Astronomy Night was a really great opportunity to engage our students with the community to bring people onto our campus and let them see some science first hand. We had roughly 500 guests come through and have the opportunity to not only look through a telescope and see part of the Universe close up, but also to learn about some of the science behind Astronomy. With help from our science students, we conducted activities and demonstrations about the physics, math, and biology behind what astronomers can observe. I love doing outreach for astronomy because astronomy is so accessible and so easy to make fascinating. New results from astronomy are continually in the news, so lots of people already know something about different types of objects that are out there and about what is going on in astronomy. But there's no replacement for being able to see something for yourself. Being able to look through a telescope and see with your own eyes just how big and beautiful, or small and disappointing, a planet, star, or galaxy is always give you a new perspective, and hopefully inspires the curiosity to learn what it is, why it's there, and what's going to happen to it.
- Brian Morsony, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics
Creating the science programs through the STEM Ambassador Program at Stanislaus State has given me the experience and confidence to be able to build this program as a student teacher at Enochs High School. The program allowed me to explore an infinite number of labs and lessons that can apply to my future classroom. I worked with a diverse group of students and was able to fine-tune my lessons to their differences. I have grown as a person and as a leader through this program. Science in Our Community has given me the boost that most student teachers do not have at this point in the Teacher Credential Program.
- Heather Friedberg, STEM Ambassador, Department of Teacher Education
In Fall 2019, my cultural anthropology ethnographic research methods course, ANTH 4040: Field Work Process, conducted a research project in collaboration with the Office of Service Learning and our community partner, We Care Program, a men's homeless shelter in Turlock. It was a wonderful opportunity for students to practice anthropology and learn skills critical to the discipline, while experiencing first-hand how anthropology can contribute to better understand and help address real problems in our local communities. As an anthropology professor, experiential learning conducted through community-based partnerships provides such a fertile learning environment for our students. This experience was transformative for my students as they rose to the challenge of volunteering at the shelter and conducting a series of open-ended interviews with the shelter clients. The students analyzed the data and prepared a presentation of their findings for the We Care Program Board at the end of the semester. The students took ownership of this project and delivered a polished and critically informed presentation. The project built confidence among all the partners, our class, the Office of Service Learning and We Care in recognizing the importance of creating partnerships in experiential learning to better understand the challenges we face in our community.
- Richard Wallace, Professor & Director, Department of Anthropology
United Samaritans Foundation was the recipient of a complete website overhaul project that was a phenomenal experience. Thanks to a fabulous partnership with Dr. DaeHee Kim, Computer Science and two Stanislaus State students, Mark and Mauricio, we took an old, but aesthetically pleasing website and created a vibrant and fully functional website. Our donors, volunteers and clients agree that the new ease in reaching us has made a powerful impact. Our website now has its own donation page, a volunteer portal with scheduling and calendars, and an easy to use mobile lunch truck schedule for clients needing food. From the first introductory meeting to our final wrap-up meeting, Dr. Kim, Mark and Mauricio created an open communicative venue of support and understanding of our needs. They took the time to ensure that we knew they would be available if we needed help and that we would be able to move forward once they handed the reins back to us. There are not enough words to describe the positive partnership forged with Mark, Mauricio and Dr. Kim. We feel blessed to have been chosen to work with this team and the Service Learning Office at California State University, Stanislaus.
- Linda Murphy-Julien, Executive Director, United Samaritans Foundation
- Scott Quale, Assistant Director, United Samaritans Foundation
Students in my English 1007: First Year Composition, partnered with the Turlock We Care Program, a local men’s homeless shelter to serve dinner at the shelter, as well as developed a fundraiser dinner in cooperation with one of the best restaurants in Turlock, La Mo Café. Besides students learning how to engage a text, provide thoughtful feedback to their peers, and write strong, focused, and well thought out papers, they also learned what it means to be an active citizen in a democracy and in their community. Whether it was the “One-Page” research paper, serving dinner at the shelter, or hosting a fundraising dinner, students actively came together for a cause.
- Brett Ashmun, Lecturer, Department of Liberal Studies
Service projects play a significant role in their educational and personal development while giving back to the community. As students apply concepts learned in the class to real world settings, another level of learning takes place. Opportunities for learning and insight, both professionally and personally, that cannot be simulated, routinely occur when they put their knowledge to work in the community. Tangential to learning theories and facts, a university education should inspire critical thinking, promote the acquisition of technical skills, and connect students to communities. Devising the preferred course of action in less than perfect decision making conditions inspires critical thought and innovation.
- Professor David Colnic, Department of Politics and Public Administration
Service learning gives our students real-life experiences that help them choose a career path, that enrich their resumes when they apply for jobs, and that help them develop empathy with an understanding of some of the people they will be working with in criminal justice.
- Professor Phyllis Gerstenfeld, Chair of the Department of Criminal Justice
Updated: April 06, 2023