Campus Community Collaborations
Examples & Resources for Community Colleges

The core of this nation and its future rests on the quality, integrity, capability, energy, and caring of each and every individual. The United States was founded and built upon the premise of the rights of every person. With these rights comes the responsibility of citizenship; the responsibility to serve and to give back to the community what one has been given; the responsibility to participate in life.

Ernest Boyer, former president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, called this necessity for civic involvement "the scholarship of engagement." He argued that universities and colleges remain one of the greatest hopes for intellectual and civic progress in this country. He was further convinced that for this hope to be fulfilled, colleges and universities must become more vigorous partners in searching for answers to our most pressing social, civic, economic, and moral problems, and they must reaffirm their historic commitment to the scholarship of engagement. He believed the purpose of education is to empower individuals to live with competence in their communities.

Two years ago, Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) Professor Jack Wagner made a commitment to integrate community service into his Western Civilization I and II classes and two history courses, United States to 1870 and United States since 1870. He worked directly with Michelle Hackett of Eastern Area Adult Services, an agency that serves senior citizens.

Professor Wagner offered his CCAC students the opportunity to earn one hundred extra points by providing fifteen hours of volunteer service during the semester. Fifty-two of his students completed all fifteen hours and another twenty-seven volunteered at least some hours. Ten of his students volunteered at other local area agencies, such as Warmline, Rape Crisis Center, Literacy Foundation, EMT groups and the Diabetes Foundation.

In the 1996 spring semester, eighty-nine students were motivated, encouraged, and supported by a caring professor who believes that volunteering is at the heart of building a better society and is a part of learning the history of this nation and western civilization. Professor Wagner allowed his students to select their own volunteer agency. All were required to develop a follow-up report to receive extra credit. All were accounted for by agencies and all had experiences to share.

The true test of service-learning and service partnerships is in the experience of those who care, those who do, those who help, and those who are helped. It is in the eyes of a student who begins to understand and reflect on the meaning of caring.

"We cannot measure or replace human caring--this is the unique gift of the volunteer. It is this gift of human caring that transcends bigotry, hate, and preconceived ideas into meaningful growth experiences," says Ivory Dorsey in Universal Appeal: The Bottom-Line Benefit of Diversity.

Caring is at the heart of the scholarship of engagement. It is the genesis of the enthusiasm engendered when students relate stories of their own caring. Volunteerism has changed the lives of CCAC students who have shared their talents with those who so desperately needed their caring. Following are comments from Professor WagnerÌs students and others, reflecting on their service-learning experiences.

From the students

"Every two weeks for the past semester I have gone grocery shopping for Ms. Agnes. We got into a routine. Because she couldnÌt spell, I had to write the shopping list and try to figure out what she needed. I usually tried to bring my coupons so I could get Agnes some money off. I felt so horrible telling her I had to leave (after putting her groceries away). I knew she had no family and could tell she was very lonely."

"The first time I volunteered, I was just thinking of getting my fifteen hours to improve my grade. My 'assignmentÌ was to do grocery shopping for an elderly couple. Being a twenty-year-old male, my grocery shopping experience was very limited. After two hours of hell, I finished getting everything on their list. They seemed so amazed that someone of my age would do something like this for them.

"Two weeks later, I went to the center and spent six hours doing newsletters. I was very pessimistic about sitting down for such a long time, hanging out with about twenty senior citizens. At the end of the day, it seemed like I was just hanging out with buddies. They were fun to be with and expressed how much they appreciated me being there. I was amazed at what just five hours of volunteering did to my outlook on life. I realized I have grandparents, my parents are getting older, and someday IÌll be older. I would like my grandparents to be assisted, I would like my parents to be assisted, and I would like to be assisted in this time that can be painful and lonely."

"When first introduced to the idea of volunteering, I wasnÌt very enthused about it, but I thought it would be a good idea to help my grade. I perceived that it would be very frustrating and a pain. I was wrong. I soon found it to be a very pleasurable and educational experience. I highly recommend that students take part in these services because young people are really needed."

"Volunteering my time at the center has been a rewarding experience. Not only has it taught me how to better communicate and interact with diverse groups of people, it has shown me how many invaluable services are performed by volunteers, and just how much volunteers are needed in any community. I have learned that volunteering isnÌt all about merely sacrificing your free time. ItÌs about helping or enriching the life of another, and these lessons will remain with me forever."

"I was introduced to Vivian, one of the centerÌs clients. Vivian was an intelligent elderly woman who was a lonely widow. On a day when she was to have had dinner with her son, she had to bury him instead. I learned from Vivian to appreciate the moment and try to live day by day, because you can never have yesterday again. I met several interesting people from many different backgrounds, but IÌll never forget Vivian."

"The elderly people I worked with were a fascinating bunch of people. Each one was unique and fun to work with. We played checkers, pass the balloon, take a penny and crazy eights. Wilma always beat me at checkers. Joann always liked to sing and dance. Each showed me that life doesnÌt stop after the age of eighty. Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to work with such a terrific group of people."

"Helen, Theresa and Carmella are over the age of eighty-five, live alone, have little or no family left and very few friends. They are alert, intelligent, caring and very sweet. I hear their unspoken loneliness in our conversations, and in their constant good words of appreciation for my calls. I have never been thanked so much, and they tell me they look forward to my calls. In actuality, I receive from them much more than I give. We encourage each other."

"After doing this volunteer work, I can clearly see what a struggle it is to be old in todayÌs society. The daily struggle they have to endure must be very exhausting for them and their families. I can only hope that in the near future society will come to realize the struggle that the elderly have to endure and devote more money and resources to help aid them properly."

"Class has ended, but my volunteering has not. The relationship that I have built with my four seniors is special and cannot be ended with the end of class. Please continue this program with your classes in the fall. I feel the youth of today can learn a lot from these seniors. I have."

"The first time I volunteered to help the kids with Attention Deficit Disorder, I was sure I wasnÌt cut out for volunteer work. But when they began to show how much they liked me, looked forward to seeing me, climbed all over me and gave me hugs, I knew I could never leave them!"

From Michelle Hackett, volunteer coordinator, Eastern Area Adult Services

"Once the seniors became acquainted with volunteers, they would ask, 'When are the boys coming?Ì One senior, who was at first hesitant to have a young person come, now says, 'I just adore her.Ì The seniors have now really grown to love the students. They are caring, sensitive, committed, really responsible, and so dedicated to the program. They donÌt stop when the classes end; eleven of my seventeen students will be volunteering all summer."

From Susan Munson, manager of the Monroeville Respite Day Center

"The student volunteers who give their time to assist the staff at the Center have proven to be invaluable. The range of physical and mental frailties of the clients have brought new understanding and patience to the college students. The studentsÌ generous help and assistance with the clients have been a positive experience for both age groups. The elderly clients truly enjoy the interaction and caring attention of the students in both social situations and activities."

Agency representatives working with Community College of Allegheny County students have been extremely complimentary of Professor Wagner and are deeply appreciative of his willingness to incorporate community service/volunteerism into his curriculum. He understands that teaching is the heartbeat of the educational enterprise and, at its best, concerns itself with the humane application of knowledge to life. He also knows that service is mutually beneficial for the seniors and the students. We all know that the true benefit lies in the renewal of community spirit. The scholarship of engagement will continue to transform skepticism into trust that will bond one generation to another.

Dr. Jacqueline Taylor has been the Executive Dean (Chief Executive Officer) of the Boyce Campus of the Community College of Allegheny County (Pennsylvania) since 1994. Dr. Taylor has also held the positions of Vice President for Research, Planning, and Development and Vice President for College and Community Relations at Lansing Community College in Michigan.

Dr. Taylor serves on the National Alumni Board of Michigan State University, chairs the Featherstone Society, and is a member of the Pittsburgh Executive WomenÌs Council and various other educational and civic organizations. She has received several honors, including Distinguished Alumni Awards from the College of Education at Michigan State University and Lansing Community College.

Dr. John M. Kingsmore has been the President of the Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) in Pennsylvania since 1989. His previous experience includes eleven successive years as Dean of Instruction at Dundalk Community College and Essex Community College, both located in Baltimore, Maryland.

Dr. Kingsmore serves as a member of numerous professional, community, and civic organizations, including the Campus Compact National Center for Community Colleges Executive Advisory Board. He also has received local and national community college leadership awards.

During his tenure at the Community College of Allegheny County, President Kingsmore has developed partnerships between the college and business and industry, strengthened the College Continuing Education Division, revitalized the CCAC Educational Foundation, and created the collegeÌs first international and cross-cultural studies program.

		Making the Connection: College and Community
		A Little Something for Dessert
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