizing engagement, especially at research universities, calls for thinking beyond service-learning and the teaching mission. We conducted interviews with 20 faculty members at 15 research institutions in the United States who integrate teaching, research, and service in a community-focused scholarly agenda to support the civic missions…