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THE ATLANTA SERVICE-LEARNING CONFERENCE June - December, 1969 Atlanta, Georgia This paper was devel oped from materials pre pared by William R. Ramsay of the Southern Regional Education Board, by Dean Edward Holmes of Emory University, by Sam Williams of the Atlanta Urban Corps, by J. D. Kimmi ns of the Peace Corps, by Donald J . Eberly of the National Service Secretariat, and others . �The Service-Learning Concept To serve and to learn; these fundamental goals of our society are ingrained in the American rhetoric. But how to serve? and how to learn? An institutionalized, bureaucratized 20th Century America has effectively limited the answers to these g_uestions. For "service to country" America legislatively reg_uires military duty only, which many of today's young people find morally questionable. For "learning" we have complex university systems with limited ability to respond to the individual and with oftimes conservative views of what is education and what is not. However, considerable attention is currently being given to the role of universities in service to society.- At one extreme, argwnents are heard that community involvement by an academic institution threatens its integrity and drains its resources. At the other end of the spectrum of opinion is the view of the university as a shaper of society with special social responsibilities because of its objectivity, standards, and resources of knowledge. These arguments about campus-in-community may obscure fundamental g_uestions of the role of the community as an educational resource. Can the university perform its primary functions of education and the discovery of new knowledge without an involvement in . society? Can educational institutions develop the type of ma npower needed by a r apidly changing society, both as professionals a nd as citizens in a democracy, without including th e r esourc es of soc ietal experience in the educational proces s ? How mi ght community service, sought by many students, best be designed as a learning experience and integrated with other aspects of a total educational pr ogr am? Alternatives to traditional "service" and "learning " do indeed ex ist, because America is vast and strives for freedom of individual expression. Some universities and colleges, for example, bending to strong and some Q t imes violent winds of change, support the creation of "free univers ities 11 on their campuses. But, heavy course loads and the "success" syndrome of a hurr y-up mater ialistic soc i ety, do not do much to encourage the average college student to pursue extra- curricular education that is unnecess ary for a degree award. Existing serv ice programs like Teacher Corps, VISTA, and Pea ce Corp s attr act only a tiny percentage of college graduates , partly because the time spent with these agencies is often constr ued a s a ltruistic "sacrif ice. The fa ct is that our s ociety's definition of what is "practical , " mows down idea l i s t by the hundr eds of thousands. Th e System per sua des many that "volunteer" servi ce a nd educational exper i mentat i on is t o be undertaken at p er s onal expe nse and r isk, a nd onl y rarely at the expense or r i sk of establ ished ins tituti ons . 1 11 �---- ---·- - ' -- ·----·- - ·- - • • • sch,.:,ol 6-dministrators (mt,st) wake up to the hea:.thy new needs of s·cuG.ent participation and incorporate that activity into the learning process. i I Il I President Richard M. Nixon .,__________________Rad~-o~~dres_~- --o~ct~ber 17, __:-968_~! A new approach is both necessary and possible. It reg_uires new meaning for "practicality," new openness to change, new commitment to experimentation, new acceptance of the ability of youth, and indeed new social institutions and attitudes • • • to say nothing of competent human beings who are prepared to function in the new society. It is to search for these new attitudes and processes that the Atlanta Service-Learning Comference is convened. The Atlanta Service-Learning Conference On April 30, 1969, at Atlanta University, students, faculty members and agency officials met to discuss the feasibility of a proposal to convene a conference of six-months' duration, whose goal would be a thorough study of the concept of service-learning in local application. The participants voted to declare themselves the Atlanta ServiceLearni..rg Conference (ASLC), and to extend participant status to any agency, organization, or individual whose interests or activities have a bearing on the components of service-learning programs, or who have interests in the successful outcome of a local experiment in service-learning. To dat e , students, tea chers, administrator s, educationa l ins titut i ons, federal, regional, and local government agencies, and diverse other private and public agencies and institutions have indicated an active, working int erest in the ASLC. ,- ·----- Th~-~~ice of youth h~s served notice that satisfaction can't be measured alone in dollars; that ther e is a need f or serv i ce and contribution beyond the attainment of material success. If these goals reg_uir e an i nvestment in patience , t hen let us invest; if they reg_uir e money, then let us spend. t·--· ---·- ------ -·--··-----·· --·· Daniel Evans Governor of Washington Keynote Address t o 1968 Republ ican Convention Formally stat ed, the Conf erence is convened t o combine the resources ot institutions and agencies concerned with the relationship between ser v ice experience and education, to explore and dev elop a conceptual framework and practical model for service-l earning programs f or univers i ties 2 lj~ I l I I II ! t ' �and communities, and to provide a structure for reflection and exchange a.:nong various local community and education programs during a six-month period (June-December, 1969.) Careful study combined with actual invoLvement in service-learning programs should result in a comprehensive picture and plans for service-learning in communities and on campuses. To assist t.he participants in their study, several methods will be employed: I. Work Groups The Conference will function primarily through work groups, each undertaking to explore in depth and to produce a report on one assigned function of the concept of service-learning. Work groups will meet in individual sessions, subject to the Chairman 1 s call. The several components of a service-learning program, as identified by the Conference and assigned as work-group top±cs, uith some questions for their consideration, are: 1. A Service Work Group What should be the size of the service rendered, in comparison with societal needs? What criteria defines relevant service? What service do students perform and wish to perform? What service can agencies accept? How long should service last? (summer, one term, full year or longer?) What kinds of agencies can accept youth in service? (Hospitals, Social Welfare, Educational, Religious, Governmental) Should service be full-time or part-time? 2. A Learning Work Group Can learning take place in roles which students consider socially irrelevant? How can students be helped to grasp the broader implications o~ what they learn by serving? What relationship exists between individual student goals and the , chose of alternative service opportunities? How can students be helped to raise the important, relevant questions about their service experiences? How· can interested, knowledgeable, and accessible faculty be identified and enlisted in the service-learning experience? What implications of experience-based learning are pertinent to higher education in general? How, in fact, do students learn from experience? How can it be. measured? How can community needs, student interests, and university programs interact to yield significant learning on the part of everyone involved? What methods and techniques are most effective in preparing students for their job and community roles? 3 �3. A Curriculum and I nter-Institutional Work Gr oup What courses now exist which are relevant to service-learning programs as training for other forms of service? What inter-institutional relations now exist which could be utilized and developed for internships and program development ? ·what effects will the service-learning e:>q)erience have on student expectations in the curriculum area? 'What effect on independent study or directed research? What will be accredited and how much credit will be given and asked? Will this req_uire cross-crediting among institutions? 4. A Research Work Group ·what is the tota l need for student manpower i n Atlanta? What is the total student manpower potential in Atlant a? Under what conditions could this manpower resource be tapped for the benefit of everyone concerned? What changes in student attitudes occur during a servicelearning experience? 5. A Financial Work Gr oup In funding service-learning programs, what share should be borne by the agency being served? by the student of educational institution? by the government ? How should the Atlanta Urban Corps be financed in the future? What proporti on of Work-Study f unds should be spent on off -campu;:; ser vice a ctiviti es? 6. A Methods and Programs Work Group What methods are used by other intern agencies in the nat i on? What are the r elevant pr ograms , propos ed and developed, within and without t he Atl anta area, t hat t h e Confer ence should know about? In what ways should t h e Conference rel ate to other s uch programs ? Work groups will marshal l available res ources, i mplement i deas and concepts, guide t he progress of t he Conference, coor dinat e i t s operations, study i t s conponent concerns, and make recommendations based upon their study a nd observations toward the creation of a comprehensive model f or a continuing s ervice-learning operation in Atlanta. II. Mont hl y Meetings of the Conference Monthly sessions of the ent ire Conference wi l l of which one or more of the component concerns will Each wor k group will have an opportunity to chair a ference, and guide t h e discussion as it sees fit t o 4 be convened, at each be the topic of study . session of the Confoc us the att ent ion of �t he entire Conference on its particular component of service-learning. Ea ch work group will organize its assigned session, calling in whatever additional resource people are needed to explore completely the topic of i t s concern. The schedule for subsequent sessions of the Conference is as follows: Early August Late August September October November Service Work Group Learning Work Group Curriculum Work Group Finance Work Group Research, Methods and Programs Work Groups Steering Committee December All persons attending the June 30 meeting are invited to select a work group in which to participate. Sign-up sheets are to be available i n the June 30 afternoon seminars. The first work group meetings will be held at 11:00 AM on July 1. III. A Practical Laboratory Coincident with the launching of the Conference is the creation of the Atlanta Urban Corps, a group of 215 students serving full-time throughout t l::e s ummer with 16 city and 32 private non-profit organizations in Atlant a . Most Urban Corps members are funded on the basis of 8Cfl/o from the federal College Work-Study Program and 2oo/o from the employing agency. The Southern Regional Education Board under grants from the Economic Development Admini ~: t r ation, O.ffice of Economic Opportunity and Department of l a bor is providi ng support along with Atlanta businessmen and foundations to cover administrative costs a nd stipends for interns not eligible f or the Work -Study Pr ogram . VISTA ha s as s igned 25 associate positions to operate under Urban Corps auspices. l ~ I - --- -- - - - · I l "The Urban Corps is the best example I've seen for young intelligent minds to gr apple with the problems of the city ." t__ _____ ~ ~ yor Ivan Allen, Jr.____ __ _ _ Sam Wil liams , direct or of t he At lanta Urban Corps, points to the rele vance of the educational a sp ect of t he pr ogram as he des cribes t he educa t ional eva luat ion t eam whi ch is a part of h is t wenty-member staff. Nine s t aff memb ers make up the evaluation t eam which is resp ons i bl e f or develop -:ing and assuring educationa l dimension of each i nter n 1 s summer as signment o Five profes s ors serve as counselors to l end technical and educational assistance to individual i nterns and groups of int erns, and wit h one pro fess ional and three student staff members in the offi ce plan seminars and coordinate other means of hel ping the interns make their s ummer wor k exper i ences educationally relevant. Each student will be r equired to pr es ent to the Ur ban Corps a r eport on his inter nship at the completion of his servi ce per i od . 5 j J �Thus, the Urban Corps, in addition to accomplishing needed tasks in the community and offering both a summer job and a relevant educational experience to its members, provides a practical service-learning laboratory for the Conference. Through observation of the Urban Corps and participation of its members, the Conference is assured the necessary dialogue between theory and practice. A steering committee, composed of work group chai:rmen and other conveners of the Conference, has been formed to provide direction for Conference activities and to maintain a balance among the componentsof the service-learning concept. The motivation for convening the Conferenc,~ combines an enlightened self-interest with an appreciation of the -broader potential of the service-learning idea. For examples, agencies are interested in competent manpower to do their tasks. They are also searching for potential career employees. Students are seeking experience and financial aid. Educational institutions are seeking to improve the education offered to students, to make it more relevant, and to identify useful career possibilities for students. By means of a service-learning program, it is hoped that these and other objectives can be more fully met than if each were pursued in isolation. Sponsors of the Conference include the following organizations: The City of Atlanta The Atlanta Urban Corps Economic Opportunity Atlanta The Colleges and Universities of Atlanta Department of Health, Education and Uelfare The Southern Regional Education Board Volunteers in Service to Ameri ca The Peace Corps Further information on the Conference may be obtained fr:·m the sponsoring agency officials identified in the program and from wo1.0:-;: group chairmen. The mailing address of the Conference is: Atlanta Service-Learning Conference Peace Corps , Southern Region, Ste. B-70 275 Peachtree Street, N. E. Atlanta, Georgia 30303 6 �