Community partners with UC’s Center for Civic Engagement
Michael J. Sharp sat at the back of the college classroom, contemplating sticking a pencil through his eye. He knew his students were smart, but their speeches in this introductory public speaking course were, well, boring.On and on they droned, and the more he listened, the more Sharp wondered: "What would happen if students in college public speaking courses started making speeches that actually mattered?"That's when Sharp, a professor at the University of Cincinnati and the director of the new Center for Service Learning and Civic Engagement, decided to make his class a new kind of educational experience. Instead of having students read theory and make speeches about their lives, he would have them read theory and listen to representatives from local non-profits talk about their work in the community. He would assign student groups to create presentations about the non-profits, to design an event to raise awareness and maybe even funds. And he would have them execute them all as part of their class."The idea is to have students use what they are learning to enact change in their world," says Sharp, who is also a doctoral student in the college's College of Education Criminal Justice and Human Services. "The response has been tremendous."All across the region, Sharp has built a reputation as an expert facilitator, teacher and listener. He recruits representatives from non-profits to pair them not only with his own classes, but with hundreds of other classes across the university. He has overseen the growth of Service Learning at UC by hundreds of percentage points."I see Service Learning as a triangle in which the three sides represent the community, the faculty and the students," he says. "Service Learning connects the three, with all parties teaching and learning through the process."Full disclosure: As a Journalism professor at the University of Cincinnati, I teach a range of Service Learning courses and serve on the Service Learning Advisory Council. Do Good:• Watch the video. Learn more about Service Learning by hearing what its practitioners have to say.• Make a connection. Find resources and great stories.• Facebook it. See if your non-profit might benefit from the expertise of UC's faculty and students. By Elissa Yancey
