In the academy, words are currency. We read, write, listen, convince, argue, persuade, and/or prove. For those seeking to foster community-engaged teaching and learning, however, words can create echo chambers, slow us down, and facilitate inaction. Service-learning and community-engaged practices are also based in words and scholarship, but in this model of the engaged university, it doesn’t end there. The theme organizing Duke Service-Learning this year invites us to consider how service-learning and community-… read more about Announcing the 2022-2023 Service-Learning theme »
Name: Kathy Sikes Position: Senior Fellow for Civic Engagement at Duke Service-Learning Years at Duke: 13 What she does at Duke: In her capacity as Senior Fellow for Duke Service-Learning, which connects classroom learning with community engagement, Kathy Sikes documents effective practices for community-based research, coordinates service-learning program activities and participates in a Bass Connections team focused on community-engaged research. “I… read more about Blue Devil of the Week: A Civic Engagement Leader »
Each year, Duke Service-Learning recognizes undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, and community partners with the Betsy Alden Outstanding Service-Learning Awards. Betsy Alden was a pioneer in service-learning, beginning her work at Duke during the 1980s. Read more about the legacy of Betsy Alden HERE. Recipients are chosen because they represent an exceptional commitment to the ideals of service‐learning. Each winner receives $150 to further develop his/her community-building and leadership… read more about 2022 Alden Award Winners Represent the Best of Service-Learning »
Duke University’s Kathy Sikes has been honored with the 2022 Civic Engagement Professional of the Year Award by North Carolina Campus Compact, a network of colleges and universities committed to civic and community engagement. The award recognizes a higher education administrator in the state who works to realize a campus-wide vision of service, supports the engagement of faculty and students, and forms innovative campus-community partnerships. For decades, as one nominator states, Sikes has been a “staunch advocate for… read more about Kathy Sikes Receives NC Campus Compact Award »
Kusum Knapczyk, Lecturer of Hindi Language of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, has won the 2021 ACTFL Global Engagement Initiative Award. Kusum has built relationships with the Delhi Young Artist Forum, artists, dance and yoga instructors, and Indian magazines (to which students submit work) over the years and her students are able to deepen the exploration of topics like gender inequality, climate change, education, and the caste system, through these community-based experiences. Here's what Kusum's… read more about Kusum Knapczyk wins 2021 ACTFL Global Engagement Initiative Award »
Professor Sarah Wilbur’s book “Funding Bodies: Five Decades of Dance Making at the National Endowment for the Arts” will be published in October by Wesleyan University Press. An e-copy of the book, published under a creative commons license, can be found here. read more about Sarah Wilbur publishes “Funding Bodies: Five Decades of Dance Making at the National Endowment for the Arts” »
And yes, we are far from polished far from pristine but that doesn't mean we are striving to form a union that is perfect We are striving to forge a union with purpose ― Excerpt from Amanda Gorman's poem "The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country" What is the purpose of community-university partnerships? Whose knowledge and experiences are centered? What does it mean to “be with” and “belong to” a community? What are the limitations of “helping” and “giving back”? How can we act in solidarity… read more about Duke Service-Learning Event Series: Communities First: Purposes, Perspectives, and Practices »
The goal of community-engaged Hindi courses s to help connect students to the local Indian community and Hindi speakers, enhance the understanding of art and culture, and improve the ability to use Hindi for creating bonds with culture and community. This semester Vidya Nahar, a yoga instructor and a native speaker of Hindi, created an authentic experience for Hindi language students. This week in Hindi classes we learned how to perform a few yoga stances with Vidya Nahar who joined us… read more about Hindi students release semester pressures with laughter yoga »
In the American education curriculum, we learn little of America’s ethically spotted past and even less of its present. The past year, however, has illustrated to everyone paying attention that racism still very much exists in our society and is ingrained into every system of power. These problems often seem so large that we cannot imagine how to change them. We may be tempted to absolve ourselves of responsibility, thinking that we have little power as an individual. This complacency is dangerous. It is only through… read more about How to be anti-racist: Five takeaways from “Anti-racist Education: Principles, Pedagogies, and Community-Engagement” »
Students from Neuroscience Service Learning: Brain Connections (NEUROSCI 444S), taught by Minna Ng, collaborated with the Durham Children's Initiative and the Downtown Durham YMCA to design educational activities about neuroscience. The service-learning project helped students understand the cognitive-developmental stages of learning when targeting specific ages and grade levels. Students explored communities, collected information on needs and requests, and collaborated with partners… read more about Students collaborate with local communities to design neuroscience learning kits »
Since 2015, the Duke University Health System Summer Internship Program has given Durham high school students first-hand experiences in the health care field by allowing them to shadow staff members at Duke University Hospital and across Duke University Health System. Prior to the pandemic, participants in what became the MaryAnn Black Summer Internship Program met in person. Starting this summer, the program will be virtual. Photo courtesy of Darla… read more about Durham Community Connections Stay Strong During Pandemic »
The Betsy Alden Outstanding Service-Learning Awards recognize annually one community partner, one faculty member, and one graduating senior for their outstanding commitment to the ideals of service-learning. We are pleased to recognize Elizabeth Shapiro-Garza, Associate Professor of the Practice of Environmental Policy and Management, Reagan Sanders (Duke ‘21) a Public Policy major, and GANO, Gente Aprendiendo Para Nuevas Oportunidades,… read more about Congratulations to the 2021 Betsy Alden Outstanding Service-Learning Award Winners! »
What is the role of a university in creating equitable and inclusive communities? How do you engage with individuals who don’t share your worldview or principles? What is the right balance between managing urgent issues with addressing root causes? These are just some of the questions posed by undergraduates at a community-building event hosted by Duke Service-Learning on March 24. Part of the program’s ongoing “Opportunity of Now” series, this session focused on the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s goal of creating a “… read more about Service-Learning hosts discussion on ‘our shared humanity’ with Dean Valerie Ashby »
The Opportunity of Now event series: Spring 2021 “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there ‘is’ such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.” -Martin Luther King, Jr. We are experiencing a critical moment in history - an opportunity to redefine and transform how we show up in the world. How can we learn… read more about The Opportunity of Now Event Series »
“I thought it was possible that the service aspect would tank with the class going online this fall,” said Deborah Gold, professor emeritus in psychiatry and behavioral sciences, who teaches the Death and Dying service-learning course. “But the class just continued to improve all semester… Everyone involved got something significant out of the experience.” read more about Zoom and window visits: Service-learning courses adapt to the pandemic »
Deb Reisinger and Joan Clifford will be presenting "Fostering Transformative Learning in Community-Engaged Courses" at the American Association of Colleges & Universities Virtual Annual Meeting “Revolutionizing Higher Education after COVID-19" on Friday, 1/22. Event description below: How can educators create spaces for transformative learning, particularly when these courses are conducted in a second language? Presenters will share results from a research study about transformative learning in world language… read more about Deb Reisinger and Joan Clifford will present "Fostering Transformative Learning in Community-Engaged Courses" at AAC&U's Annual Meeting »
Joan Clifford, Dane Emmerling, Evan Widney, Nina Hamilton, & David Malone have published "Seeing Community Engagement as We Are: Student Perceptions of Service-Learning and Social Entrepreneurship Education" in the International Journal of Research on Service Learning and Community Engagement / Vol. 8, Issue 1, 2020. Download the article here read more about "Seeing Community Engagement as We Are: Student Perceptions of Service-Learning and Social Entrepreneurship Education" »
“The pandemic has reminded us that no one is saved alone. What ties us to one another is what we commonly call solidarity. Solidarity is more than acts of generosity, important as they are; it is the call to embrace the reality that we are bound by bonds of reciprocity. On this solid foundation we can build a better, different, human future.” — Pope Francis, from the New York Times. A global pandemic followed by a wave social protests offered a challenge, and an opportunity, to redefine… read more about Fall 2020 prioritized racial justice, language access, education, isolation, and social innovation »
Language barriers slow the process of receiving critical information, which is particularly problematic during a global pandemic. Last spring, as DPS raced to pivot from classroom learning to distance learning in just a few weeks, and non-English speaking families were particularly vulnerable to missing vital information and resources connected to basic aid and teaching their children. The DPS Multilingual Resource Center was designed for this very reason—to provide… read more about Duke students partner with DPS to deepen language access during COVID-19 »
In June 2020, Duke Service-Learning received a grant from the NC Commission on Volunteerism in Governor Roy Cooper’s office to launch the Duke University North Carolina LiteracyCorps, a statewide consortium of AmeriCorps members working to build the capacity and impact of community and campus-based education programs. This fall, fifteen half-time Duke University North Carolina LiteracyCorps members were placed in local service agencies. Fifty additional AmeriCorps members will join the group for summer… read more about Duke University NC LiteracyCorps offers student opportunities to build community and campus-based education programs »
Every semester, Kusum Ji always makes it her mission to provide students with fun and interactive activities to engage in the Hindi language and its culture. This semester was a little bit different due to the virtual environment of classes. Nonetheless, Kusum Ji made the impossible possible this semester with a virtual dance class with Rohini Thakkar from the Duke India Initiative. The goal of Hindi 101 and Hindi 203 is to help connect students to the local Indian… read more about Students learn Hindi through Bollywood dance class »
"A Tour Through Historic Black Durham" was part of the virtual event "Getting to Know Your New Hometown: Durham Then and Now," hosted by Duke Service-Learning. In this video, Kyrie Mason and Geoff Gadsden present a dynamic aerial tour of historic Black Durham using Google Earth maps. Kyrie and Geoff are first-year graduate students in the Master's in History program at North Carolina Central University. They are working with Dr. Charles Johnson, Assistant Professor and… read more about A Tour Through Historic Black Durham »