Keys to Success:

• Tie service to curriculum as much as possible
• Take time to celebrate the projects students take part in and complete

Program Description:

Emphasizing preparation, action, reflection, and celebration—four components critical to service learning—Sue Ringquist, the service learning coordinator for the Pocatello School District, is encouraging all staff to implement service learning projects with their students. Following are examples of some of the service learning projects currently happening in the district:

• Students attending an alternative junior high school build and distribute bird feeders to elderly community members
• Students identified as at risk are participating in a beautification project for their school grounds
• Secondary science students are composing science fiction stories to be donated to their neighborhood elementary school
• Junior high students are working with younger children at a local after-school program for low-income elementary students
• Sixth-grade students are tutoring third-grade students in language arts classes
• Science club students at a junior high school are working with the State Fish and Game Department to develop a local nature area
• High school juniors are donating more than 1,000 hours to service to local nonprofit agencies as part of their health curriculum

Program:
Lewiston Youth Volunteer Program

Participating Schools:
Jenifer Junior High, Sacajawea Junior High, and
Lewiston High School
1424 Main Street, Lewiston, ID 83501
Phone: 208/746-9179, 208/746-2337, fax: 208/746-9110, 208/746-1675
Contact: Debbie Childers or Mark Havens

Observed Outcomes:

• Students who may not excel in other academic arenas can excel with service learning
• Service can pull students out of undesirable peer groups
• Service helps students see connections between learning and working
• Through the service, students get to explore different career options

Keys to Success:

• Be very organized
• Have a designated "command center" for the program
• Designate someone to coordinate the program
• Publicize service learning efforts throughout community
• Establish a community advisory board (they will be strong advocates for service learning)
• Build partnerships with community groups

Program Description:

The Lewiston Youth Volunteer Program views itself as a service "clearinghouse." This means that there are numerous opportunities for service learning available to interested youth (middle and high school students) at different levels of involvement. Agencies interested in obtaining the assistance of students contact Debbie Childers, the program coordinator, to notify her of their particular needs. She then recruits the necessary volunteers, and/or posts notices in a designated area where students check for opportunities. In addition, Childers visits each of the three schools involved in the program at least once a week to keep students abreast of volunteer opportunities. She also keeps regular office hours.

There are three tracks of involvement that students can participate in. These are:

1. Students who make a commitment to devote a certain amount of time to service learning. They volunteer at specific sites on a regular basis.
2. Students who do not have an ongoing commitment to the service, but make themselves available for occasional activities.
3. Students who not only participate in community service, but are also members of the Student Advisory Board for service learning. These volunteers are responsible for selecting an annual focus of community need, and for maintaining the community need.