-
1 of 10
-
2 of 10
-
3 of 10
-
4 of 10
-
5 of 10
-
6 of 10
-
7 of 10
-
8 of 10
-
9 of 10
-
10 of 10
Service Learning students make a world of difference
Archive
Comments
Story
Service-Learning students participate in community experiences
in conjunction with their academic courses. They typically provide
between 15 to 40 hours of participation in a non-profit,
healthcare, or educational facility over the span of an academic
semester. Once their courses end, however, many students find that
the experience has been so rewarding that they decide to stay on.
Here are a few examples:
WHO? Nick Hopson, a second-year Social Work student at
BSU.
WHAT? Continues to work with Boise Parks and Recreation,
extending the Service-Learning experience he had last semester.
WHERE? At the Fort Boise Community Center, Nick chose to
mentor teens during “Late-Night Fridays”, a weekend
activity program.
WHEN? Service-Learning has been offered at Boise State
University for four years. Spring semester of 2002 was the first
time Nick participated. Last semester, he was one of over 400 BSU
students who collectively provided more than 7,900 hours of
community service.
WHY? Nick continued because when he had finished his
formal hour commitment, he went to say goodbye to one of the teens
he had gotten to know. “I need to talk to you”, Nick
called to the young man. “You’re leaving, aren’t
you?” his new friend stated; it wasn’t really a
question. Suddenly, Nick explains, he could see the effects of the
constantly changing pool of mentors, adults, and resources on young
people who would just like a little stability. In that moment, Nick
decided that, yes, he was leaving, but only for the summer break.
When school started back up, he would return to Boise Parks and
Rec.’s youth programs. He let his young friend know; they
were reunited last fall, and Nick has since been offered and
accepted a position with Boise Parks and Recreation’s Youth
Services.
HOW? For him, the effects of the Service-Learning
experience have been the chance to use his intended major to make a
difference both for the community and for himself.
WHO? Corri Holmes Fairchild, a student in Boise
State’s Nursing Program.
WHAT? On one memorable occasion, Corri tried to plan a
crew to spring clean the Rescue Mission’s kitchen. A few days
before the event, she still had only one or two volunteers. So, she
told everyone at her church and all of her friends and classmates
that she needed help. Not long after that, Fairchild heard a spot
on the radio and saw an ad in the local paper announcing the
clean-up effort. Over 20 people showed up, so many that they were
able to get the dining room spic and span too.
WHERE? Fairchild has worked with the Boise Rescue Mission
for three years. “The first few times, I was a little
nervous”, said Fairchild. “But I got to know the people
there, and serving is a big part of my faith, and I really felt
good being there.”
WHEN? Fairchild has helped assist the homeless since she
was a freshman at Boise State University. She started serving on
the Volunteer Services Board at BSU after a year of serving at BRM
so that she could get other students involved. She organized
monthly projects through Volunteer Services Board last year; over
the summer, she helped the Rescue Mission to orient new
volunteers.
WHY? Fairchild says working at BRM allows her to work
with the community, and she’s gaining valuable knowledge
about community nursing agencies and health care providers. Since
her plans to become a nurse include serving low-income populations,
the time she has spent with Boise Rescue Mission will certainly be
as much of an asset to her as Fairchild is to them.
WHO? Nicole Stoops, a native of Germany, moved to the
United States when she was 19 years old and is a full-time student
at Boise State University.
WHAT? She worked with “Talk Time” last
semester as a part of her freshman seminar. Talk Time welcomes new
Americans, refugees, and immigrants to share conversation and
activities for children and adults; light refreshments are always
served.
WHERE? Held at Saint Alphonsus Hospital in the McCleary
Center, Talk Time is a bimonthly continuing English conversation
gathering for recent immigrants and refugees.
WHEN? Talk Time conversation nights are held the first
and third Wednesday evenings of the month from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
On the second and fourth Wednesdays at the same time, volunteers
and ambassadors meet to plan and prepare topics and activities for
the following Talk Time.
WHY? Having experienced life as an immigrant, Stoops
possesses empathy for the new Americans served by Talk Time’s
continuing English conversation gatherings. From the first
volunteer meeting, Stoops was full of ideas for the program,
especially with regards to the children’s activities.
“I like that we have the freedom to help design the
program and bring in our ideas,” Stoops said.
HOW? Many of her suggestions for back to school and
Halloween activities were popular with the twenty or so children
who accompany their parents to Talk Time. She has spent time
getting to know youngsters from Afghanistan, Bosnia, and the
Sudan.
“I am going to keep coming here because I’ve made
good friendships,” said Stoops.
WHO? Jennifer Marrow, a senior with double majors in
Human Resources Management and Communication.
WHAT? For her Service-Learning experience, Marrow chose
the WCA’s Court Advocate program because she sees a
relationship between her desired profession and the domestic
violence issues she has been working with.
“In Human Resources, people need to be made more aware of
how a woman’s home life can affect her work. Domestic
violence can cause a woman to lose her job, possibly the only thing
that would enable her to leave an abusive situation,” Marrow
said.
WHERE? Virginia Husting’s Feminist Sociological
Theory course connected her with a Service-Learning partnership at
the WCA in downtown Boise. She also provided support to clients at
the Courthouse
WHEN? Marrow logged over 40 hours between September and
December, and has continued to volunteer with the WCA.
WHY? Growing up as a young woman in the
‘70’s, now the mother of two daughters says she has
“..seen a lot of changes, but we’ve still got a long
way to go.” Inspired by Bebe Thomson and Bev LaChance at the
Women and Children’s Alliance, Marrow said that one of her
main goals is to see that children in abusive families receive
protection.
Although her Service-Learning course has ended, Jennifer has
continued her commitment. “They put a lot of effort into the
training; I’d like to give back as much as they [the WCA] put
into us..”
Kerri McCanna, Service-Learning Program Liaison, Special to The Arbiter
