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Students
contribute to Twin Cities community
From the Spring 1998 Parent Newsletter
While many students select the University of Minnesota because of
the opportunities available in St. Paul and Minneapolis, the Twin
Cities in turn benefit by having an energetic population of students
who donate their time and talent to the community.
In a large and diverse metropolitan area, students can work with youth,
senior citizens, the homeless, or recent immigrants. By working under
the guidance of University organizations or departments, students
learn as they contribute to the community.
Whether their volunteer work is directly related to their career goals
or represents an "outside interest," students discover connections
to their coursework, apply issues raised in their classrooms, and
meet Twin Cities community members who support their interests. It
is the connection between classroom and out-of-classroom learning
that gives students the perspective they need to apply their knowledge
and seek change.
"We need to help students question traditional
viewpoints, and we need to challenge them to find other alternatives,"
said Vice President for Student Development McKinley Boston. "Students
may decide to volunteer their time as a way of serving social justice,
but without any link to the educational curriculum, many students
would continue to serve in soup kitchens but wouldn't ever question
why we have soup kitchens.
"Community service is not about
doing something for someone else," he added. "It is about doing something
with someone and being a part of building a stronger social structure."
Student organizations focus on service
The Twin Cities have a significant population of recent immigrants
who need help learning English; practicing reading, math, or writing
skills; or earning their Graduation Equivalency Diploma (GED). One
student organization, Literacy Instruction Network with the Community
(LINC), placed 75 students as volunteers in literacy education programs
last year.
Students often select a literacy volunteer experience as a way to
test their career decisions or develop career skills. Education majors
can focus on working with elementary, junior high, or high school
students. Spanish majors can practice their language skills. Sociology
students can enhance their coursework with field experience.
The skills required of a literacy tutor, however, apply to most careers.
Students learn to work with diverse populations, develop interpersonal
communications, do lesson planning, use computer skills, and practice
patience. Team work, conflict resolution, leadership, and public speaking
are frequently called for.
Sometimes, choosing to volunteer in literacy training comes not from
a plan for the future but from a student's personal history. Mai Nguyen,
a fourth-year student and coordinator of the LINC program, grew up
among a family who immigrated from Vietnam. Throughout her childhood,
she was essentially an English language tutor to her mother, grandmother,
aunts, and uncles.
"I know how hard it can be for people
to learn a new language and how important it is to learn the language
of the community," Nguyen said. Working as the program coordinator,
she said, gives her a chance to help student volunteers understand
the difference they can make as they help immigrants learn to speak,
read, and write English.
As program coordinator, Nguyen interviews volunteers and connects
them with agencies that best match the volunteers' skills and interests.
She also tutors three Somali high school students in Minneapolis.
Although the three students can speak English, they need help reading
and writing the language.
"Tutoring and literacy training
are unique volunteer opportunities," Nguyen said. "They allow you
to be involved so closely with other people's lives and to make a
real difference in their lives. And the volunteers learn social and
personal skills along the way."
In addition to the LINC
program, students can find information on a number of other volunteer
opportunities at the Career &
Community Learning Center (CCLC), 135 Johnston Hall (phone:
624-7577).
Courses
incorporate service-learning
At the University, an increasing number of college courses include
a service-learning component, which formalizes the learning aspect
of volunteer activities.
Volunteer work goes beyond stuffing envelopes or serving meals in
a homeless shelter; students are asked to perform significant and
necessary services that have an impact on the agency and the community.
Third-year student John Cary, Jr., for example, signed up last summer
for "Community, Service, and Self," a service-learning course. In
addition to attending on-campus classes, he worked with the Summer
Youth Program, sponsored by the Project for Pride in Living.
Cary's assignment was to serve as volunteer coordinator for the program.
Through the program, neighborhood youths do painting, landscaping,
and repair work in the Phillips area of Minneapolis. The program also
incorporates educational and enrichment activities, pairing neighborhood
youths with professionals in the area.
During the 1997-98 academic year, "Community, Service, and Self" was
expanded and offered as a yearlong, six-credit course. After his experience
last summer, Cary was selected as a teaching assistant for the class,
and he now works with students who are performing their own volunteer
assignments.
Although Cary's major—architecture—may not seem to have
a strong connection to his volunteer work, he believes the experience
will offer benefits as he moves into his profession. As an architect,
he says, he will need to understand not only the structures he plans,
but also the surrounding community.
In addition to attending class sessions on campus and volunteering
in the community, students in service-learning courses are required
to write down their thoughts on what they're doing and learning. In
Cary's class, students post their reflections on a Web site. They
note the difficulties and insights that come up in their projects,
and their classmates respond.
"As students, we are at a time
in our lives when we can almost completely turn away from the real
world," Cary said. "We could just study and go to and from class.
Volunteering takes us out into the world and gives us a chance to
connect our experiences in class and outside of class."
Departments encourage volunteerism
In some departments on campus, community involvement and volunteerism
is part of the culture. Men's and Women's Athletics, for example,
encourage student athletes and staff to participate in community service
activities throughout the year.
According to Chris Voelz, director of Women's Athletics, community
service and outreach are critical components of the department. Student
athletes volunteer at parks and recreation centers, teaching athletic
skills to children and teenagers. They work with homeless shelters,
centers and shelters for domestic violence, and health care agencies
and hospitals.
Team projects usually focus on children, said Steph Midthun, a member
of the women's softball team. Players have made dinner for a children's
crisis nursery and served meals at a Ronald MacDonald House. They
have hosted softball clinics, teaching game fundamentals to youth.
They also have conducted food drives and clothing drives and sponsored
holiday meals for families. The team also participated in campus cleanup
activities.
"We take time during our off-season to work on
volunteer projects together," Midthun said. "It's a good way for us
to do something together and to do something for kids." |
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