May 2019 Service-Learning Newsletter

Builders of Community

Ginny Steinkamp

An essential focus of the Education Department at Benedictine College is forming future educators who are engaged promoters of their communities. The course catalog states, “Not only do education graduates work toward building community with students, families, and members of the local community, but they see a purpose of education to be the development of individuals who assume responsibility for building a healthy community locally, nationally, and globally.” Dr. Matthew Ramsey, Associate Professor and Chair of Education, stated, “Our conceptual framework as a department is this idea that teachers are builders of community. We think about the teacher functioning on three different levels the first being the classroom, the second being the school as a whole, and the third being the town or suburb or greater community.” It is crucial for these future teachers to learn how to engage on a local level as well as a wider one in order to truly educate the whole human person.

One significant way Education majors develop this ability is by taking the School as Community service-learning course, which exposes them to diversity in various forms as it may be found in the classroom. By serving in the Atchison community, Benedictine students are able to encounter socio-economic, religious, and learning-ability diversity, to name a few types, and gain a broader perspective of individual students’ learning needs.

The course consists of a three-credit hour portion dedicated to studying the theory behind diversity and the role that a school plays in various types of communities. This is coupled with a one-credit hour field experience in which students collaborate with a number of local organizations including Central School, Achievement Services, the Boys and Girls Club, and the Benedictine College Hunger Coalition. By the end of the semester, students have dedicated 50 hours to engaging diverse populations in the community. This includes a special project which the students choose, plan, and carry out themselves.

One exceptional example of the many projects completed by the Education department was organized in Fall 2018 by Benedictine junior, Claire Thoemke. Claire planned a “Parents’ Night Out” for the parents of students at Central School. At this event, childcare was provided in addition to a free meal, live musical entertainment, and a friendly atmosphere for parents to take a break. Thoemke says, “Many of the parents just don’t get a break. Even just a meal which seems like a very simple thing is such a weight off their shoulders because they don’t have to think about where the money will come from or who is going to cook the food. It was also good for even just an hour for them to just get to talk to other adults.” Thoemke was able to send food home with the parents as well as provide a night of relaxation and entertainment.

Through her experience planning the event, Thoemke has been stretched in her preparation to become an elementary teacher. Thoemke says, “Without all of our observation experiences, I would not feel prepared to be a teacher, because I wouldn’t know what it is like on the day-to-day.” She says this experience has taught her a lot of about the necessity for flexibility and adaptability. Dr. Christi Adams, a former professor of the course, says this class is designed to push students out of their comfort zone. She says, “They work hard. This class is a heavy hitter. To imbed 50 hours in their semester is a tall ask, and if that’s not enough, they have to write a 5-page reflection paper that is guided. They might enter that with a little drudgery, but I cry when I read most of them, because of the beautiful connections they make.”

The School as Community course allows Education majors to put into practice many of the principles and theories they have discussed within the traditional classroom setting. Thoemke says, “It’s basically the culmination of all of the other ‘Ed’ classes in a way, because we talk a lot about social issues that our students might have and anything that you can imagine that would affect a school and a student and specifically the school as community.” Through challenges, learning educational theory, and actively practicing what they have learned through service opportunities, Education students are able to prepare themselves for their future students. Additionally, Benedictine students are able to better understand the community that exists here within Atchison.

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