Utah
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History
In 1991, Salt Lake City elementary school teacher Barbara Lewis demonstrated Utah’s pioneering role in service-learning with publication of The Kid’s Guide to Social Action.
Shortly thereafter, Utah was among the first states to recognize the potential of the Learn and Serve program. The Utah State Office of Education’s continual promotion of service-learning over 15 years has resulted in a statewide awareness of service-learning as a tool for effective teaching and learning. Service-learning has long been a component of educational conferences with a variety of themes and purposes, and USOE matches veteran service-learning mentors with novices.
Networks of Support
In the mid-2000s, USOE started to link service-learning with character education and Safe and Drug-Free Schools. USOE promotes service-learning as a key marker for resilience. The state provides teachers with curricula that feature service-learning as a means to meet state graduation standards for health.
Building Partnerships
According to Alan Grffin, the USOE has great relationships with the Utah Commission on Volunteers, Campus Compact, the Community of Caring, Learning for Life, Utah Federation for Youth, Boys and Girls Club, Utah Coalition for Civic, Character and Service Learning, Safe and Drug Free Schools and their partners, the Corporation for National and Community Service (Utah office), Youthlinc, the Inclusion Center, Utah PTA, and Lowell Bennion Community Service Center. "These partners have helped us produce a very successful summer Youth Summit, which provides hands on service-learning training. They also assist us in evaluating service learning grant applications and partnering with school and district grantees."
"The Learn and Serve representative at the State Office of Education serves on the executive board of the Utah Commission on Volunteers. We communicate with our local CNCS offices largely through the Commission."
The State Office of Education provides assistance for schools and districts in service-learning essentials.
Higher Education
In 2007, Utah Valley University, initiated the Communities of Engaged Learning initiative, offering faculty, staff, and students the opportunity to submit proposals for mini-grants that support community engagement including service-learning classes and study abroad programs. In 2008, the university in collaboration with Campus Compact and the International Partnership for Service-Learning and Leadership (IPSL) organized its 1st International Service Learning Conference.
Convening and Celebrating
The Utah Commission on Volunteers provides quarterly coordination meetings for all its partners. The State Education Agency keeps email information about various service organizations statewide. There are also 18 Volunteer Centers located throughout the state.
The State Education Agency, Campus Compact and the Lovell Bennion Center for Community Service cooperatively host the annual summer Youth Summit.
Evaluating Progress
Through a partnership with the University of Utah, the Social Research Institute on Prevention Studies has examined the impact of service-learning participation on academic performance.
Policy Support
In 2003, the Utah State Board of Education passed a resolution endorsing service-learning as a means "to enhance and supplement the Utah State Core Curriculum."
There are no statewide service-learning requirements. A few districts have service-learning requirements and most have strong commitments to service-learning
The State School Board passed a resolution in support of Academic Service Learning in June of 2004. The State Service Plan was revised by the Utah Commission on Volunteers in 2006.
Utah does not fund service-learning beyond CNCS grants.
Learn and Serve
The Utah State Office of Education receives a $225,000 school-based Learn and Serve grant program, which involves 22 subgrantees and 35,793 participants. Alan Griffin at the Utah State Office of Education serves as SEA, with the vast majority of subgrants awarded at the district-level and each district managing funds in their own way. Several school districts feature mini-grant programs for teachers. Others advance service-learning through a district-wide strategy. All sub-grantees cultivate strong local project partnerships with community-based organizations.
Youth Contributions
The state organizes an annual Youth Summit.
Examples of Quality Service-Learning
- West High School (Salt Lake City, Utah)
- Tackling homeland security through service-learning (Odgen, Utah)
References
- Cairn, Rich, Neal, Marybeth, and Crossley, Alison. 2006. "State Profiles" in Growing to Greatness 2006. St. Paul: National Youth Leadership Council.
External Links
- Learn and Serve America in Utah
- National Service in Utah (Corporation for National and Community Service)
- Utah Commission on Volunteers
- Utah Campus Compact
- Utah Valley University - Volunteer & Service Learning Center
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