Interested in Service Learning but worried about time commitments, learning objectives and appropriate partner matching or community impact? Come to the Service Learning workshop to learn more.

The Service Learning Initiative will be hosting its annual workshop from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 20, in Arkansas Union 507. This year's theme is "Partner Development." This program is designed to assist both faculty/instructors new to service learning as well as current service learning faculty interested in establishing new partnerships or strengthening an existing partnership.

The workshop will begin with two concurrent sessions, one geared to community partners and one to faculty. Partners will learn best practice strategies for communication and collaboration with faculty partners when integrating students in their work to create high impact results.

Meanwhile, faculty will be introduced to ways of incorporating research into service learning. For the remainder of the workshop, faculty will work with an existing/potential partner to explore course projects and lay the groundwork for a collaborative, reciprocal partnership that will result in a service learning course to be offered between fall 2018 and fall 2019. Therefore, only faculty/community partner teams should register for the conference. Faculty in need of a community partner can contact Angela Oxford (afoxford@uark.edu) for help in identifying a partner.

Workshop schedule:

• 9-9:30 — Registration
• 9:30-09:45 — Opening
• 9:45-10:30 — Session 1
  • Room 510 — Community Partners Track "Communication, Collaboration and Cupcakes: Tools for Service Learning Partners" (Angela Oxford)
  • Room 512 — Faculty Track "Building a Respected Research Agenda in Community-Based Teaching and Learning" (David Jolliffe)
• 10:30-10:45 — Break
• 10:45 to noon — Session 2
  • Room 507 — Community partners and faculty members will meet together in small groups to develop proposals, potential partners for future courses.
• Noon to 1 p.m. — Closing and Lunch

Click here to RSVP online. Program details will be sent via email.

Questions about the workshop should be directed to svclrn01@uark.edu. For further inquiries about service learning course designation, contact Jennie Popp at jhpopp@uark.edu. For help in identifying a community partner, contact Angela Oxford at afoxford@uark.edu.