Fostering Service-Learning and Leadership Development through First-Year Seminar Courses

This research presents a model for implementing and assessing a service-learning first-year seminar course and living community. The study investigated students’ attitudes and perceived benefits of the three aspects of their first-year program experience - community service participation, servant-leadership development, and living community participation. The results report on the four cohorts of program participants (n = 233) identifying the differences in their attitudes and perceptions and investigating the correlation between the three program areas. This study bridges the rich but isolated knowledge on first-year seminars and service learning by examining the opportunities for students to participate in both high-impact practices simultaneously