MCLA is hosting their 20th annual Student Leadership Conference. 

If you would like to present…

Click the link below to submit a program proposal by Friday December 5th!

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT PRESENTATION PROPOSAL

Join The Service-Learning Club (Saturday November 8th) to help Central Berkshire Habitat for Humanity!

Project Details

We will meet at 8am at 35 New Hampshire Avenue, Pittsfield MA
Our project will last from 8am until 2pm. Lunch is included.We have a two part project! We will be landscaping on New Hampshire Avenue,
then we will move to Orchard Street to help build a new wheelchair ramp!
Do Not Forget: This will be messy work! Please wear closed toed shoes and clothes you won’t mind getting messy!

If you would like to join our project, email: bmorrison@berkshirecc.edu to sign up!

SERVICE-LEARNING STUDENTS:

DON’T FORGET TO LOG YOUR HOURS USING NOBLEHOUR.COM

NobleHour is the quickest and easiest way to submit your Service-Learning Hours. You will only receive credit for hours logged into Noblehour.

Click the link below for instructions on how to post your hours. If you have any questions or problems, please stop by the Service-Learning office (Hawthorne 215)!

NobleHour Hour Log Directions

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”

– Mark Twain

Don’t let money be the reason you are unable to have the experience of a lifetime. You want to travel and BCC wants to help get you there!

The first deadline for an International Travel Grant is tomorrow (Thursday October 30th)

To apply for the Global Engagement Fund (limited to BCC students), pick up materials in Field 232 or Melville 223. Deadline is October 30, 2014.

To apply for the Henriquez Fund at Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, visit www.berkshiretaconic.org, click “Receive” and search for Henriquez on the “Search and Apply for a Grant” page. Deadline is February 1st, 2015.

Laura, a BCC Student, talks about her experiences with the Service-Learning Program at that semester’s Recognition Luncheon.

Back in September we held two tutor training sessions for our students who planned to do Service-Learning in local elementary schools. We invited Brandon Harms, Math Coach for Crosby Elementary, to speak. He gave a very informative lecture on “The 6 Levels of Knowing”. Check out the links for the videos below!

The 6 Levels of Knowing with Brandon Harms

The 6 Levels of Knowing (Part 2)

A Typical Day of Tutoring

• Enrolled in a Service-Learning course?

• Want to tutor elementary school students in English or Math as your Federal Work Study Job? You can work in the local public schools as America Reads, America Counts tutor.

• Interested in volunteering at one of 45 local agencies through the Service-Learning Club? One-time events and on-going projects available.

Attend a Service-Learning Orientation to Sign Up!

DATES:

• Thursday, Sept. 11 @ (12:15-1:15 PM)

• Wednesday, Sept. 17 @ (1-2 PM)

• Thursday Sept. 18 @ (12:15-1:15 PM)

• Monday, Sept. 22 @ (4:15-5:15 PM)

Location: Field-202

Bring a government issued photo ID

Click here to receive a reminder email or text message to attend SL Orientation

From: Huffington Post – Full Article

“Results from the 2014 Millennial Impact Report by consulting firm Achieve are in, and it turns out today’s young professionals think giving back to their communities is important. According to the report, 47 percent of the 1,514 employed millennials surveyed said they had volunteered for a cause or nonprofit in the past month, and 57 percent wanted to see more company-wide volunteer opportunities through their employer.”

In BCC News:

At the end of each semester, BCC Service-Learning surveys students to find out “What influenced your decision to participate in Service-Learning?” 51% the 114 students surveyed between spring 2012 and spring 2014 indicated “I wanted to give my time to help my community” and 40% agreed with the statement “I believe I have a responsibility to work with others to improve my community.” 92% of students strongly agreed or agreed with the statement: “I would choose to do service-learning again, if presented with the option.” On average, 120 students participate in Service-Learning each year at BCC. The national trend suggests that as service opportunities grow, so will participation among Millennials. (The birth years of Millennials range from the early 1980’s to the early 2000’s.)

For more inspiration, check out the profiles of “8 Millennials who ditched Wall Street for”…a social cause.

MA Board of Higher Education Adopts Nation’s 1st Statewide Civic Learning Policy for Public Campuses

Community Colleges, State Universities, UMass Campuses to Deepen Focus on Preparing Students for Engaged Citizenship

May 8—The Massachusetts Board of Higher Education (BHE) has adopted a first-in-the-nation policy on civic learning for public college and university students and will work with the Commonwealth’s community colleges, state universities and University of Massachusetts campuses to incorporate civic learning as an “expected outcome” for undergraduate students beginning in the 2014-15 academic year, the Department of Higher Education announced today.

“With this vote the BHE urges Massachusetts’ public campuses to reaffirm a shared commitment to the civic learning which is essential if students are to meet their future responsibilities as citizens,” said Richard M. Freeland, Commissioner of Higher Education. “This work is at the core of our mission in higher education. It is a commitment that I believe should be met with urgency.” ….

The new policy drew heavily on a report from a study group assigned to offer recommendations to guide campuses in the work of preparing future citizens. ….

This week’s unanimous Board action reaffirmed a March 2012 vote to add civic learning as a key outcome of the Vision Project, the state’s strategic agenda to achieve national leadership among state systems of public higher education. With that vote, Massachusetts became the first state to commit to finding a way to actually measure the civic learning of its students using methodologies similar to those used to track academic progress.

At its meeting at Massasoit Community College in Brockton, the BHE voted to define the scope of civic learning as follows:

• The knowledge component of civic learning includes an understanding of the United States, including its history and governmental traditions, other world societies, and the relationship(s) between and among these cultures and nations.
• The intellectual skills component refers to qualities of mind necessary to engage effectively in civic activities.
• The applied competencies component refers to the practical skills and capacities needed to engage effectively in civic activities.
• The values component refers to understanding the social and political values that are associated with democratic and civic institutions.

The Board encouraged the state’s public campuses to develop their own programs and curricula to foster civic learning as defined by the new policy, while also announcing a four-point action plan to advance the system wide goals through:

1) Increased attention to civic learning as a goal in campus strategic plans;
2) Facilitation and support for campus work in civic learning through conferences and meetings to share best practices and provide funding for campus projects;
3) Development of new ways to measure and report students’ civic learning outcomes;
4) Collaboration with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to develop a cross-sector plan for civic learning from kindergarten through college.

The Board’s vote builds upon a long history of fostering civic engagement through service learning and other opportunities for students at the state’s public campuses.