Service-learning is a hands-on volunteer learning experience which may incorporate academic study and is almost always rewarding and educational. Students apply their knowledge to improve the lives of others in their community, elsewhere in the U.S.A. or in the rest of the world. Students may receive academic credit for their service, depending on the program.

Service-learning is similar to an internship. A service-learning experience offers an added benefit of giving back to a community and helping others. Students lead others in using skills they learned in the classroom, making the experience even more educational than a typical internship where you might only be observing others.

For international students, service-learning programs uncover other subcultures of America that you do not always easily encounter within a university setting or in the corporate world. You might interact with people living in poverty or talk with members of communities struggling for their civil rights. Service-learning will transform the abstract concepts you have learned in class into reality. You will acquire values and skills that will help you when you return to your country and confront such challenges as poverty, pollution, climate change and habitat destruction.

"People are very much the same wherever you go, no matter what circumstances they had to overcome or what environment they live in. Service-learning makes you realize that you have the power to make a difference," said Tiro Daenuwy, a Marquette University student from Indonesia who hopes to bring his skills home and use them to improve living conditions.

A history of service

The United States is an ideal place to practice service learning because of the country's history of service and volunteerism, the growing number of universities integrating service into the curriculum, and our diverse demographics . The National Service-Learning Clearinghouse estimates that almost two million students participate in service-learning at four-year universities. Almost half of all community colleges offer service-learning courses.

Diverse demographics

At Marquette University in Wisconsin, service-learning programs are coordinated through the Center for Community Service, and overseas programs are organized by University Ministry and the Office of International Education. Each year Marquette students perform over 100,000 hours of service to the Milwaukee community, while Marquette engineering, nursing, and dentistry students routinely participate in international service learning programs as part of their studies. Anna Villanueva, a Nursing and Psychology student who helps prepare and serve meals for the homeless in Milwaukee, said her experience has increased her knowledge of both academic fields as well as her problem solving skills.

Each semester, a group of teachers and administrators at the University of Florida's English Language Institute nominate an academically outstanding student who has demonstrated leadership in community building or promoting international understanding and peace. The student, who usually has also volunteered in the local Gainesville community, receives a full tuition scholarship for one semester. Since the scholarship was established, 15 students from 12 countries have won.

Community service

At the University of California Irvine, Extension, upper level students in the Intensive ESL program are offered a Service Learning elective class, in which they are required to perform 20 hours of service during the quarter. Students taking this class often remark that this was on of the best experiences of their lives, both for improving their English and for expanding their life experiences. One of the projects that students often choose involves assisting at a local retirement home, where students engage in many activities, including chatting, playing chess, and singing with elderly residents who restricted to bed or wheelchairs. The seniors love this chance to have contact with young, international students. In another project, students help out at the campus child care center. Students read to the children and play games with them. The children adore this time with their international "friends." Additional service opportunities have included cleaning up the local beach with local university students, serving food at a homeless shelter, and many others.

In Boston, the Center for Community and Learning Partnerships at Wentworth Institute of Technology facilitates service projects that use student expertise. Faculty and students travel to New Orleans to help the hurricane-devastated Tremé neighborhood. Wentworth students prepared the master plans for renovating a city block where they are building an environmental center and a demonstration garden to teach local residents about soil recovery from contaminated flood waters. Each student raises money for his/her travel expenses, and construction costs.

Other Wentworth efforts include:

• Web Application Development

  Students majoring in computer science develop database systems for organizations such as Earth Works, which grows food in urban areas, and a support network for the elderly.

• Community Design

  Interior design and architecture students are collaborating with an architect on a headquarters for a minority police officers association. The buildings will include housing for low-income families, and multi-purposes facilities for the association. The students' contribution is providing huge savings on design and consulting costs.

• Career Counseling

  Wentworth business students, along with the Boston Red Sox (baseball) Foundation, are introducing disadvantaged high school students to careers in sports management.

Feeding the Hungry

Community food drives have become traditional fall activities across the nation as Americans seek to feed their hungry neighbors, without government assistance. At Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma, students at the English Language Institute (ELI) have taken the initiative to help.

Every fall, when the Harvest II food drive takes place, Oklahoma State University conducts its campus-wide effort. Student teams from the ELI often win a trophy for their outstanding efforts in gathering food and taking it to the place where needy people receive the donations. They learn first-hand that American communities do not wait for the government to resolve all of their problems…that ordinary citizens regularly step forward with solutions.

American students, on the other hand, are made aware of the generous spirit of other cultures as the international students are regularly among the most generous of student groups.

There are several educational benefits of this coordinated effort, too. The project has provided an authentic and fun learning experience which has enabled ELI students to practice their language skills in real situations. Vocabulary, too, is enhanced. Students in one section learned in a very real way the meaning of "non-perishable" when a can of refrigerated biscuits exploded! A second educational benefit is the development of life skills as the young people exercise leadership, practice decision-making, and engage in critical thinking. Finally, this project is a perfect example of Service Learning. The volunteers experience the satisfaction of having been a part of something larger than themselves and having made a significant difference in the lives of the less fortunate. More important, they have witnessed the effectiveness of a communal effort which has potential global applications.

To learn more about service learning in the United States, visit www.servicelearning.org or www.ipsl.org.

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