BSU program gives students valuable real-life experience

Nampa resident Ron Burling was skeptical that he would get anything out of the community service requirements in a course he was taking at Boise State University.

Sandra Forester , The Idaho Statesman

http://www.idahostatesman.com/News/story.asp?ID=57577

But after a semester of working with the Lighthouse Rescue Mission in Nampa, he said the service-learning program gives students a way to explore potential careers, connect to the community and help others.

“The program exceeded my expectations,” said Burling, who is majoring in social work.

Burling, a Vietnam veteran who returned to college after being laid off from work and becoming homeless himself, said he will continue helping out at the mission, although he has fulfilled his required commitment.

The service-learning program helps students apply what they´re learning in various classes through community service, said Kerri McCanna, BSU´s service-learning program liaison.

For example, Introduction to History classes volunteer at the Veterans Home or the Idaho Historical Society; nursing classes work with health fairs for farm workers; and African-American Literature students research demographics and education at the Snake River Correctional Institute in Ontario, Ore.

McCanna said students often grow personally while helping a non-profit organization, and many decide to continue volunteering after they´ve worked the required number of hours.

One Somalian student volunteering with the English as a Second Language program improved her English while producing a newsletter for the program, and is now helping translate for new Somalian students, McCanna said.

Figures from BSU show that the number of students participating in service-learning has grown from 30 in 1998 to 1,106 in 2003. They gave about 44,000 hours back to the community in 2003 through 24 non-profit organizations, including the Boise Rescue Mission Ministry, Head Start in Mountain Home, Nampa Boys & Girls Club and the Discovery Center. The number of faculty requiring service learning as part of their curriculum also has grown from 17 in 2001 to more than 50 in 2003.

Tammie Alejandro, community relations director for the Boise Rescue Mission Ministry, which runs the Lighthouse, said the program provides organizations with volunteers whom they can depend on and helps their budget go farther. It also helps the students to be more aware and involved in their community, possibly molding future leaders, she said.

“Not only do we end up getting their hands, but their hearts, too,” Alejandro said. “That´s when it becomes more than just a program.”

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[email protected] or 377-6447