Bonnie Zare with students in India
As we move into fall, my days have been filled with preparations for our upcoming Humanities Matter! conference, which will take place October 23-24 at Central Wyoming College in Riverton. There are so, so many exciting sessions! I thought it behooved me to tell you all about them instead of keeping them to myself. So from now until the conference, at least once a week, I’ll post descriptions of Humanities Matter! lectures, panel discussions, and workshops.
Today, I shall unveil a fabulous workshop: “Service-Learning in the Humanities? Yes We Can!” Let’s meet our panelists and learn what they’ll be doing for you at Humanities Matter!
The People
Gretchen Wheeler has a Master’s Degree in communication and performance and has been an instructor at Casper College in Wyoming since 1986. In 2006, she was appointed as coordinator of service-learning activities campus wide, which resulted in the creation of the Casper College Center for Learning through Service in 2007. Gretchen now serves as the Center Director. She has received the Burlington Northern Excellence in Teaching Award, the Rosenthal Outstanding Educator Award, Phi Theta Kappa’s Terrific Learning Coach recognition and the 2008 Western Region Faculty Member Award from the National Association of Community College Trustees. Besides her academic experiences, Gretchen has worked as a professional actress and entertainer – and once owned a Hot Air Balloon!
Katie Kleinhesselink is the Coordinator of the Center for Volunteer Service at the University of Wyoming. She has a Bachelor’s in Women’s Studies and a Master’s of Public Works, both from the University of Montana.
Dr. Bonnie Zare, an Associate Professor of Women’s Studies at the University of Wyoming, teaches courses on contemporary American, Victorian, and South Asian gender issues and literature. She is the co-editor of the book Other Tongues: Rethinking the Language Debates in India (with Nalini Iyer, Rodopi Press, 2009). Her work has appeared in such journals as The Journal of Commonwealth Literature, South Asian Review, Transformations, and College Language Association Journal. Zare has won the University of Wyoming’s highest teaching award and, as faculty advisor for the Women’s Action Network, organizes campus events promoting social justice. Recently she founded the Keep Girls in School Project, which has raised over $6000 for impoverished girls in Andhra Pradesh, India.
The Panel
Service-learning is a teaching methodology which combines community service with classroom instruction, focusing on critical, reflective thinking as well as personal and civic responsibility. Service –learning programs/courses involve students in learning activities that address local needs while developing their academic skills and commitment to their communities. (Rudy M. Garcia and Gail Robinson, American Association of Community Colleges)
Humanities faculty know that their students could benefit from the reflection and civic-mindedness promoted by service-learning, but they sometimes have a harder time incorporating service-learning into courses than faculty in other disciplines. Community organizations could use the students’ help, but how can humanities students be incorporated into their work in a meaningful way?
In this workshop, Gretchen Wheeler will provide a brief overview of what service-learning is and why it works. Bonnie Zare will talk about the benefits to her students of the service-learning component of her course, in which she and her students travel to India to work with women’s organizations there. Katie Kleinhesselink will talk about how service-learning can be incorporated into humanities courses, specifically. Then Gretchen will lead workshop participants in an activity to help jump-start their own service-learning projects.
Sounds fun, right? We’ll be taking Labor Day off, but the blog will be active again on Tuesday. So tune in next week for descriptions of other fabulous panels!
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