Equipping Students for a Lifetime of Civic Engagement

Rationale: To teach Social Responsibility to young adults through Service Learning Goal:Participants will know how to engage the students and community in Service Learning.. Participants will know how to plan, implement, evaluate and plan for sustainability with Service Learning Projects. Equipping Students for a Lifetime of Civic Engagement Jackie Gillespie MN, RN, CNE Portia Botchway MSN, RN Clemson University, a land-grant institution, was founded with a mission to be a “high seminary of learning” dedicated to teaching, research and service. Service learning at Clemson is a “form of experiential education that uses community service experiences to enhance the academic classroom experience. This teaching process involves the students partnering with the community, identifying and analyzing community needs, identifying solutions to meet those needs, then implementing those solutions. The students also evaluate their work and assess their service experience and its impact” (Clemson University Service Learning Alliance Web Site, May 2006). Clemson School of Nursing Program has incorporated service learning within its curriculum. Students partner with community subpopulations, utilizing evidence-best practice guidelines to ensure the delivery of the highest quality of care. This collaborative effort with community partners builds continuing alliances and effects sustainable change for the multifaceted needs of the client in the community. This presentation will share the evidenced-based practice foundation on which this project is designed and attendees will view a power point presentation that shares students’ work nationally and internationally. To promote ease in future service learning projects, attendees will be given the plans and grading criteria for this project that will serve as a guide for incorporating service learning into the classroom and ultimately give students a working knowledge of implementing change in population care. Service Learning is a vital tool in the education of our nurses. Dr. Wanda Taylor, 2014-2015 Service Learning Alliance Faculty Fellow describes the beneficial relationship. “Core concepts of social responsibility, caring, and advocacy are crucial developments in nursing education. Social barriers can impede health care, but a culture of caring can break down these walls. Nursing, by sheer numbers, is poised to make a huge difference. Nursing students take these service learning experiences and build on them for a lifetime of giving back to the community. One student journaled, “From this project, I learned how important it is to get involved with the community in which I live. I know that I will be able to apply this to my future nursing career because in the community I live in there are always going to be needs that can be addressed. I can take what I have learned through this project and use it to make a difference in my own community. I want to be an integral part in helping my community become a healthier, better place to live.