What is “community-engaged learning”? Is it service-learning?
Here at UVM, we consider courses that work with off-campus partners to be Service-Learning (SL). We also designate courses that work with on-campus partners or that introduce students to community-based cases; these courses have a designation called Civic Learning (CL). We use community-engaged learning as the umbrella term covering all of these courses.
Can I teach service-learning courses at UVM?
Absolutely! Service-learning has a long and valued history at UVM, with our Faculty Fellows program starting in 1999 and the Office of Community-Engaged Learning founded in 2003. Currently, over 130 courses each year are offered, and over 50% of graduating seniors have taken and passed a designated course. Faculty from every unit on campus teach designated service-learning courses.
I have been hired to teach an existing service-learning course; what should I do?
Welcome! Our staff are available to consult on the development – or adaptation – of a course, partnerships, and all aspects of implementation, including designation and risk management. While your department chair or other faculty should also be available to mentor you in the context of departmental expectations, you should check with CELO staff about implementation and how we work together at UVM.
How do community partnerships work here?
While CELO staff can help you identify potential partners and collaborators, there is no centralized partnership hub on campus, and we do not operate on a “placement” model. Vermont is deeply relational, so building relationships within the University is often the best first step towards a building a network of community contacts. We encourage new faculty to first meet with us, and we can help develop lists, referrals and strategies for partnership development in the unique context of your course. We also encourage taking the time to learn about the Vermont context. See the next question for more.
I want to build a new service-learning course. How do I get started?
We are here to support you: sign up for our newsletter, check out our workshops, book a consult, or check out our resources; consider applying to be a Faculty Fellow for Community-Engaged Learning. At the same time, we encourage faculty to build their teaching practice intentionally, which could mean taking some time getting to know the Vermont community context, getting to know students, and getting a sense of the curriculum in your department. Having a solid grounding in the learning outcomes for a course, student levels of preparation and current capacity, and some preliminary relationships off-campus can make the process of developing service-learning easier. Even an experienced community-engaged faculty member may want to take time to learn the Vermont context before diving in. For more on laying a foundation for your community-engaged work, see this white paper.
How do my courses get designated?
Both the Civic Learning and Service-Learning designations are approved by the Office of Community-Engaged Learning, and appear in the online Schedule of Courses, and on student transcripts. Courses meeting the service-learning criteria must be designated in order to provide clarity and consistency for students and community partners. Designated courses meet requirements for certain minors and majors and can meet the Global Citizenship General Education requirement.
Learn more about designation and apply here
What kinds of help are available?
The Office of Community-Engaged Learning (CELO) staff are available to help. Susan Munkres, CELO Director, has over 10 years of experience mentoring community-engaged faculty and 25 years of teaching experience in varied contexts, using high-impact pedagogies.
Book a consult with Susan here
Read about CELO’s services for faculty here
CELO offers a range of services:
- Faculty programming: individual consults, stand-alone resources, workshops and a signature Faculty Fellows for Community-Engaged Learning cohort program every spring.
- Faculty mentoring: referrals to faculty teaching in similar areas, or on similar issues
- Course supports: in-class workshops + visits, implementation grants for SL activities, and Service-Learning Teaching Assistants
- Resources: guides to SL teaching, course designation, risk management and more