On November 11, 2022, three local community organizers joined the Duke Service-Learning team to share their work and experiences as community organizers within the Durham community. The panel session was moderated by Dr. Joan Clifford, Program Director of Duke Service-Learning. Panelists included Kathy Thelemaque of Durham CAN (Congregations, Associations, and Neighborhoods), Maria Luisa Solis Guzman of Luma Consulting, and Tabitha Blackwell of Book Harvest Durham. Questions included: How did you… read more about Organizing for Action »
Romance Studies Senior Lecturer, Bethzaida Fernández was awarded a Fellowship as part of the Community-Engaged Scholarship Collaborative from the Duke Office of Durham and Community Affairs. Community-engaged scholarship involves partnerships between the community and university addressing issues of shared importance and demonstrating mutual benefit. Fernández applied for the program to support the Raíces, Rutas y Ritmos project in collaboration with her Service-Learning course Spanish 313 “… read more about Bethzaida Fernández awarded Community-Engaged Scholarship Collaborative Fellows Program »
Deborah Reisinger, associate professor of the practice of Romance Studies, has been selected as a member of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques, an honor that recognizes excellence in teaching and promotion of the French language and culture. The honor of chevalier, or knight, is bestowed by the French government. French Consul Anne-Laure Desjonquères presented it to Reisinger by in an official pinning ceremony held in Rubenstein Library on November 16. The badge, which has remained the same… read more about Deborah Reisinger Receives Official Knighthood from French Government »
In October 2022, Duke Service-Learning sponsored a Community Action Project as part of the 2022-2023 series, Beyond the Discourse: Words Become Action. Students from Dr. Joan Clifford’s Spanish 306 (Health, Culture, and the Latino Community) service-learning course bagged rice and beans for community partner Iglesia Emanuel, an organization offering a food pantry and tutoring center targeting the Spanish-speaking community. They were joined by others from the service-… read more about Community Action Project at Iglesia Emanuel »
For the first time in 16 years, Duke Service-Learning will be led by a new director. Joan Clifford, an associate professor of the practice of Romance Studies, began her tenure as faculty director of the Trinity program this semester after taking over for long-time leader David Malone. As Clifford settled into her new role by announcing the 2022-2023 Service-Learning theme, which will take faculty and students “beyond the discourse,” we sat down with her to talk about her history with Service-Learning, what comes… read more about New Service-Learning Director Looks Beyond the Discourse »
Duke Service-Learning was ranked #4 in university service-learning programs by U.S. News and World Report. Nominations for college and university service-learning programs were submitted by leaders from higher education institutions. Institutions with ten or more nominations were ranked. Service-learning is an approach to learning that connects academic learning with community engagement. See the full list. read more about Duke Service-Learning Ranked #4 Among University Programs »
Contexts 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. Read more about past context and connections events. read more about Context and Connections 2022-2023 »
Each year, Duke Service-Learning sponsors an academic program that furthers the work of service-learning. The 2022-2023 theme is Beyond the Discourse: Words Become Action. Read more about last year's theme. read more about Beyond the Discourse: Service-Learning's 2022-2023 Theme »
The Arts & Sciences Council’s Committee on Undergraduate Teaching has announced this year’s recipients of awards for excellence in undergraduate teaching. Each recipient was recognized at the council’s Sept. 8 meeting, where Committee Chair Connel Fullenkamp expressed appreciation for the many nominations across all three Trinity divisions that included “creative and inspiring” portfolios. “It made our decision very difficult because there are so many varieties of excellence that we see in our community at Duke,” he… read more about Four Trinity Faculty Honored with 2022 Undergraduate Teaching Awards »
Dr. Joan Clifford is a long-standing member of the Duke Service-Learning team. As Faculty Consultant and Director of the Community-Based Languages Initiative, she has expanded the networks of partnerships in our communities. She regularly teaches service-learning courses that connect Spanish language students to organizations that address food insecurity and education. She brings invaluable experience, expertise, and leadership to her new role as Faculty Director. A Note from Dr. Clifford: "For 16 years Professor David… read more about Dr. Joan Clifford Appointed as the next Faculty Director »
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 »