Context and Connections is a signature program of Duke Service-Learning, engaging Duke faculty and staff interested in deepening their knowledge of and connections to the Durham community, as well as exploring connections with teaching, research, and service. Context and Connections is about getting faculty and staff off campus, introducing folks to Durham’s rich history, and facilitating introductions to community resources for service-learning and community-engaged (SLCE) courses. In 2023-2024, we are offering four events and two Community Action Projects over the course of the year to highlight contexts and create connections for SLCE faculty and staff.
Please join us for one or more of these upcoming events:
There are no upcoming events at this time.
Recent Events:
Guided Tour of Historic Stagville
Thursday, September 21, 2023
2:30 pm – 4:00 pm
Historic Stagville is a 165-acre State Historic Site, entirely dedicated to teaching about the lives, culture, and labors of enslaved African Americans. Historic Stagville preserves part of one of the largest sites of slavery in North Carolina; from 1776 to 1865, the Bennehan and Cameron plantations invested in slavery and spread across 30,000 acres of land. As Duke Service-Learning considers Agency in times of Change, students and faculty learned about the enslaved families that suffered separation, violence, hard labor, and disease, yet amid the horrors of slavery, they continually resisted, claiming some measure of freedom through sabotage, direct action, cultural traditions, and freedom-seeking.
Action Project at Catawba Trail Farm
Saturday, October 8, 2023
9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Urban Community Agrinomics (UCAN), in partnership with Triangle Land Conservancy (TLC), created Catawba Trail Farm on land that was part of the greater Stagville slave plantation. Founded by sisters Delphine Godley Sellars and Lucile Godley Patterson, UCAN engages the community of North Durham in work that centers skills based in agriculture and provides a place for community members to have access to fresh fruits and vegetables. Join Duke Service-Learning on Saturday, October 8 between 9am and 12p as part of our year of considering Agency in times of Change. Students and faculty learned from and about UCAN's mission to improve the health and wellness of our community as we support a work day and engage in farm activities.