Service-Learning Newsletter | March 29, 2018
Service-Learning in Classes
As you will see from even this abbreviated list of spring service-learning courses, faculty from a wide range of academic disciplines have found this methodology to be an effective way to teach course content and connect students with the wider community.
Art
New in Spring 2018
Students in Professor Jay Wallace’s Printmaking course collaborate with members of the Atchison community who have offered a particular kind of service throughout their life. After hearing one or more stories that their partner wants to share, students create a print as a “pict-oral” representation of that memory.
Biology
Offered again in Spring 2018
Dr. Mark Schramp’s Principles of Biology students assist with gardening and yardwork at Mount St. Scholastica where they have a firsthand encounter with course topics such as plant diversity and ecology.
Business
Offered again in Spring 2018
Accounting majors have the opportunity to fulfill their internship requirement through serving with the IRS’ VITA program (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance), housed at Catholic Charities’ Atchison office. Read more here.
Chemistry and Biochemistry
Continued from Fall 2017
In Fall 2017, students in Dr. Patrisha Bugayong’s Organic Chemistry I Lab had the option to demonstrate an organic chemistry lab to the Chemistry II dual-credit course at Atchison High School. This semester, her Organic Chemistry II Lab will return to AHS to work with the same students on a new lab.
Economics / Theology
Offered again in Spring 2018
In Dr. Richard Coronado and Dr. John Rziha’s team-taught Catholic Social Teaching course (ECON/THEO 3260), students work directly with the poor through a variety of charitable projects. In addition to helping those in need, this experience adds to the course material: at the end of the semester, students demonstrate their understanding of fundamental concepts when they write a paper applying the general principles outlined in the Catholic social encyclicals to the particular example of their service-learning experience.
Education
Offered again in Spring 2018
Dr. Matthew Ramsey’s section of Psychology of Individuals with Exceptionalities introduces students to key topics in special education. During the semester, students have the option to increase their understanding of course content, such as the contributions of assistive technology and best-practice educational methods, through a variety of service experiences including helping at Special Olympics or acting as a companion to a child with a disability.
Engineering
Offered again in Fall 2017/Spring 2018
Dr. Scott Newbolds oversaw an independent study version of Engineering for Human Development, which he designed and taught last year with Dr. Pat O’Malley. In this course, which spans three quarters, students consider their roles as engineers in light of Catholic social teaching while also designing an engineering project that will benefit a developing community. This year, the independent study student prepared for a spring break mission trip to Nicaragua through Benedictine College Ministry where he and other engineering students surveyed the lot where the Catholic non-profit, A Simple House, would build to expand its ministry.
Health, Wellness, and Exercise Science
Offered again in Spring 2018
In Professor Mary Flynn’s Organization and Administration of Physical Education and Sport course, students come to see the important role of community interaction in the field of health and wellness while applying management experience at local agencies, including the Boys and Girls Club, the YMCA or Medicalodges Atchison.
Journalism and Mass Communications
Offered again in Spring 2018
Dr. Kevin Page’s Mass Communications Senior Seminar class worked in teams to organize promotional projects for a variety of local community organizations including the Boys and Girls Club, the Atchison Community Health Clinic, and Project Atchison. Students had the chance to add public relations, social media management, graphic design and marketing experience to their resume.
Theology
Offered again in Spring 2018
Students in Dr. Mikail Whitfield’s sections of Christian Moral Life learn about the corporal and spiritual works of mercy through lectures and course readings, but also through practicing them on their own. A number of students in the class spent time visiting residents at the Dooley Center at Mount St. Scholastica. Read more here.