Student Leaders for Service (SLS)Portland State University (USA)
Rooted in Portland State University's commitment to community outreach and engagement, the Student Leaders for Service program (SLS) provides students with opportunities to significantly address issues in the surrounding communities while simultaneously preparing future civic leaders. Through this program, 25 students make a commitment to serve ten hours a week during the academic year at a local organization where they provide direct service to address community needs. Students act as liaisons between the university and the community, connecting institutional resources to partner organizations in an effort to build their capacity.
Since 1999, 6,148 SLS volunteers have provided 82,000 hours of service, to 88 projects to the Portland community. Over 125 faculty and staff have also participated in SLS programming. In recent years, SLS has diversified its activities to include global projects at the American University in Cairo and the University of Science in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Learn more on the SLS website>>
Student Community Engagement
University of Brighton (UK)
The Student Community Engagement program (SCE) in the Community University Partnership Programme (Cupp) at the University of Brighton works across the university to match the skills and abilities of different student groups with the needs of local voluntary organizations working to address marginalization and disadvantage. Cupp designs modules which enable students to take initiative and leadership in selecting a project and either to work to a brief set by a community organization or to suggest an intervention that they would like to undertake. Assessment tasks involve practical work, analysis and reflection and enable students to gain academic credit for a particular community-based intervention. Contrary to more traditional service-learning or placement modules, students are encouraged to question and challenge the approaches they come into contact with and to take a rights-based rather than a welfare perspective on questions of marginalization and social justice. Brighton has also partnered with the University of Dzemal Bijedic Mostar in Bosnia to help that university implement a similar program. Learn more on Cupp's website>>
Student Volunteers Bureau
Al-Quds University (Palestine)
Palestinian students are required to complete 120 hours of community service in order to graduate. To harness and coordinate these volunteer efforts, AQU created the Student Volunteers Bureau (SVB). Building on years of experience by AQU's Community Action Center in managing volunteers and working with community organizations, the SVB recruits students, provides them with training on volunteerism, building and coordinating volunteer groups, critical thinking in problem solving, and building community partnerships. The volunteers work in groups of 30 headed by a squad leader who receives extra training in management. By providing and creating resources, and training future leaders in the community, the SVB ensures that students' volunteer experiences are empowering and effective. The SVB is a relatively new program, but it has already had great success in expanding its volunteer ranks and building up partnerships with local NGOs and community members. The SVB takes into account feedback from student volunteers and community partners as it continues to improve on its model, which AQU hopes will be adopted by other Palestinian universities.
Student Community Action Newcastle (SCAN)
Newcastle University (UK)
SCAN is one of the UK's longest-standing university student civic engagement initiatives, supporting numerous excellent initiatives. Amongst these is "Success 4 All", a social enterprise that runs after-school study support and language clubs for schools and community groups, supporting children with their homework and helping them prepare for exams. The project specifically works in deprived areas in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, and also reaches out particularly to children from black and minority ethnic families. Success 4 All has attracted many student volunteers, who gain great experience working with children, all under the guidance of a qualified and experienced teacher. These student volunteers provide study support to help young people with their homework and English and math tutoring through interactive games. Volunteers from SCAN have also helped with the 'Summer School for Children of Refugees & Asylum Seekers'. This event included Africa Day on Tuesday, South Asia Day on Wednesday, China Day on Thursday, and finally England Day, providing activities such as cookery, fashion, mask making, drumming, Bollywood dancing & drama, and storytelling. The project has expanded to include English tutoring for foreign-language-speaking pupils and now has Spanish, French, German, Dutch, Italian, and Mandarin clubs. SCAN and Success 4 All have jointly attained the National Mentoring + Befriending Foundation Approved Provider Standard. Learn more on SCAN's website>>
