Service Learning Update - The Finale

As the school year ends, it is time to assess the service learning opportunities; the Volunteer Center of Cedar Valley afforded the young people in our area. When I first started to quantify our impact, I was clearly astounded by the sheer numbers of students we had contact with this year. Approximately 240 young people in our schools participated in a semester long service learning project. Sixty elementary aged students were involved in the Do Something Clubs at the Boys and Girls Club site, and approximately another 240 students volunteered for a one time experience. In all, we had approximately 540 students involved with some type of service projects this school year and had at least 3000 service learning student contacts.

The most important aspect of this year’s service learning is not just the numbers. It is the projects that indeed helped make the Cedar Valley a better place to live. The young people of the Cedar Valley helped fight hunger. Don Bosco, West High, and Peet Junior High all participated in projects that benefited the Salvation Army and the Food Bank. The West High class saw the need to raise awareness of hunger and produced a radio show and a public service announcement concerning hunger. The Home Schooled students helped the homeless by making hats, scarves, and blankets for the Salvation Army. Students at Expo produced posters concerning STD’s in our community and gave them to the County Department of Health to be used as an awareness tool. The beauty of two preschools were enhanced by an environmental project conducted the schools 4 and 5 year olds. Janesville students raised money to build a walking bridge in order to make their town a safer place to live. Our environment was also improved by the several groups that worked to clean up litter in our parks and sidewalks. Military people were remembered by letters, animals were protected and the elderly were cheered all because of some of our service learning projects.

Students helped make the Cedar Valley a better place. However, I really believe our students received as much as they gave as evidenced by these comments from some of our students.

· “This project made me feel grateful for what I have.”

· “I liked how with so little effort, I could make a difference in the community”

· “I learned new things, met new people, and had good experiences.”

For more information on Service-Learning contact Jean Seeland at 272-2087 or Jean_Seeland@vccv.org.