PREP Student Council Service-Learning Project

Putting our words into action!

 1. PREPARATION AND PLANNING FOR THE SERVICE-LEARNING EXPERIENCE:
Gaining Consensus: Students, teachers, and community partners collaborate with this project. It is a balance between meaningful community
needs, resources, how much time can be committed, and what skills students need to learn and practice (age-appropriate).

Students can expect the following benefits (the service activity is related to the goals and objectives of the Student Council Class):
• Develop skills in critical thinking, problem solving, leadership, decision making, collaboration and communication
• Build positive relationships with community members
• Connect their experiences to academic subjects (practical task so student learn as they doing it)
• Develop a deeper understanding of themselves, empathy and respect for others (and feeling responsible for others)

The Community Agency (Urban Peak):

• Need(s):
UP needs volunteers who prepare and serve breakfast, lunch and dinner at the at the shelter (at South Broadway) and at the Drop-
in Center (Downtown). UP needs a variety of items donated (see list on UP website).
• The service to be completed:
Students will donate food (non-perishable items), toiletries and hygiene products to the shelter. The members of the Student
Council will prepare and serve lunch for the youth every month. After serving lunch, students will sit down with the shelter’s clients,
have lunch with them and help clean-up the kitchen area and the dining room area.
• Chosen agency: Urban Peak Homeless Youth Shelter and Drop-in Center Downtown (Reasons: some of our students stayed at UP previously
and these homeless youths are the same age as the members of the Student Council. Both of them have the same socioeconomics backgrounds.
There is connection between them).
• Providing instruction and specific training to students: See Shelter Meal Volunteer Information (Concerns and liability issues and discussion)
(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.cgc.edu/Students/studentlife/slearning/faculty/Pages/S-LProjectSteps.aspx
 2.THE SERVICE-LEARNING EXPERIENCE - ACTION:

The Student Council Coordinator

• Maintains regular contact with Urban Peak through the duration of the service-learning project (this school year) to address
successes and/or concerns with the project and the student(s).
• Provides motivational and other support (transportation and emotional), to the student(s) involved in the project, activities
and makes sure that goals are being met.

The members of the PREP Student Council:

• Know the activity meets his or her academic, personal and social-emotional learning goals.
• Need to follow all established regulations and/or guidelines.
• Know what is expected of them and possess the necessary skills (life skills, interpersonal skills, teamwork building skills).
• All of them have a meaningful roles to play (preparing food, cooking, cleaning dishes, serving food, drinks, chopping salad,
etc.).
• Know how to perform tasks well collaboratively and as a team to achieve the goal.

The community agency (Urban Peak) provides any necessary training (before and during the project) to participate in the
service-learning activity as well as address needs, concerns and liability issues of the student(s).
GROCERY SHOPPING FOR UP SHELTER AND DROP-IN CENTER

With the help of the

faculty and with the
Student Council
Coordinator students
applied for a
government grant and
they got it.
GROCERY SHOPPING FOR SHELTER AND FOR DROP-IN CENTER
Addition to the grant, students donated their own money. PREP Student Council went
to Sam’s Club and bought 1,000 dollars worth of food, toiletries, hygiene product and
delivered to the shelter and Drop-in Center (chosen community agency by our
students).
GROCERY SHOPPING FOR UP
SHELTER AND DROP-IN CENTER
The food delivery happened in collaboration of
PREP faculty and students.

“This volunteering experience have contributed to

my personal growth. It was difficult to leave my
comfort zone first, but the project helped me to build
my self-confidence and self-esteem.”
Urban Peak provides any necessary training as well as address needs, concerns and liability issues of the student(s):

Interaction with Urban Peak Youth and Young Adults

 Please feel free to interact with the youth and staff at Urban Peak. We respectfully ask that meal volunteers do not ask Urban
Peak youth and young adults about their personal background or current life situation. Many of these residents have personal,
medical, psychological or lifestyle concerns that should not be addressed in a public setting or without professional clinical
supervision.
 If an Urban Peak youth or client says or makes an inappropriate, rude, or profane statement to any member of your group please
report that to staff immediately. This behavior will not be tolerated and will be addressed by our staff.
 Please do not take any photos, videos, etc of the clients of Urban Peak.
 Do not give out any personal or professional phone numbers or addresses to the youth.
 Volunteers are prohibited from social contact with the youth outside the bounds of Urban Peak programs.
 Do not provide the youth with any money, gift cards, referrals, transportation, or other forms of assistance. If you or your group
would like to assist the youth in any manner besides the meal, please talk to an Urban Peak staff member.
 Please do not provide “doggie bags” of leftovers to the youth. Please do not provide gift bags of snacks or other small items to
youth unless previously approved by the Urban Peak staff.
 Please do not advocate any particular religious or political beliefs while on Urban Peak property.
 Volunteers should remain in the kitchen or dining areas unless given permission by staff to be in another area.
UP HOMELESS SHELTER YOUTH LUNCH

PREPARING
AND
COOKING……
PREPARING AND COOKING……
“I definitely think it being in
the shelter and talking to
young homeless adults has
changed how I look at things.
So like now, when I think
about something I think about
it in regards to how it can help
other people.”
Jordan - Senior
 “I am happier
for helping
other people,
I’m gaining a
new
appreciation for
myself.“

Scott - Junior

“Serving lunch in the

shelter has made me
more open to going and Students with their own
trying different things in words are describing this
the community.” experience…
Kendra
“It is good to know
that there are people
out there helping kids
who are struggling in
life.”
Jamima – Junior

The best pizza

makers in
Denver…
“After visiting the shelter a few times, and seeing how happy they looked, when lunch and
dinner was served by us, I felt warm and helpful” – Adrian - Senior
After serving homeless youth in the shelter
our students had lunch with them.

There was a great opportunity for UP

shelter youth to share their life stories,
struggles and for our students to
listen to, get engaged.
The 5 components of service learning:

Service_Learning_in_Arkansas_Toolkit_and_Resource_Directory. (n.d.). [Review]. (n.d.).

 3.THE REFLECTION OF SERVICE-LEARNING (WHAT WAS LEARNED?):

The Student Council Coordinator encourages students to think critically about the experience and to put it in his or
her own words, emotions, document the action through pictures, videos, interviews, journals, etc.

PREP Student Council

The contributions and benefits of the experience:
• PREP Student Council provide the assistance and support for homeless youth through serving lunch and dinner
monthly
• Social, emotional and intellectual connections have been made
• Students’ thinking of community projects and volunteering have changed
Students have accomplished:
• Monthly meal provided (essential services for homeless youth arranged)
• Positive interaction, caring presence, and healthy relationship established between shelter youth and students
The impact they have had on those being served and how their own attitudes and behavior have changed.
• UP homeless youth greatly appreciate PREP students’ contribution and volunteer service (they are looking for the
day when PREP students show-up and serve). UP homeless youth respect students, want to interact with them and
talk to them.
The opportunity to explore how they feel about what they have accomplished: Students’ testaments
This is our students’ testament
(journals) how they felt after visiting
and serving in the shelter
 4. EVALUATION/RECOGNITION/CELEBRATION:
The community agency (UP), the Student Council Coordinator and students work together in the students’
performance measures and project evaluation:
• Poster (PP slide #19)
• PowerPoint presentation “When students prepare for sharing
• Service-Learning Project evaluation sheet with others, their learning is also
• Logs, journals (PP slide #16) deepens”
• VIDEO, etc.).
UP, Coordinator and students recognize the efforts of all involved in making this project a worthwhile,
successful, and rewarding experience.
The members of the PREP Student Council have been invited for
ice cream social at “Liks”. There was an opportunity to discuss,
evaluate, celebrate their accomplishment of this service-learning
project and planning for future projects.
The following goals are met and accomplished:
• Integrated Learning (Life skill learned outside the classroom)
• High Quality Service (Catering to community needs)
• Collaboration and team-work
• Understanding Civic Responsibility (Empathy, Caring for
others)
The impact PREP
students have had on
those being served…
Poster has been created after each visits to the shelter
 REFERENCES:

(n.d.).
Retrieved from https://www.cgc.edu/Students/studentlife/slearning/faculty/Pages/S-
LProjectSteps.aspx

Service_Learning_in_Arkansas_Toolkit_and_Resource_Directory. (n.d.). [Review]. (n.d.).