Higher Education and/in the Community

Jessica Kim-- I definitely agree with Adam and Drew's posts about the role of higher education institutions in the community. Liberal arts colleges were initially set up to prepare young people for a life of informed citizenship, and I feel like allowing and creating opportunities for students to get involved in their communities is an undeniably important way of doing so. Adam's point about how college can be a 'bubble' is definitely true. Some could argue that this is a good thing, that it allows students to focus themselves on their academic commitments; but if students learn without a sense of how their studies can be applied to the wider world, what makes us think that they will be able to apply them once they actually get out there?

Our students have a great culture of service. I think the next step would be to get the spirit of service imbued into the administration and academics of our school. I found an interesting document on the W&M website titled "A Vision for Public Service at the College of William & Mary" (http://web.wm.edu/as/dean/fas/documents/Vision%20for%20Public%20Service%20at%20W&M.pdf?svr=www) that details a committee's reasoning and recommendations for expansion of public service initiatives at the college. I feel like it was written a while ago, and I feel like we could use this as a guide to help us implement more of these ideas at W&M.

There is a fine line as to how much a college should invest in the greater good of the community, but that should be gauged primarily by the student interest and demand. If students dedicate so much time to service at this college, there should be more investment in ways to expand upon those interests. Not only would that meet a student demand, but it would also work for the good of the wider communities we are all a part of. I don't think there can be a downside to higher education involvement in the community because it caters to a student need and corresponds with a trend of greater social awareness and involvement that is sweeping our nation.

Higher Education and / in the Community

Adam Harris - 

In response to Drew's question about if it's the role of higher education and it's role in being a social service agency,  my answer has two distinct parts.  First, I think that the trend in higher education to provide / involve service in its curriculum is not only a step forward, but very important in the relationships between an institution and the community that it is in.  Far too often in my opinion, there is the ever-present college "bubble" that many of us live in.  As a student body, many are completely uninformed and ignorant of many social conditions, may they be good or bad, in the immediate surroundings of the institution.  

I believe that "opening the doors to the community as a social service agency" by an institution not only is within its capacity, but an integral part of getting students more active in the community as well as being part of their learning experience.  Teaching students does not necessarily have to mean learning in a classroom.  In the sense that higher education's purpose is to introduce young adults into the "real world," I believe that one essential part of this "teaching" comes from easing students into facing local issues by giving them more opportunities at volunteering within the community.  

I think that this allows students to come in contact with their "townie" neighbors, but also gives them a tangible experience that can enhance theoretical learning in the classroom.  For instance, learning about the U.S.'s social welfare system for three hours a week in the basement of Morton can be wholly supplemented by volunteering with a non-profit student group helping out in the local unemployment office, free health clinic, etc.  As Drew said in his statements, this not only helps out the community by filling holes in the various institutions, but also instilling the student with a sense of efficacy, connection with the community, etc. 

Lastly, since these actions / organizations are based of off volunteer support, the issue of capacity is a minimal issue.  As long as there is enough interest and that the issue that various organizations is relatively sustainable in terms of creating a permanent institution to address the issue, having institutions as social service agencies, in my opinion, has no downside.

What is (are) the role(s) of the University in Community?

Drew Stelljes - The goals of American higher education have included the preparation of citizens for active involvement in community life since the founding of Harvard College in 1636. In The American College and University: a History, Rudolph (1962) reports that the public purpose of the American college includes a responsibility to the past, the present and the future. Rudolph and others reported that This responsibility requires colleges and universities to substantially address the embedded and emerging social problems of our communities. Do you agree?

Since the early 1980s an increasing interest in service has reflected a concern that institutions of higher education should be more responsive to society and that higher learning in general ought to have greater relevance to public life (Boyer, 1987, 1994; Rhoads, 1998; Wingspread Group, 2004). Derek Bok (1982) challenged administrators and faculty when he wrote, “there is no reason for universities to feel uncomfortable in taking account of society’s needs; they have a clear obligation to do so” (p.11). A report sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation, written by Frank Newman (1985), made the case explicit. Newman wrote, “If there is a crisis in education in the United States today, it is less that test scores have declined than it is that we have failed to provide the education for citizenship that is still the most important responsibility of the nation’s schools and colleges”(p.31).

Over the past twenty years, service and service-learning have established a foothold on college campuses. Volunteer centers have formed and faculty members in various disciplines have initiated service-learning, a wave of experiential education wrapped in service activity, reciprocal learning and purposeful reflection. It has been predicted that service-learning may accomplish both the academic aims of the academy and positively contribute to the vitality of the community. Volunteer centers opened their doors across the country in an effort to: support a culture of service, infuse that culture of service into the academy and more recently to respond to students’ interest in local and global social concerns. Many would argue that colleges and universities have been responsive to student interest and activism rather than being proactive about trying to stimulate a culture of service. When volunteer centers opened their doors they opened themselves up to the larger community and suggested they might serve as a social service agency, in some cases a surrogate, to what was missing in the community. But does higher education have the capacity to be a social service agency? Is that part of the role of higher education? Is the role of higher education to teach students, to transform community? Both? Is that possible?

Impact studies have demonstrated a wide range of student development or interpersonal outcomes including a sense of efficacy, connection to community, appreciation for diverse populations and interest in course work to name a few. A casual observer may attribute this effort to be successful, however a closer examination of service-learning brings about a variety of questions:

· Have we ever transformed community so that student service is no longer needed?
· Is it the role of higher education to transform students? Or communities? Both? Neither?

I have offered a variety of nuggets for you to chew on. Wrestle with them now, together. What is the role of the university in community?

Planet in Peril

Check this out:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/09/28/what.matters.meltdown/index.html

4 minute video.

Joel Schwartz' Comments

Hi All,

Joel presented so many nuggets of information and I found myself thinking about his assertions throughout his talk. One question I have: If the country is so much less engaged, what does that say about the dramatic increase in college student involvement in service, in activism, in advocacy work, in justice work? Are Schwartz and Putman ignoring that trend? Will we see a resurgance of community engagement in the next 20 years? Even though PTA membership is down otehr membership is up - and it's up in some really important organizations that rely on consistent commitment to a cause and not an annual check.

Comments, disagreements, etc....

Drew

Skyler N. Halbritter

Hey all! I am a little late to the SLC posting, but better late than never!

Name: Skyler N. Halbritter

Year: 2011

Service Activities: Alpha Phi Omega, more specifically I tutor at Matthew Whaley on Tuesday and Thursday, also I went on the Inaugural Spring Break Service Trip with APO to Biloxi, Mississippi

Hometown: Richmond, VA and also West Virginia

Concept of Service: Well, where to begin? I think connecting and forming relationships with other people is the most human thing someone can do. Service is the greatest way to form these connections and relationships because we are sharing an experience, but also gaining a (usually) tangible benefit in return. My life is filled with purpose because I am able to help others. I serve my community by tutoring children who need the extra help and attention, and I serve the world by being a steward of Christian principles which I believe in strongly. Service is a tricky concept because in international settings, we constantly struggle with being able to establish sustainable communities. We also strive to facilitate change, while creating a longterm environment that will not rely on outside help. In the end I think service is about loving people you know little about, and helping to better the societies that we and other people of this world live in. I think Ghandi said it best that "we find ourselves in service others." And that is where I find myself everyday.

Until we meet again,

Skyler

From Brittney Calloway

Name: Brittney Calloway

Major: English and Philosophy

Hometown: I was born in Manhattan, NY but I currently reside in Edison, NJ (5 min from Rutgers' campus)

Favorite Book: I have way to many to name but I would have to go with Beloved by Toni Morrison.

Ramble: I am a rising sophomore here at the college and am involved in numerous activities here on campus but have not done as much service as I would have liked to. In high school volunteering at shelters, foodbanks, Girl Scouts,Habitat for Hummanity, as a tutor all of these were actiities that were in my daily regemine and were ongoing service activities but this past year all the GREAT service opportunities here at the college came to me after the deadline to apply:*-(...however this year I was apart of TCO (tribe college outreach) where I tutored high school students once a week. I am also apart of the organization Aids in Tanzania where I will be traveling to Tanzania in December as a volunteer for the Aids/HIV project. This summer I was also involved with ESL teaching spanish workers English. At the college I am also apart of Judicial Council, NAACP, and William and Mary Model Congress .Giving back to others in need means the world to me and is something I value deeply. What drives me most in all of the organizations I am in, is the opportutinty to help others in need...not myself.

I spy...

Drew Stelljes! 

Hey!

Sorry this is so late! I am in the same boat as Stephanie in terms of internet this summer. I look forward to meeting you all this semester. Looks like we have a fabulous group!

P.S. I'm in the blue shirt in this picture.

Name: Megan Coolidge

Major: International Relations and Hispanic Studies

Hometown: Great Falls, VA

Service Involvements: Students Helping Honduras, CPALs ESL tutoring, and Sharpe Community Scholars

Favorite Book: The Poisonwood Bible

Rambling about service: My parents always did a great job of emphasizing the importance of service to my brothers and I when we were growing up. I think as I have gotten older and had the opportunity to be involved with a variety of different projects, I have noticed that my favorite part of service is the connections and friendships you form with people...whether it is people you are serving or people you are serving with. As a few others have mentioned, William and Mary's dedication and emphasis on service was one of the main characteristics that attracted me to this school. Because of the strong emphasis on civic engagement at the college, I have been able to combine my passion for community service with my academic courses and have been able to put both to use in service organizations such as Students Helping Honduras. The academic courses, service organizations, and people I have met at W&M have shown me how you can transform community service from a weekly activity to a part of everything you do.

Hi!

Hi Everyone! Sorry that I am late in posting; I haven't had reliable internet access for the majority of this summer! But, I am so excited to meet and get to know all of you!

Name: Stephanie Burton

Major: Environmental Policy and Elementary Education

Hometown: Colonial Heights, Va (a little city 20 minutes south of Richmond!)

Service Involvements: APO! I mainly volunteer with the READ Adopt a Grandparent program at Dominion Village Nursing Home each week! But I have dabbled in some other volunteer opportunities through APO at the Williamsburg YMCA daycare and with ARC. I have also been fortunate enough to travel on some awesome service trips! I went to Reynosa, Mexico, in May 2007 with Project Mexico to help build a home for a family there (the picture of me is from that trip). I also traveled to Philadelphia this past Spring Break with the Teach for America Spring Break Service Trip. I'm also a part of the Students for Belize Education Service trip!

Favorite Book: I think my favorite is probably Jane Eyre!

Service: I will try to keep my rambling statement concise! I think that one of my favorite aspects of William and Mary and its students is the strong dedication to service that exists on campus and throughout the student body. I have grown up greatly valuing the importance of service, so I knew that when I came to college I wanted to continue being involved in service projects and endeavors. I think that service should and often does manifest itself in all that one does. It isn't confined to a service trip or an hour long weekly committment. Therefore, the opportunities for service are truly endless!

Sorry this took wayyy long but here it is . . . :)

Name: Michelle Mullins

Major: Government (right now, I might try to double in Latin American studies but I currently don’t speak Spanish so we’ll see how that goes)

Hometown: Hamilton, NJ

Service Involvement(s): Sharpe Scholar, APO, Campus kitchens, CSL, Students Helping Honduras, W&M Habitat 2008 Spring Break Guatemala

Favorite Book: Well, I read a lot so its pretty much impossible to pick an alltime favorite, but the one I’m reading now is Three Cups of Tea and I really like it so I’ll go with that

and the rambling . . .

My concept about service is pretty simple, and probably doesn’t sound all that impressive or intelligent. For me it all about one thing; people. That’s it. Its about recognizing similarities and differences, and embracing both. I think the most valuable aspect of participating in service related activities is the ability to build relationships with other people, despite socioeconomic, cultural, or other differences.

Hi =D

Hey everyone! Hope you're all managing to squeeze the last days of enjoyment out of summer before we go back to school~ can't wait to meet you all!

Name: Jessica Kim
Major: Neuroscience and Music
Hometown: Is hometown where we currently live (Vienna, VA), where we lived most of our lives (Reston ,VA) or where we were born (D.C.)? I'm never really sure.
Service Involvement(s): Campus Kitchen at William & Mary, TFA SBST '08, I tutored at MW freshman year and I would like to start tutoring again either there or with ALL.
Favorite Book: My standard favorite has always been Jane Eyre...but I confess that I haven't been able to read enough lately to have many other options. x_x
Ramble: I think service is realizing that all people are members of the same community, recognizing that it is our duty to make sure everyone in our community has the same chance at happy, fulfilling lives, and acting on that conviction. Service to others helps us broaden our horizons past our own limited points of view and connects us closer to each other. Ways to serve are as diverse as the needs they fulfill, so there's ways for everyone to make service part of their lifestyle. I don't know if my path will lead me to a career involved directly with service, but all of my experiences so far have helped me learn how one can make service part of daily life. I think that's when the world will reach its full service potential, when everyone finds their own way to ingrain service into their lives.

Race and Religion in America

Check out this article posted today and feel free to comment if compelled:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/wayoflife/08/04/segregated.sundays/index.html

Hellooooo :)

Hi guys, I can't wait to meet all of you. Hope you enjoy your last few weeks at home!

Name: Sarah Hwang

Major: Neuroscience and Music

Hometown: Vienna, VA (Seoul, Korea for the first 10 years of my life)

Favorite Book: I enjoy all kids of books, but some of my favorites are Life of Pi, Poisonwood Bible, and I'm really enjoying the book I'm reading right now called A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.

Service: William and Mary Medical Relief, Matthew Whaley Tutoring (I absolutely love and adore kids), INOVA Fairfax Hospital, mission trips (from my church), and hopefully many/much more to come.

Ramble: I believe that the beauty of service is that there is not a single definition for it or ‘what it should be/look like’; each person has a chance to explore and learn what service means personally to him or her. One of the main purposes for my life is to love and serve others. I am the happiest and the most joyful not when I am doing something that will be beneficial for me, but when I am serving others and working to build a solid community around my home, my country, and the world. Service does not begin at a certain point and end at a certain point. It is an ongoing and continuous part of life. Giving up a few hours to help a neighbor with his yardwork or lending a hand to an elderly at the grocery store is just as much of an act of service as going to Nicaragua to help the poor and the sick. As we put our passion into action, we will slowly discover the true joy in life and thus spread that joy around us by planting a seed of passion for service in others.

Annnd here it is...

Name: Randall Ricardo Taylor Jr.

Major: Film Studies/Psychology double

Hometown: Richmond, VA baby... all my life

Service Involvement(s): Students Helping Honduras, W&M Habitat Guatemala trip spring 2008 (I'd like to get more involved after graduation)

Favorite Book: tough one... There are so many that I like to read. Its hard just to pick one.

A picture (of yourself, you and friends, you and family, etc)
A rambling statement about any or all of the following:

Soooo... the firs thing I would like to do is apologize for the very late post.

Growing up my parents and grandparents always made sure to let me know that the most important things to do in life is to give back and to share with others what has been given to you. When I was younger there wasn't one specific thing that I could say that did. For rhw most part it was the small thingslike cutting the grass for my elderly neightbors or anything to help out someone out of the basic responsibility to aid someone who needs it. In high school I became involved with tutoring and mentoring middle and elementary school kids. My Junior year I started volunteering with the recus squad as an EMT-B. I haven't done that since summer before sophomore year. I say that I'd like to get re-certified one day.

One of the biggest things that I get out of service is what I learn from others. Whether it be the people you are working with or those that you are helping and sharing with, you are going to leave with with more knowledge that you came into it with.
I think that is all for now. There will be more to come though.

Walker Somerville

Name: Walker Somerville

Major: International Relations and Latin American Studies

Hometown: Orange, Virginia

Service:Students Helping Honduras, Rotaract, College Partnership for Advanced Learners, Alpha Phi Omega, Community Service Leaders, Sharpe Scholar.About Me: Service has always been a part of my growth and development. I always feel that I get much more from my projects through what I learn than what I give. I grew up around service projects and have maintained that as a constant in my life. My m0m was one of the founders of the Habitat chapter in my area and she has and will always look out for families for need whenever she has the opportunity. When I was growing up there were always 3 or 4 families that my mom would try and help as much as she could throughout the year and especially Christmas. i learned a lot as a child about sharing ones resources and abilities to help others in need; today my current projects always continue to teach me new things. Man of the greatest changes in my life have occurred through the result of participation in service projects. Currently my future seems to be guided for my love for the city of El Progreso, Honduras. My college education has been attained more from projects than from any class that i have taken at William and Mary. My service adds to my classes and often gives me the ability to better understand the classes in my major. I love working with people and love helping people and if all possible am in search of a way/ the way to make it my profession to be able to continue working on projects similar to those i have participated on in College.

Name: Adam Harris

Major/ minor: Government
/Latin American Studies

Hometown: Bridgewater, VA

Service Involvement: JMU Alternative Spring Break Trips, W&M ISTs, Sharpe, helping little old ladies cross the street

Favorite Books: It's Not About the Bike by Lance Armstrong; The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara; America by Jon Stewart; Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig

Ramble : A quote from The Killer Angels pretty much sums up my views on service: "Many of us volunteered to fight for the Union. Some came mainly because we were bored at home and this looked like it might be fun. Some came because we were ashamed not to. All came because it was the right thing to do. It's the idea that we all have value, you and me. What we're fighting for, in the end, is each other." - Colonel Lawrence Chamberlain.

Due to my parent's careers, I've been exposed to volunteering / community service for practically my entire life. As I've had the pleasure of meeting many different people involved in various roles dealing with service, I've come to form a conclusion about service that parallels Chamberlain's words. We have all been drawn to service for many different reasons, ranging from passionate ideological views to simple obligation. However, regardless as to where or why we've decided to serve, I believe that we all came because the underlying premise behind our motivations is that serving is the right thing to do.

Personally, I enjoy doing service for a few reasons. Primarily though, I enjoy it because I think it's beneficial to all who are involved. I'm not a huge fan of the "oh let's go help all the poor helpless people who can't survive with us" approach to doing service, as I view it as a fairly elitist mindset and rather insulting to both parties involved. Doing service has given me so many opportunities for friendship and new experiences that I think it's unfair to think that service is a one-way street.

Anyways, I think I've made my thoughts as convoluted and confusing as possible.. so my work here is done :-)

so I'm bad at online goodies. Sorry!

Name: John Weeks (AKA Juan Esteban Semanas)
Major: Naturally this needs to be plaural- Neuroscience and Hispanic Studies
Hometown: Leesburg, Virginia
Service Involvement(s): Major: THE Student Organization for Medical Outreach and Sustainability. CPK, others I'm forgetting
Favorite Book: The King Arthur Flour Baker's companion? May not be the intellectually stimulating masterpieces of Paul Farmer, but it's much tastier.
A rambling statement about any or all of the following: your concept of service. What is it? What is it now? Why do it? Is there too much? Not enough? What is citizenship?

---WARNING--- This is 100% ramble. If you're looking for sense, grammar, correct spelling, or even logical flow of thoughts, stop here. So works my mind----

In my (often not so) humble opinion, "service" per se, is a tricky concept. In any sort of definitoin you have to really measure your words, be sure you're expressing what you want to. It's easy to get so excited about the concept of "helping somebody" that you forget that "somebody" is a somebody as well, and might not really dig the way you're talking about them. With that in mind, I'll go ahead and hypocrite all over myself trying to define service. So what is service? I would go as far as to say it has to include a level of interest in the welfare of other people that goes beyond intellectual curiosity, but at the same time reflects their human values and qualities. It must be a concious effort to assist someone else in thier walk through life. There are many different reasons to do service, and everyone who actively engages, contributes, or thinks about engaging in service has their own unique reasons for doing service. All I know is, ever time I've ever had an opportunity to do some sort of "service" I've benefited far more from the experience than those I was trying to "serve". As for the level of service, Who's to say if there's too much, too little, or just the right amount. Service should be a work of pasison, and I think that as long as those doing the serving are passionate about their cause, then who's to stop them? One thing that might improve the current state is greater collaboratoin in the service done: imagine instead of "turf wars" over "who can serve an area", "name recognition" and such garbage, if people just worked together what a difference could be made. So, en fin, for me service is where passion and energy connect with a cause in an attempt to make a difference in the world.

Hey Everyone!

Name: Jazmine Piña

Major: Sociology and Public Policy

Hometown: Mount Vernon, New York

Service:Alpha Phi Omega, Tribe Ambassadors, Project Mexico, WMIDMUN and WMHSMUN and at home I'm an honorary member of the East Yonkers Kiwanis club (so I do the service and just don't pay dues, it's pretty sweet.), work with the Key Club in my high school and volunteer at the children's hospital where my twin sister and I went after we were born.

Favorite book: Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom

About Service: I went to a private, catholic, all-girls school from 6th grade until I graduated from high school and to most people that didn't experience it firsthand, it was an environment that was often was stereotyped as petty girls who lived off of their parent's money and didn't care about anything outside of the walls of our school. Our school motto was "Serviam" which meant "I will serve" in Latin and anyone that spent time at Ursuline, whether for seven years or just for a school-wide liturgy, saw that was an environment where service and helping others was weaved into almost every facet of our education, with sixth graders through seniors actually volunteering (not forcibly volunteering, but signing up week after week to serve) in groups at nursing homes and soup kitchens around Westchester on a regular basis. From just learning about service and experiencing it as a part of my education, it grew into something that I wanted to do and became an even bigger part of my life. I joined Key Club in high school and worked in my school and on the district board for New York and those experiences gave me the chance to do service and to give others a gateway to do service, and those experiences are still a huge part of what drives me to do service today.

The Volunteer Vote

80 million people volunteer in the US each year

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www.v3campaign.org
check it out

The Legacy of Randy Pausch

Members of SLC:

Randy Pausch, 47, author of The Last Lecture, died today after complications form his battle with pancreatic cancer. Randy's book will be part of the focus of SLC 08. Please take a moment to review parts of Randy's book, one of the videos from his recent lectures and the press surrounding the truly inspirational man. His legacy should live in our hearts.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/books/07/25/obit.pausch.ap/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

Nik Belanger

Name: Nik Belanger

Major: Government and French/Francophone Studies

Hometown: Lafayette, Louisiana (near the bayou...not exactly on it, though)

Service Involvement(s): I'm most involved in the International Justice Mission, a Christian human rights and social justice organization seeking to merge the Christian, service, and advocacy communities for the purpose of unifying social justice/action and the Christian faith (that's the blurb on our blog). Through IJM, I'm working on the affordable housing campaign in Williamsburg, which is spearheaded by the Virginia Organizing Project. I'm also a member of CKI, a tutor at Rita Welsh and a SafeZone facilitator. As far as ISTs go, a friend of mine and I took a semi-spontaneous unofficial service trip to Monterrey, Mexico, over winter break via Greyhound bus from New Orleans--and ended up working and celebrating New Years at a homeless shelter. For what's left of the summer, I'm working back home at a community health care clinic as their volunteer administrative assistant.

Favorite Books: The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne; The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene.

Some words: My real passion is for instilling a heart for the poor and marginalized in communities and individuals of faith. My personal faith and social convictions have become pretty interwoven--especially since coming to school--, and the two have begun to grow together. Specifically, I'm fascinated by Biblical calls for economic redistribution and social equality...and what that means for the modern Church in America. Thanks to IJM, I've been able to meet people who've helped me develop some of these ideas, and I'm always looking for ways to take them a step further.

Justin G. Reid

Name: Justin Gerard Reid

Major: American Studies; Global/African Studies minor

Favorite Book: Coming of Age in Mississippi

Service Involvements: My focus is racial/socioeconomic inequality, particularly in education. I mentor through a program called Rites of Passage at Toano Middle School and tutor in the local alternative ed. school, as well as volunteer in the Admissions Office. I've also worked with nonprofit and government agencies to address this issue in the cities of Richmond and Petersburg (through Sharpe and The Phoenix Project), in Tanzania (as a member of AIDSTanzania) and most recently while studying abroad in South Africa.

Why serve? For me personally, it's been a matter of coming to grips with reality and accepting the fact that as a black male the statistics are not (and have never been) favorable. I realized early on that too many people sacrificed their time and their money so that I would be different. I'm from the rural South and I was raised by a strong, closely-knit community. I intend to give them a return on their investment. I'm also currently not satifisfied with the statistics.

Allison Anoll

Hello Friends.

Name: My name is Allison Anoll.

Major: I'm a double major in American Studies and Government.

Hometown: I like to identify my hometown as Exit 152B off I-95. If you're not familiar with Northern Virginia, that's the western side of Prince William County.

Service Involvements: My time at William and Mary has been shaped largely by my involvement in the Sharpe program. As a freshman I was a Sharpe Scholar in the Citizenship and Community class. During my sophomore year, I lived in the Community Scholars House and created the Sharpe Ambassadors program. This program morphed into my position as a Program Assistant for Sharpe during my junior year. This year, I will continue my work as a Program Assistant as well as fellowing for the Citizenship and the Community class. In addition, I will be teaching the Civic Engagement Seminar for upperclass Sharpe Scholars in the fall.

Outside of Sharpe, I am a Tour Guide for the College and work in OSVS as a Community Service Leader. In this position, I organize weekend and day trips as well as schedule speakers for William and Mary students surrounding the topic of education.

Favorite Book: I'll have to go with Bowling Alone. Alongside being an incredible piece of quantitative research, the book gives drive and justification to my own research and service.

Ramble Ramble Ramble: My past research and my current honors thesis focus on the development of affective civic education. What I'm most interested in about service is its ability to inspire people to ask difficult questions about social justice, system stuctures, and their role as an architect in a changing society. I believe change is slow, but always possible. I believe education, especially in civic skills, is a skeleton key to paradigm shift. I believe discussion breeds change if only by making you think about your individual actions. And for all these reasons, I'm siked about SLC.

Travis Grubbs

Name: Travis Grubbs

By the way, if anyone knows what Drew is doing to me here, please let me know, cause i have no idea. But I have to say, he does look pretty official with that pink stethoscope.

Major: Chemistry

Hometown: Newport News, VA aka Bad News

Service Involvement: William and Mary Medical Relief, volunteer at Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters, volunteer for Newport News Family Fun and Fitness Fair.

Favorite Book: Well, I’m not a huge reader, but I am starting to read a lot of good books. I would have to say my favorite is Ender’s Game.

The Ramble: I have always been pretty involved with various service projects, and my family has always taught me to help others when they need it most. I feel like this thought stems from the concept of citizenship. Basically, I think that citizenship means that you are a member of a certain community- with that comes the responsibility that you need to help maintain and improve that community. Through citizenship, service follows suit. To make it as simple as possible, service is giving back what you can to the community to make it better than when you started. Overall, there will always be the need for service, because there is always room for improvement. However, I do believe that we can improve more effectively through leading by example. Through each of our efforts we have an impact on people, however few, but if those few more people begin leading by example, then the influence of service spreads. For me, the best feeling in WMMR isn’t necessarily running a clinic or passing out antibiotics to those in need, but the feeling that through our actions, others (maybe members of our group or the people we come in contact with through the clinic) see what we are doing and the flame of service is lit in them. We all have something we can give back to our community, and the sooner we all realize this the greater our society will become.

John Pothen

Hey everyone, I'm John. I'm a rising sophomore here at the college, and I'm really excited about getting to know you all. I can't wait for us to discuss and do service together over the coming year. I bet it's gong be awesome!

Oh and ps, I'm the guy in the middle of the picture I posted.

Name: John Pothen

Major: Chemistry (Biochem minor)

Hometown: Yorktown, VA

Service Involvements:

My main involvement is in the Student Organization for Medical Outreach and Sustainability (SOMOS), and I’ve been involved with a few other programs and efforts run through OSVS like SHOW and Make a Difference Day.

Favorite Book:

Not counting the Bible, I would have to go with Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. It’s a great book, not related to service, but sparks incredible intellectual discussion.

I want to echo what Sarah said though, Hope in Hell in an amazing book! Other good ones to check out on the health side of things would be Rx for Survival and The Invisible Cure. These are excellent books that challenged me and have shaped my thought process.

The Nature of Service:

I think everyone has succeeded in voicing particular aspects of service (minus Sarah who took the diverse nature of it head on; props!). So I’ll continue that trend and voice two thoughts I’ve had recently:

1) Service is meant to be all-pervasive.

I think it’s easy for us to think about service within environments that have a certain foreign feeling to them. We slip smoothly into “service-mode” when we’re abroad, downtown, in an elementary school, or in a place where we can see the needs of others more easily. Service within these environments is important; however, service is needed within our native environments as well.

I believe what happens is that we get comfortable. Familiarity can strip the emotional power of need or injustice (which makes me want to discuss the validity of the role of emotion as a motivation for service, but that’s another point entirely) and blind us to what we should do (namely, take advantage of opportunities to serve others whenever possible). My unhappiness with this has led me to a simple conclusion: the attitude of service is most purely manifested in the choice to be a servant daily, regardless of environment.

2) Aid vs. Justice

            A discussion we’ve had within the SOMOS team recently has been regarding the jargon we use. At the heart of this discussion has been the desire to remove a sense of hierarchy from thoughts. It’s easy to see our service organization a modern Prometheus that brings the light of solutions to a people in need of aid. Within this thought can lie the notion that we are in some way better than the people we try to serve, but the truth is we’re not.

            A subtle way in which this arrogance can rear it’s head is when we describe what we are doing as aid. Let me be clear, there is nothing within the word itself but as people who are less than perfect (speaking for myself at least) it’s easy to let that promote the unwanted sense of superiority. Therefore it may be beneficial to describe our actions as attempts to fight injustices induced by an external force (often a system that promotes the wealth of a few through the poverty of many). This leads to me a refined statement when discussing service: it is most purely manifested in the choice to be a servant, in humility, daily, regardless of environment.

These are thoughts I’d had. I’d love it if someone disagreed with me on something I presented. I love discussion and the subsequent refinement it can bring.

I grew up in Yorktown, VA and got some really special opportunities to serve in inner city Newport News throughout middle and high school. I saw a lot there that I’m just beginning to process and understand. There was a culture present that actively promoted poverty and, at times, loss of life. In fact, a boy I tutored once was killed in a drive-by shooting (it was a case of mistaken identity).

Experiences like that have given me a desire to serve others and to fight injustice wherever possible. And I’m looking forward to a great year with you guys as we try to figure out how to do that effectively and put our thoughts into action!

Hi guys! I hope everyone is having a relaxing, fulfilling summer, and I'm excited to meet all the SLC members this fall!
Name: Sarah Van Dine
Major: Neuroscience, minor in Hispanic Studies
Hometown: Stratford, Connecticut

Favorite Book: I have a few, but I just finished reading a book entitled "Hope in Hell"-a documentary of Doctors Without Borders. It's a really interesting read for anyone interested in international medical service!

Service: William and Mary Medical Relief, Spring Break Service Trips-Student Director, Volunteer EMT-I (back in Connecticut), and hopefully more to come.

A little about me... I would refer to myself as a "blue-eyed funk machine" (if you've seen Blades of Glory with Will Ferrell, you'll get it). I'm just really spunky, enjoy trying to make other people laugh, and try to get the most out of life. I've always been the type of person who enjoys doing/being involved in a million different things at once. So through the years I've accumulated tennis, swimming, dancing, music, and service as some of my interests. I started doing service projects through my church in high school, and like many of you as well, service became contagious. It seems like a common question is "What is service?" and I've come to the conclusion that "service" encompases so many aspects that can not be pinned down to one simple definition. However, in my life I've realized that I serve to inspire others to do the same. So one of my favorite aspects of service is the inspiration that stems from the act of helping others.

Jake

Name: Jake Milnor

Major: Art History/Hispanic Studies

Hometown: Long Island, Virginia (it exists, it’s just very, very small)

Service: Student Organization for Medical Outreach and Sustainability (SOMOS), APO, I’m involved in a few independent organizations while home in the summer too, mostly an outreach program geared toward kids in juvenile detention centers

Favorite book: I don’t really have one favorite, but I like Federico Garcia-Lorca, Faulkner, C.S. Lewis, and Jean-Paul Sartre a lot.

About Service: I was raised (and still live) on a small dairy farm, and I had a pretty secluded upbringing and high school experience. I was the first person to go away to college in my family so when I came to William and Mary I had a HUGE culture-shock, but I immediately got involved with service because of the abundant opportunity to do so at W&M. I’m pretty hardcore Catholic, so I see service as a moral responsibility of any healthy human being. I think it’s impossible to fully enjoy life and be well, while there are people in the world who suffer or do without. It’s a collective responsibility to alleviate this and we must serve each other. I don’t think anything we do in life matters, unless we submit ourselves to serve others and improve the environment of our surroundings. I know my view sounds a little bleak and medieval, but what I see at W&M makes me very optimistic and hopeful for the future because true-service without personal recognition or gain really seems to be the thing to do on this campus, and I think that’s amazing. People our age are capable of doing things greater than themselves, and the service atmosphere at W&M really proves that. I don’t think I could ask for a better situation.

Oops! Didn't figure out how to post the pic until after I posted my entry. Haha...enjoy your summers, y'all!

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Name: Irène Mathieu
Major: International Relations
Hometown: Winchester, VA
Service Involvement(s): Student Organization for Medical Outreach & Sustainability (SOMOS), College Partnership for Kids, Community Partnership for Adult Learners. I spent last spring semester in Peru, where I took classes and worked on sustainable development service work with ProWorld Service Corps. I’ve been involved with a few mentoring programs as well.
Favorite Book: This question is tough! But I have to pick Letters to a Young Poet on the basis of its importance and influence in my life right now/in the last few years.
The ramble: In high school, I was not very involved with service, but I was keen on changing that upon starting college. I’m lucky to have ended up at William & Mary, because our rich campus culture of service has stretched my notions of community service and giving back in ways that I could never have anticipated as a high school senior. For me, service has become more than an extracurricular or something to do outside of one’s “real” life and career. For me, service is the basis of my real life and career. The motivation for this comes from a deep-seated belief in the equality of all human beings. But since so many economic and social conditions in this country and around the world fail to reflect that equality, the impetus of my professional life is rectifying it. Service shouldn’t be something we do “on the side;” it should be the culminating action for our mandate, as human beings, to love and care for one another. And since love is what I value above anything else, why shouldn’t my life be based on service? Less abstractly, I think service is a great way for people to learn about real-world conditions all around them, to apply classroom knowledge and to understand how history and economics play out in others’ – and their own - lives. Because of how much I’ve learned about these things since becoming involved in service at William & Mary, I highly encourage peers and those younger than I to get involved in a similar manner. Service broadens our horizons, challenges our definitions, and for me, provides the means with which to live a fulfilling life.

Introducing Mallory!

Hi Everyone! I am really excited to meet you all and have an amazing semester of SLC! Who am I? Well...

Name: Mallory Johnson

Major: Government and Interdisciplinary (Still in the works, combining Civic Engagement and Public Policy)

Hometown: Burke, VA (Good old Fairfax County)/Seattle, WA/London, England

Service Involvement(s): APO :) , APO SBST to Biloxi, Campus Escort Head, CSLs, Matthew Whaley Tutoring, Relay for Life, and the Phoenix Project (Not to be confused with Project Phoenix...the Phoenix Project is a six week summer service-learning program in the economically distressed community of Petersburg, VA), and hopefully more to come!

Favorite Book: That's a tough one...I'd say it's a toss up between The Memoirs of Cleopatra, Les Miserables, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Gone With the Wind. Too hard to pick just one!

Rambling Statement about Service: When I came to William & Mary, I was not very familiar with service, other than the couple hours I spent volunteering for political campaigns to meet a requirement for the IB program. Over the course of the two years I've spent here, though, service has grown into a true passion that adds a sense of purpose and fulfillment to my life. I began to understand that the impact of a project increases exponentially with the addition of reflection, internalization, and consideration of the broader implication of service and has subsequently opened my eyes to facets of the world that often go overlooked. I keep a quote by Oliver Wendell Holmes over my desk, which basically sums up my perspective of the impact of service- "A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions." I've had an amazing journey in the realm of civic engagement and I look forward to what new lessons and experiences are still in store.

I hope you're all having a great summer! I look forward to meeting you all in the Fall!
~Mallory

Hi again...ok I'll start with the introductions.

My name is Drew Stelljes. I was born and raised on Long Island. I lived in a small town (smaller than Williamsburg) on the east end of LI. With about 200 kids in my graduating class (all of whom I went to school with for 12 years) I was ready for smeothing different. I was really into art in HS so I applied to art schools and accepted Alfred U. in upstate NY. I did a last minute switch after realizing that I didn't want to be an artist and ended up at JMU. I loved it. I majored in Sociology and Org. Communication. I received a Master of Education in Counseling Psychology at JMU and it's at that time that I fell in love with service, more sepcifically how people change as a result of involvement in service. Upon graduating I got married and moved to Williamsburg to work at W&M.

I've been working here for 10 years now and I've loved it. In that time I have been witness to a rapid and dramatic increase in student involvement in service and as important a revolution in the manner in which we consider service and citizenship.

I earned my PhD in Educational Policy from W&M and have written on service-learning and commitment to service quite a bit. I have a book coming out in August on the topic.

My wife Amy and I have two children. Emma is 3 and Braden is 1. We live in Williamsburg and feel blessed to have wonderful friends. We have a terrific church community - St. Martin's - check it out sometime :) - and we have a sweet dog named Sadie.

I love SLC because it unites community leaders with motivated students to discuss important topics. We learn best when we discuss - in big group and outside of SLC during AND beyond the 10 week program.

I will write a lot more later but for now let the fun begin!

SLC Introdcutions

Hello SLC Members:

This is our page. It is our communication portal and we can begin with introductions. Please post:

Name
Major
Hometown
Service Involvement(s)
Favorite Book
A picture (of yourself, you and friends, you and family, etc)
A rambling statement about any or all of the following: your concept of service. What is it? What is it now? Why do it? Is there too much? Not enough? What is citizenship?