Faculty – let your students know it’s not too late to enroll in a 1-credit Service-Learning course for the spring of 2021 with no late fees. Service-learning is a great way for students to connect what they are learning in your class with real-world experiences. The Registrar’s Office allows enrollment for a 1-credit service-learning course throughout the semester. There is no deadline as long as students can complete their 40 hours with a community partner learning site. Please encourage your students to consider service-learning. We have great placement opportunities that include, but are not limited to:
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- Clinical Students – BIO/BMS – Work with the Diabetic Retinopathy program – We still need about 20 students – hands on clinical care
- Clinical and Social Work/Sociology/Psychology Students – Work with Empower Abilities (formerly the Southwest Center for Independent Living) to work with some 600 patients and their caregivers doing well checks/clinical assessments/scheduling for COVID vaccine – flexible hours, hands-on (remote); training provided. Opportunity for Social Work students to work on Policy issues with Jefferson City folks (remotely) to address access to care for those with disabilities
- Clinical, Education, Social Work, Sociology students – MSU Vision Screening program (training provided); must be available in the morning from 8 AM to Noon – just one morning per week will help
- All Students – especially, education students in math, science, reading literacy, foreign language, social studies, students in English, students in other academic areas. Be part of the “million-word gap” – a national initiative that will provide reading literacy for children at an early age through the age of 10. Service-learning students will be remote reading buddies. Service-learning students will select a book or books based on the age grade they select (the book can be a book at math, or science, or nutrition, or health, or being hospitalized, – any topic – read the book and write a short synopsis about the book, and then record themselves reading the book. Students in foreign language courses can select a book(s) read/record aloud the book in their course language (Spanish, French, etc.) along with recording the book in the English language. These recordings will be housed in a national database that will be accessible to parents and K-12 teachers, after-school programs, etc., around the world to improve reading literacy. Research shows that children who have books read to them develop a much larger vocabulary and are further along in reading development. Missouri State University is spearheading this endeavor for the National Service-Learning Organization. This project will be featured in the National Service-Learning conference.
- Springfield Community Gardens – 4 programs: 1) Medical Gardens – partnership with Cox Health; 2) General Gardens – working to bring people out of poverty and reduce food insecurity; 3) Nutrition Program for Homeless through Lift Up Springfield/Springfield Community Gardens/Cox; 4) Beginning Farm/Ranch program for Veterans in partnership with US Dept of Ag, Veterans Administration.
- All Students – K9s for Camo – a new partnership program this semester that works with our students in several areas including management, training of service-dogs, marketing, grant-writing, etc. The goal of this program is to provide service-dogs for military individuals and/or their family members in need.
These are just a few of the placement opportunities that we have available this semester. We know that students enrolled in service-learning courses benefit from hands-on experiences that connect to their learning. Please encourage your students to reach out to our office at: servicelearning@missouristate.edu or schedule a time to meet with one of our advisors and get started with service-learning: https://www.missouristate.edu/CASL/contact-information.htm