Loyola Cel Annual Report 2009

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Center for Experiential Learning A

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2 0 0 8 - 2 0 0 9

Undergraduate Participation in Experiential Learning, 2008-2009 As a percentage of total undergraduate population (10,124)*

Service-Learning 23%

Academic Internships 7%

65%

Community-based FWS 4% LUROP 1%

Sources: Loyola University Chicago “Facts at a Glance” 2008; Center for Experiential Learning data, 2008-2009.

LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR In the Center for Experiential Learning, the 2008-09 year has been one of rapid development and growth. We have experienced significant increases in experiential learning opportunities for students across Loyola University Chicago, with 35% of Loyola’s undergraduates participating in at least one experiential learning program. This past year’s growth is attributed to the following initiatives of the Center for Experiential Learning:

• • • •

Increasing the number of academic internship opportunities for students Facilitating the development of more service-learning courses across the university Establishing more community-based Federal Work-Study opportunities for students Increasing the number of undergraduate research opportunities and outreach to students

Our work, though, is not only the effort of CEL staff, but also through the work of faculty enhancing their courses through experiential learning and through the many collaborations across Loyola University. Through collaboration, more students engage in the community and professional organizations, applying their knowledge in real world settings.

Patrick Green, Ed.D. Director

It is interesting to note that in our experiential learning assessment, students demonstrated positive development in skills and abilities, as well as values. They reported advances in personal development, professional development, civic development and academic development. Through their experiential learning opportunities, students learn to think differently, question more judiciously, imagine more authentically, and act more justly. In essence, experiential learning opportunities are transformative for our students at Loyola University Chicago . . . and they make a difference in the communities in which our students are working as well.

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ACADEMIC INTERNSHIPS, 2008-2009

Over 685 Loyola University Chicago students have had an academic internship in the past academic year, an 18% increase from last year. The expectation is that an intern would work a minimum of 100 hours in the course of a semester – that totals approximately 68,500 hours of preprofessional experience.

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ACCOUNTING - SBA ADVERTISING & PUBLIC RELATIONS BIOLOGY BLACK WORKLD STUDIES COMMUNICATION COMPUTER SCIENCE CRIMINAL JUSTICE ECONOMICS ENGLISH ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES FINANCE - SBA FINE ARTS HEALTH CARE (HSM) HISTORY JOURNALISM INTERNATIONAL STUDIES INFORMATION SYSTEMS - SBA MANAGEMENT - SBA MARKETING - SBA MODERN LANGUAGES (FRENCH) MODERN LANGUAGES (POLISH) MODERN LANGUAGES (SPANISH) POLITICAL SCIENCE – CHICAGO POLITICAL SCIENCE - LAW SCHOOL POLITICAL SCIENCE – D.C. PSYCHOLOGY SOCIOLOGY SPORT MANAGEMENT - SBA UNIV 390 TOTALS

FALL 5 20 5 0 0 4 7 2 7 3 2 7 0 0 21 12 0 0 3 0 0 3 11 10 3 26 2 2 24 179

SPRING SUMMER TOTAL 24 4 33 39 44 103 6 1 12 1 0 1 8 5 13 5 7 16 8 8 23 2 2 6 4 0 11 8 1 12 25 3 30 6 2 15 10 0 10 10 1 11 14 16 51 19 11 42 2 0 2 8 1 9 18 7 28 1 0 1 4 0 4 1 3 7 15 18 44 11 0 21 2 9 14 37 0 63 4 3 9 2 1 5 33 35 93 327 182 688

SAMPLE INTERNSHIP SITES, 2008-2009

Foresight Design Initiative The Arts and Business Council Girls in the Game The Chicago Council on Global Affairs About Face Theatre Grant Thornton, LLP The Institute for Positive Mental Health ADT Security Solutions Howard Brown Health Center The Mediation Center Advocate Illinois Masonic Hospital Hubbard Street Dance Company The Moody Church Albin & Associates Accounting I-GO Car Sharing The Onion All Care Home Health, Inc. Illinois Policy Institute The Salk Institute American Cancer Society Institute for Positive Mental Health The Terra Foundation for American Art Ardmore Associates, LLC Jerry Springer Show Today's Chicago Woman Magazine Arfhouse Chicago Kohl Children's Museum TransPerfect Translations Arts and Business Council of Chicago KPMG, LLC Tribune Company Aurora Investment Management Lester E. Fisher Center, Lincoln Park Zoo Tribune Interactive Government Best Buy Lifeline Theatre True Partners Consulting 11% Big Shoulders Digital Video Productions McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum Tuesday's Child Blaige & Co. Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority Two Feet Media Bridges Media MTV Networks U.S. Funds for UNICEF Non-Profit Burns Entertainment and Sports Marketing NAMI of Greater Chicago U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission 42% Calder LaTour, Inc. National Immigrant Justice Center U.S. Senator Richard Durbin Cambridge Realty Capital Ltd. of IL Oxford Development UBS Financial Services, Inc. Casmir Pulaski Fine Arts Academy Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum United States Probation Office - Northern CBS 2 Broadcast Center Project Focus District of Illinois Center for Justice & Democracy Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago University Health System Consortium Chicago Council on Global Affairs Revolution Sports Marketing Upper Quadrants Capital Management For-Profit Chicago Office of Tourism Rogers Park Business Alliance Utah Health Policy Project 47% Chris Helt Law Office Smith Barney Vickie Pasley Law CME Group SpaceTime Media, Inc. Victim Witness Assistance Program Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky St. Gregory the Great H.S. ViralMesh Student by LLC sector of the economy Cook County Domestic Violence Court Starcom MediaVest Group, Inc.academic internships WCP Holdings, Loyola University Chicago, FallTelevision 2008—Summer 2009 Cook County Public Defender's Office State's Attorney Office, Juvenile Justice WFLD/WPWR Fox Crowe Horwath LLP Swedish American Museum William Blair and Company Cystic Fibrosis Foundation TASC Inc WMS Gaming, Inc. ESPN Radio 1000 The Anti-Cruelty Society World Relief Council Field Museum of Natural History The Arthritis Foundation 5

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A successful academic internship provides a place for students to learn about themselves, the work place, their chosen profession and their civic responsibilities in an interdependent world. A total of 688 Loyola students engaged in academic internships this past year, learning about their professional potential in the real world. An example is Jacqueline “JT” Edwards (’09), who volunteered at Girls in the Game, an organization that focuses on young women through health education and fitness programs. “After I completed my hours of volunteer service, I was asked to stay on as an intern,” JT said. “In Spring 2009, I thought it would be very easy for me to transition into my new role in the business side of the organization and move away from my role as volunteer coach, working with the girls directly. Figuring out my goals for the site agreement really helped in this capacity because I knew what I wanted to get out of the internship and I could explain this to my supervisor.” After working as an intern and learning the multiple aspects of a non-profit organization such as Girls in the Game, JT recognized the challenge of an internship. “My internship really pushed me beyond my comfort zone, teaching me not only about myself but also about the world around me. My time at Girls in the Game has been my first venture into the ‘real world’ and I think it has given me a unique skill set that will help me as I continue on into my future career. I have spent the last four years trying to figure out what it is that I want do with my life…I knew that I wanted to do something where I could make a difference and I loved what I was doing at Girls in the Game (specifically our mission) and this gradually led me to the idea of going into social work!” “[JT] has gone above and beyond her expected timeline and list of responsibilities this past year,” said JT’s supervisor. “She arranged with her Loyola service coordinator, our volunteer coordinator and myself to extend her position into a full-year internship in order to learn more about Girls in the Game as a whole. Her role with Girls in the Game has expanded due to her initiative and professionalism with both participants and staff. She was a pleasure to have throughout the entire year at our agency.” In July 2009, JT was accepted into Loyola’s MSW program and will begin classes in Fall 2009. Photo: JT Edwards with a student. (Courtesy of Girls in the Game)

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SERVICE-LEARNING, 2008-2009

Nearly 2,100 Loyola undergraduates participated in 67

1200 1039

1032

service-learning classes requiring at least 20 hours of community service during

1000

800

2008-2009. An additional 256 first-year students com-

500

600

pleted service projects as part of their Loyola Seminar (UNIV 102). In total,

400 243 200

Loyola service-learners offered approximately

0 Fall 2007

Spring 2008

Fall 2008*

Spring 2009

73,265 hours of unpaid service to the community.

Loyola students enrolled in service-learning classes by semester * N.B. Fall 2008 data does not include 265 students that completed service projects as part of UNIV 102 classes

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SAMPLE SERVICE-LEARNING SITES 2008-2009 AIDS Foundation of Chicago American Red Cross of Greater Chicago Anixter Center Annunciation House (El Paso, Texas; Ciudad Juarez, Mexico) Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Bottomless Closet Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence The Cara Program Catholic Campaign for Human Development Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement Program Center Factory Alternative School The Center on Halsted Centro Romero Chicago 2016 Chicago Jesuit Academy Chicago Youth Programs Children’s Home and Aid - Rice Center Children's Memorial Hospital CJE Senior Life Cornerstone Community Outreach/Sylvia Center Cristo Rey Jesuit High School CSAC North Ex-Offender Reentry Council DevCorp North (now Rogers Park Business Alliance) Donoghue Charter School (GirlPOWER! Program) DuPage County Health Department Edgewater Community Council Edward Hines Hospital & Jesse Brown VA Medical Center Equality Illinois Erie Family Health Center Ethiopian Community Association of Illinois Girls in the Game

Good News Community Kitchen Guatemala: La Parroquia San Lucas Tolimán Hamdard Center for Health & Human Services Howard Area Community Center Indo-American Center Inspiration Corporation Jordan Community School Ladder Up - Tax Assistance Program Summer 2009 Lakeside Community Development Corporation Literacy Chicago Little 2009 Brothers Friends of the Elderly Spring Mano-a-mano Marjorie Kovler Center for Victims of Torture Mercy Housing Lakefront Misericordia Heart of Mercy Muslim Women Resource Center National Kidney Foundation of Illinois Fall 2008 National Student Partnerships (now LIFT) Nazareth Farm (West Virginia) Odyssey Health Care Fall 2008 (UNIVClerk 102 Office of County sections) Ogalala Re-member (Pine Ridge, SD) Operation Helping Hands (New Orleans) PAWS Chicago Porchlight Counseling Services Proviso East School-Based Health Center Red Door Animal Shelter The Safer Foundation Loyola service-learning students, Fall 2008 - Summer 2009 Swift Elementary School Taller de Jose Tamms Year Ten Campaign Trilogy Behavioral Health Services, Inc. Vietnamese Association of IL

73,265 hours of service

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In the spring of 2008, Dr. Jeanne Sokolec was granted a President’s Engaged Scholars award for her proposal to integrate servicelearning into her online section of Intro to Social Work (SOWK 200), a survey course designed to introduce students to the field. Working with the CEL staff, Dr. Sokolec identified LIFT Chicago (formerly National Student Partnerships) as an ideal partner for her class because of the range of issues dealt with by its student staff, its intensive program of ongoing training and support, and its emphasis on one-on-one interaction with clients. Dr. Sokolec’s experiment was equally experimental for LIFT, which had never partnered so intensively with an academic class. But the experience proved to be very positive for all involved, with over half of Dr. Sokolec’s students choosing to remain LIFT volunteers even after their class had ended. One of those students, Ann Terrell, reflecting on what she had learned from her experience at LIFT, stated that "I feel like I have a better idea of what it would take to run an organization, as my experience has helped me develop an understanding of business organization and communication. If I ever decide to get involved with forming a non-profit, or being part of the management of any part of a social service organization, I have been well-prepared by my experience at LIFT." Such powerful preparatory experiences and rich transferable skills development has led Dr. Sokolec to repeat her experiment in the 2009-2010 academic year…this time with three times as many students and more community partners! And LIFT’s national leadership is considering how to replicate “the Loyola model” with other universities nationwide. As LIFT Chicago’s Executive Director Ben Reuler commented, "Our partnership with Loyola's CEL has had a huge impact on the fulfillment of our mission to recruit and train college volunteers to combat poverty and expand opportunity to all people in the U.S and to connect the strengths and resources of college campuses to the needs in the surrounding community. Loyola has been a great example of a successful partnership, and we look forward to strengthening this relationship even more." Photo: Ann Terrell at work with a client. (Courtesy of LIFT Chicago)

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COMMUNITY-BASED FEDERAL WORK-STUDY, 2008-2009

368 400 350

278

300

This academic year, 368 Federal work-

250 200

study Loyola students worked at 53 offcampus locations through the

150 100 50

Community-Based Federal Work-Study

0 2007-2008

program. Off-campus sites include local not-for-profit and community-based

2008-2009

Growth in number of Loyola students employed in off-campus FWS locations, 2007-2009

organizations. Students earn a pay check for their work, while the

53

60

organization receives a 75% or 100%

50

reimbursement of the students' wage,

40

paid for through Federal monies.

30

25

20 10 0 2007-2008

12

2008-2009

Growth in off-campus FWS sites, 2007-2009

COMMUNITY-BASED FEDERAL WORK-STUDY SITES 2008-2009

Junior League of Evanston Ladder UP Legal Assistance Foundation McGaw YMCA Mitchell Museum Muslim Women's Resource Center National Runaway Switchboard New Bridge International Learning Center 18% Next Theatre 23% Office of Catholic Schools Sacred Heart Schools St. Agnes Schools St. Benedict High School St. Mary of the Angels School South-East Asia Center Swedish American Museum Taller de Jose Test Positive Aware Network Young Adult Ministry Youth Organization Umbrella

Albany Park Community Center American Academy of Children and Family Services Arts and Business Council 100% Asian American Legal Asian Human Services, Inc 90% Beacon Street Gallery Between Friends 80% Business Partners Cambodian Association of Illinois Cabrini Green Legal Aid 70% Center for Economic Progress Charis Ministries 60% Chicago Area Interpreter Referral Service Chicago House 50% Chicago Waldorf School Children's First Fund_CPS 40% City of Chicago Community Counseling Center of Chicago 30% Community Shares of Il DevCorp North 20% Edgewater Chamber of Commerce Edgewater Community Council Femi Memorial Outreach 10% Howard Area Community Center Ida Crown Jewish Academy 0% Illinois Art Alliance Immanuel Lutheran Indo American Center IMAN

2007-2008 2008-2009

13

Off-campus FWS employment as a percentage of total student FWS employment, 2007-2009

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Sacred Heart Schools, located just across the street from Loyola’s Lake Shore campus, employed around 25 Federal work-study students during the 2008-2009 academic year. Anyone from an education major who wants to promote learning, to a math wiz who is really good at explaining algebra to fifth graders, or an athlete who sees the importance in teaching good sportsmanship to youngsters, Loyola students are putting theory into practice through the community-based Federal work-study program. Loyola students who are allocated Federal work-study funds in their financial aid package have the unique opportunity to work offcampus, at a not-for profit or community-based organization, and earn a paycheck. In turn, the organization is reimbursed for the students’ wage and has the chance to work with a college student. Loyola students can give back to their community while learning what it takes to become model citizen and leader in their community. “Working with the Community-Based Federal work-study at Loyola’s Center for Experiential Learning is a true partnership,” said Sacred Heart’s Director of Human Resources Mollie Murnane. “This program is cohesive, the pieces are easy to learn and the staff are easy to connect with and guided us through the whole process.” Sacred Heart can now offer affordable tutoring services to their students and families, gain much needed administrative help and have their kids experience an academic and civic model. “We love our Loyola students,” said Murnane. “We treat them like regular employees, and they live up to our expectations.”

“This year we were met with great success. We developed a partnership with Loyola University and secured 18 bright and optimistic college students to tutor and mentor over 100 academically at-risk immigrant students at Swift Elementary school in Edgewater. The partnership gives the elementary students the opportunity to enjoy oneon-one academic support and inspires university students to engage in the community while also encouraging the importance of life-long service.” - Bob Pedro, CEO and founder, Femi Memorial Outreach Fund

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LOYOLA UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM, 2008-2009 The Loyola Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (LUROP) is the umbrella under which all funded undergraduate research programs offered at Loyola University Chicago are administered through the Center for Experiential Learning. The goal of the program is to enrich, enhance, diversify and individualize the learning experiences of undergraduate students through collaborative research with a faculty mentor. Each of the undergraduate research programs is managed by a Program Director through a university academic department or center. 16

Loyola Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program

# of Student Researchers

Biology Summer Research Fellows: A summer research experience for biology majors interested in working on a faculty-designed project. Carbon Scholars: 2-year interdisciplinary research opportunity for science & math majors. Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy (CUERP) Fellows: Summer & academic year programs for students interested in researching urban environmental issues. Center for Urban Research and Learning (CURL) Fellows: An academic year opportunity to participate in community research projects. Mulcahy Scholars: A year-long opportunity for students in the sciences to design an individual project with a faculty mentor or serve as a research assistant on ongoing projects. Provost Fellowship: An opportunity for students of all colleges and schools to design an individual research project or work collaboratively as a research assistant on a faculty project during the summer or academic year. Ricci Scholars: A year-long innovative research and cultural immersion program which awards scholarships for travel, research, and exploration. Rudis Fellowship: An academic year opportunity for student scholarship that focuses on research on comparative constitutions. Women in Science Enabling Research (WISER): Designed for women undergraduates who want to work with specific faculty on their ongoing research during the summer session. TOTAL LUROP STUDENTS IN 2008-2009

16

5 5

19

36

49

6

4

4

144

In 2008-2009, LUROP: • • •

Awarded research funds to 144 undergraduate students Engaged 28 different schools & departments in research opportunities Facilitated with 65 faculty mentors across campus

Of these totals, the Provost Fellowship, directed by the Center for Experiential Learning, awarded 49 fellowships in 2008-2009 to students in 24 different majors, representing academic disciplines in the humanities, the professional schools, and the sciences. In 2009-2010, a total of approximately 160 scholarships and fellowships to engage in undergraduate research have been awarded for the summer of 2009 as well as the 2009-2010 academic year. The program will expand to include the Graduate Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program, a pilot program that partners undergraduate students with a doctoral student and a faculty Mentor. The newly expanded program will also include the Biology Research Fellows Program, an opportunity for biology students to engage in funded research opportunities over multiple years. These programs will grow LUROP from 9 to 11 funded undergraduate research programs across the university.

Above: All LUROP participants are invited to present their research at an annual universitywide symposium. Many also present at national or international conferences.

80% of respondents to the 2008-2009 LUROP Assessment indicated plans to attend graduate or professional school. 17

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144 undergraduate students engaged in research through LUROP in 2008-2009. The following highlights some of their stories: David Miceli, a 2008-2009 Mulcahy Scholar and CUERP Intern, engaged in two separate vegetation mapping projects using historical aerial photographs and data analysis of invasive wetland plants at Illinois Beach State Park and Spring Bluff Nature Preserve. “I was able to conduct important research independently to support an overall common research goal,” said David. “The end benefit for me has been the confidence and ability to conduct work in my field of interest.” Upon completion of the projects and presenting at the 2009 LUROP Symposium, he also reported receiving several job offers and accepting a position “directly related to the research I did while participating in LUROP.” Kaitlin Klipsch, a 2008-2009 Provost Fellow, conducted research on an empirically-based mentoring program for systeminvolved youth in collaboration with local social service agencies, community leaders, and experts in the field of social work. “I really benefited from the working environment of the project. Because it was a collaborative program, I had the chance to interact with various systems, which helped to see the different levels of research, program development, and implementation in the social services. This has already and will continue to help me greatly as I go on to graduate school and work,” said Kaitlin, who plans to co-present at the 2010 Annual Conference for the Society of Social Work Research with her Faculty Mentor, Assistant Professor Julia Pryce in the School of Social Work. Dr. Pryce described Kaitlin as “…a significant asset to the project” and highlighted her “…curiosity, work ethic, and willingness to work as a team” as key contributions. Ashiyrah Ramirez-Knight (pictured left), a 2008-2009 Provost Fellow, examined the effect of stage migration on family relationships between those left behind in Mexico and relatives that have migrated to the United States. Ashiyrah conducted interviews with migrants’ families and researched books and articles on the subject to identify life changes and the families’ perceptions of the changes. “I was able to work and research in my field and actually make a contribution to my field. Since I had to travel, sometimes in rural and rugged areas in Mexico, I learned that I have the stamina, ability, and creativity to do tough field research,” explained Ashiyrah.

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EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING COURSES The Center for Experiential Learning offers several seminar courses throughout the year that provide students with community-based professional experiences through service-learning and/or internships. All of the courses meet the Civic Engagement or Leadership Core Values designation as part of Loyola’s Core Curriculum. • • •

UNIV 290: Community-based Service and Leadership UNIV 291: Community-based Research and Leadership UNIV 390: Organizational and Community Leadership

Experiential Learning Course

Students

UNIV 290 Fall 2008

40

UNIV 390 Fall 2008

24

UNIV 291 Spring 2009

36

UNIV 390 Spring 2009

33

UNIV 290 Summer 2009

9

UNIV 390 Summer 2009

35

Community-based Research and Leadership (UNIV 291) This past year, a new service-learning course, UNIV 291: Seminar in Community-based Research and Leadership was developed. Facilitated by Dr. Patrick Green as a project-based service-learning course, UNIV 291 introduced communitybased research as a methodology while engaging students in group research projects with community organizations. Students enrolled in the course worked in groups with six different community organizations on research-based projects. Each of the projects was organized and defined by the community members prior to the start of class. The groups, each consisting of 5-7 students, worked all over the Chicago-land area, from the South Loop to Uptown, and from West Rogers Park to the Little Village, and facilitated the community-based research projects with Good News Community Kitchen, the Jordan Community School (CPS), Lakeside Community Development Corporation, Mercy Housing Lakefront, LIFT Chicago (formerly National Student Partnerships), and Taller de José. 20

At semester’s end, the groups presented their community partners with valuable research, including a written report with data collected and organized in spreadsheets and/or community maps. Some groups utilized campus resources, such as David Treering, the GIS Specialist in the Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy, and the Digital Media Lab to produce wall-sized asset maps for their organization. Another group produced a video of the research project in order to encourage the community members to continue the research and to mobilize for action. The impact on the community organizations was significant. “The community-based research class project really helped our agency,” remarked Ben Reuler, Executive Director of LIFT Chicago (formerly National Student Partnerships). “The class was a great example of formal partnership with the University.” Sr. Kathy Brazda (MPS, 1991), Director of Taller de José, considered the impact of the students’ work, “The community-based research opened a new door for us. It helped us to identify problems as well as strengths. It proved facts that we could 21 use for grant writing. It is helping us with

strategic planning, and it helps us with all of our processes. I use it for educating our staff, and I use the statistics from the community-based research. I use the project and the asset map in all of our work.” The impact on the students was equally significant. “Professionally, I have sharpened many skills,” reflected Christopher Kaczmarczyk, a senior. “This project has shown that I can effectively research a problem and come up with a workable solution. I can set deadlines and meet them, while organizing my time effectively and efficiently to make best use of my resources. This experience has not only built upon my job skill set, but it has also opened my mind to unique perspectives that I can now bring to the table. Being able to fully understand the relationships between various forms of service and social impacts is extremely marketable to a future employer. I have already used this experience multiple times in job interviews.”

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UNIV 291 research groups with representatives from LIFT Chicago (formerly National Student Partnerships, top) and Taller de José (bottom).

CEL SERVICE SITES 2007-2009

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HONORS AND AWARDS During the 2008-2009 academic year, Loyola University Chicago received multiple honors to recognize its efforts in servicelearning and community engagement. Loyola received second place in the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Partnership Awards for Campus-Community Collaboration, a state-wide award sponsored by Illinois Campus Compact awarded for exemplary campus community partnerships. This award featured Loyola's partnership with George B. Swift Specialty School, facilitated by Loyola education professor Diane Schiller, PhD, who has partnered with the Swift School in Edgewater for over 17 years. Last year she became an Illinois Campus Compact State Farm Faculty Fellow, a position through which she developed a math and fine arts curriculum connecting Loyola students to Swift's Fine and Performing Arts Magnet program. Loyola was also selected for the 2008 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. The President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll is an annual recognition program administered by Learn and Serve America at the Corporation for National and Community Service and sponsored by the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation, USA Freedom Corps, and the U.S. Departments of Education and Housing and Urban Development. The selection to the Honor Roll is recognition from the highest levels of the federal government of an institution’s commitment to service and civic engagement on campus and in our nation. Finally, five months of institutional self-study and a lengthy application process, facilitated by the Center for Experiential Learning in collaboration with over 50 faculty and staff members from around the university, led to Loyola University Chicago receiving the recognition for Community Engagement from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, including their highest classification of Curricular Engagement and Outreach & Partnerships. Loyola was one of 119 applicant institutions so classified, and one of only 38 doctorate-granting institutions nation-wide to receive this designation in 2008.

Left: At the Carter Partnership Award Ceremony. Back: Chris Skrable (CEL), Dr. John Pelissero (Associate Provost), Dr. Patrick Green (CEL). Front: Joanna Buchmeyer (CEL), Sylvia Bain (Swift), Dr. Diane Schiller, Harlee Till (Swift).

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December 8, 2008

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According to the Carnegie Foundation, the Community Engagement Classification "describes the collaboration between institutions of higher education and their larger communities (local, regional/state, national, global) for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in a context of partnership and reciprocity."

Dear President Garanzini,

According to the Foundation's website, the Curricular Engagement and Outreach & Partnerships category: "…includes institutions that provided compelling evidence of one or both of two approaches to community engagement. Outreach focuses on the application and provision of institutional resources for community use with benefits to both campus and community. Partnerships focuses on collaborative interactions with community and related scholarship for the mutually beneficial exchange, exploration, and application of knowledge, information, and resources (research, capacity building, economic development, etc.)."

Your application documented excellent alignment among mission, culture, leadership, resources, and practices that support dynamic and noteworthy community engagement, and you were able to respond to the classification framework with both descriptions and examples of exemplary institutionalized practices of community engagement. . . Your campus is one of 119 institutions that will now be added to the Community Engagement Classification.

On behalf of Carnegie Foundation, congratulations! Your institution has been selected for the 2008 Community Engagement Classification in the category of Curricular Engagement and Outreach and Partnerships.

We hope you will see this as an opportunity to push your own efforts to a next level and also to mentor and support campuses that are in earlier stages of institutionalizing community engagement. Your guidance will contribute significantly to the strength of community engagement in higher education.

“The value of a Jesuit education was one of the reasons why I decided to attend Loyola. This commitment to community is found directly in the goals of this internship course because it fulfills the Civic Engagement Core. An internship is one of the numerous ways that Loyola encourages students to be civically involved and aware.” (Student—UNIV 390)

“My service in this class has helped me grow with regards to my professional skills and development. During my service I helped many people whom have little education to seek employment and sustain a career. I helped to teach computer skills, interview skills, and helped guide people in the right direction with their resumes. This experience has opened my eyes to the job market and how absolutely competitive it is. Not only did my professional experience grow from helping people with these tasks, but also, as a person, it helped me to grow.” (Student—UNIV 290)

“Since taking this internship class, I feel that I have developed tools, both in class as well as at work, that will enable me to effectively assess what type of organization is right for me and how I can take advantage of all it has to offer. Having said this, to me, a Jesuit education is only the beginning of a way of life aimed at discovering who you are and how you fit into society. I can honestly say, this is the greatest gift Loyola will give each of its students as they graduate and move on to bigger and better things.” (Student—UNIV 390)

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CENTER FOR EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING 1032 W. Sheridan Road | Chicago, IL 60660 [email protected] | 773.508.3366 p | 773.508.7088 f LUC.edu/experiential