In Fall 2001, the IUPUI Office of Neighborhood Partnerships (ONP) received a grant from the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Community Partnerships to develop the IUPUI-GWCS Service Learning Initiative. The IUPUI-GWCS Service Learning Initiative built upon a pre-existing partnership between IUPUI, George Washington Community School (GWCS), and the two neighborhood associations of WINC and WESCO to support teachers from GWCS in implementing service learning into their class curriculum. GWCS teacher participants receive support and training from IUPUI faculty and staff (i.e., School of Education, Center for Service and Learning) through workshops, one-on-one consultation, and a summer graduate course: Service Learning Ideas for K-12 Educators. Teachers then work with community partners from WINC and WESCO, and the staff of the IUPUI Office of Neighborhood Partnerships to design and implement service learning projects in their classroom.

To date the IUPUI-GWCS Service Learning Initiative has involved 8 teachers and over 250 students in the communities of WINC and WESCO through projects that have included a Nutrition Education Campaign and Food Drive, a Neighborhood Park Clean Up, and Safety and Literacy Education Programs for Preschoolers. Outcomes from the IUPUI-GWCS Service Learning Initiative are intended to increase student learning, support the professional development of teachers, integrate service learning into the middle school curriculum, strengthen teacher understanding of community resources, address community needs, strengthen campus-community relationships, and contribute to the ongoing commitment of IUPUI to actively collaborate with the community and schools to improve the quality of life in west Indianapolis.

Contact: Meg Easter-Dawson, measter {at} iupui(.)edu or http://csl.iupui.edu