As the Spring 2012 semester comes to a close, we are happy to a few of the innovative ways in which Roosevelt University faculty members used transformational learning in their classes.
See photos from Mike Bryson's course in Sustainability Studies in which his students partnered with Growing Power Youth Corps to work together at the Chicago Lights Urban Farm.
You can also learn how students in Lisa Lu's course ("Fundamentals of Behavioral Neuroscience" taught lessons about the brain to 7th and 8th graders at the Young Women's Leadership Charter School as part of Brain Awareness Week 2012.
These are wonderful testimonials to how transformational learning can make a difference in the lives of Roosevelt University students as well as the youth involved in these outreach efforts.
As a whole, transformational learning continues to grow at the university. In total, we offered 99 transformational learning courses in 2011-2012 with an enrollment of 1,460 students. This is a three-fold increase compared to just two years ago. If you're interested in learning how to use transformational learning in your own classes, please feel free to contact the Mansfield Institute staff -- we'd be happy to help.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Schaumburg celebration of transformational learning
The Mansfield Institute was proud to sponsor a celebration of transformational learning at the Schaumburg Campus on April 13. Organized by Jennifer Tani (Director of Community Engagement) and Jill Coleman (Assistant Professor of Psychology), the event showcased how Roosevelt University students and faculty have used this teaching strategy to address challenges and needs present in the northwest suburbs.
Jill Coleman and her teaching assistant, Aliya Ghouse, described how transformational learning enriched her Psychology of Women class during the past semester. Flanked by display boards showcasing community partners for the class, participants learned how students benefited from the first-hand experiences of working with agencies that assist women and how to overcome challenges involved in community placements. She shared a poignant quote from Lisa Musialowicz, one of her students, about the placement:
“While I was working at the volunteer fair with Deena, she mentioned that the women and children at the crisis center are in charge of their own breakfast and lunch, but each night a few people are assigned to the chore of making dinner for all of the residents. With the food pantry getting so low this is becoming an even harder task…I decided that since Monday night was my night off, I would make dinner. I decided on cheese tortellini and sauce with salad and garlic bread. I don’t have a huge kitchen at my apartment so this was not exactly easy, but I managed. When everyone saw what I brought, their mouths about dropped to the floor. They kept saying how nice and generous it was. To me, pasta, salad, and garlic bread is not a gourmet meal but, when you have nothing, everything is a big deal.
I left the center after dinner feeling better than I could have imagined. I cook dinner for family and friends all the time and have never felt the way I did that night. It was more than volunteering for a class that night. It was doing something kind for women and children that maybe haven’t had a lot of kindness recently except for at ECC.”
Other presenters focused on how to facilitate outreach opportunities more broadly at the Schaumburg Campus. A panel of students from Melissa Sisco's course in Child Abuse and Family Violence not only performed the service learning hours as part of this class, they shared results from a survey of 79 Roosevelt students about their needs and preferences for becoming more engaged in the community. Melissa Palmer, Gina Stawinoga, Alexandra Corbin, Christina Luburich, Tiana Sapienza, Christine Westercamp, and Amanda Brullo reported that Roosevelt University students often wish for more opportunities for service learning as well as weekly volunteering, particularly in the areas of at-risk youth and intimate partner violence. This data will inform the creation of the Campus to Community Outreach Initiative (CCO) at Schaumburg to establish additional community partnerships and to facilitate the placement process.
Jan Bone elaborated on the innovative partnership that she formed with CEDA Northwest when teaching Writing Social Justice during the Spring semester. This community agency focuses on the impact of economic inequality in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. Students in Jan's class developed their writing as they learned about issues of affordable housing and the lived experiences of poor people in the suburbs. Applying their skills, students provided assistance for the redevelopment of CEDA's website, Facebook page, and compiled a 94-page document to help the agency find options to sustain their funding needed for operation.
Sonia Ivanov and Jessica Elbe from CEDA attended the celebration and received these materials at the reception. Expressing gratitude and excitement around this collaboration, they shared how challenging it can be for not-for-profit agencies to sustain their work as funding becomes more scarce throughout Illinois and how vital the students' assistance has been for their organization. Several undergraduates in the class will continue to serve at CEDA even after the course ends.
“While I was working at the volunteer fair with Deena, she mentioned that the women and children at the crisis center are in charge of their own breakfast and lunch, but each night a few people are assigned to the chore of making dinner for all of the residents. With the food pantry getting so low this is becoming an even harder task…I decided that since Monday night was my night off, I would make dinner. I decided on cheese tortellini and sauce with salad and garlic bread. I don’t have a huge kitchen at my apartment so this was not exactly easy, but I managed. When everyone saw what I brought, their mouths about dropped to the floor. They kept saying how nice and generous it was. To me, pasta, salad, and garlic bread is not a gourmet meal but, when you have nothing, everything is a big deal.
I left the center after dinner feeling better than I could have imagined. I cook dinner for family and friends all the time and have never felt the way I did that night. It was more than volunteering for a class that night. It was doing something kind for women and children that maybe haven’t had a lot of kindness recently except for at ECC.”
Other presenters focused on how to facilitate outreach opportunities more broadly at the Schaumburg Campus. A panel of students from Melissa Sisco's course in Child Abuse and Family Violence not only performed the service learning hours as part of this class, they shared results from a survey of 79 Roosevelt students about their needs and preferences for becoming more engaged in the community. Melissa Palmer, Gina Stawinoga, Alexandra Corbin, Christina Luburich, Tiana Sapienza, Christine Westercamp, and Amanda Brullo reported that Roosevelt University students often wish for more opportunities for service learning as well as weekly volunteering, particularly in the areas of at-risk youth and intimate partner violence. This data will inform the creation of the Campus to Community Outreach Initiative (CCO) at Schaumburg to establish additional community partnerships and to facilitate the placement process.
Monday, April 9, 2012
SUST 350′s Workday at the Chicago Lights Urban Farm
This past Wednesday was the third week for my SUST 350 Service & Sustainability class doing work at the Chicago Lights Urban Farm in Cabrini-Green. We help out on a variety of chores and projects at the farm on our Wed afternoon work sessions. Last week we pulled weeds, sifted compost, and harvested thousands of pumpkin seeds from some of last year’s leftover pumpkins. This week we sifted more compost, pulled weeds, and began work on constructing the 2nd hoop house for the farm.
Click to read more...
Click to read more...
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Students spend their spring break fixing homes in Indiana community hit hard by recession
Instead of driving to Florida or jetting to Mexico, a group of
Roosevelt University students spent spring break helping others in an
unusual destination – Goshen, Ind. Dedicated to the University’s social justice mission, 10 students
traveled to Goshen March 11-17 to fix up vacant homes with the
not-for-profit group, La Casa, Inc.
Undergraduates Mooni Abdus-Salam, Samantha Benduha, Molly Connor, Marius Cuciulan, Traci Gilbert, Chelsea Morrison, Hannah Pilla, Kevin Stefanowski, Bailey Swinney and Emilie Wilkie were busy every day of their break making repairs, including indoor remodeling, roofing and landscaping, on homes that La Casa makes available to low and moderate-income residents.
”Community service has always been important to me,” said Morrison, an undergraduate political science major who was part of the Center for Student Involvement ‘s third annual Alternative Break Immersion trip. “It’s particularly important when you help people who can’t make do for themselves,” she said.
In 2010, a group of Roosevelt students spent their spring break helping at a community center in a small West Virginia town. In 2011, Roosevelt students went to work at Benton House, a community center in in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood. This year, volunteers chose to help in Elkhart County’s Goshen, Ind., which has been hard hit by the recession, including foreclosures and unemployment, due in large part to the collapse of its RV manufacturing industry.
“We took the trip to help out people who have fallen on hard times,” said Katherine Mason, the Roosevelt career counselor who led student volunteers in fixing three La Casa properties. “It was an eye-opening experience to see how badly a small town like Goshen has suffered,” she said.
Hannah Pilla, an undergraduate English major who has participated in all three Alternative Break Immersion excursions and who helped organize the trip to Goshen, said the experience was labor intensive but very humbling.
“Every time I go on these trips, I realize I’m a lot more fortunate than many people,” said Pilla. “When you see someone who doesn’t have a place to live, it makes you feel lucky and good about yourself that you can do something to help,” she said.
Abdas-Salam, a Chicago resident who also was part of the Alternative Break Immersion trip last year, said the Indiana excursion was rewarding in part because it opened her eyes to problems that families face in semi-rural areas.
“I learned to get along with different types of people and it was great to help these families with painting, roofing, gardening and a lot of other things that needed to be done,” said Abdas-Salam, who wants to enter the not-for-profit field after graduating in 2013.
During the trip, students also spent time working at a home for recovering drug addicts and individuals with disabilities. They were assisted in their volunteer work by student volunteers from Boston University and by prison inmates doing community service. The group also had the opportunity to have dinner with members of the area’s Amish community.
Bailey Swinney, an undergraduate sociology major who went on the trip, said one of the best experiences was taking a tour after working hours in downtown Goshen where a guide from La Casa showed the group how volunteer efforts over time have helped Goshen regain its economic footing. “I loved having the opportunity to put social justice theories discussed in Roosevelt’s different classes into action,” said Swinney.
The trip gave Emily Wilkie, an undergraduate majoring in sociology and women’s and gender studies, a fresh, hands-on perspective on what it means to be homeless, addicted and/or disabled.
“I learned a lot from the open and honest discussion members of our group had. It was truly an amazing experience and I would recommend it to anyone thinking about attending the Alternative Spring Break Immersion trip next year,” she said.
Undergraduates Mooni Abdus-Salam, Samantha Benduha, Molly Connor, Marius Cuciulan, Traci Gilbert, Chelsea Morrison, Hannah Pilla, Kevin Stefanowski, Bailey Swinney and Emilie Wilkie were busy every day of their break making repairs, including indoor remodeling, roofing and landscaping, on homes that La Casa makes available to low and moderate-income residents.
”Community service has always been important to me,” said Morrison, an undergraduate political science major who was part of the Center for Student Involvement ‘s third annual Alternative Break Immersion trip. “It’s particularly important when you help people who can’t make do for themselves,” she said.
In 2010, a group of Roosevelt students spent their spring break helping at a community center in a small West Virginia town. In 2011, Roosevelt students went to work at Benton House, a community center in in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood. This year, volunteers chose to help in Elkhart County’s Goshen, Ind., which has been hard hit by the recession, including foreclosures and unemployment, due in large part to the collapse of its RV manufacturing industry.
“We took the trip to help out people who have fallen on hard times,” said Katherine Mason, the Roosevelt career counselor who led student volunteers in fixing three La Casa properties. “It was an eye-opening experience to see how badly a small town like Goshen has suffered,” she said.
Hannah Pilla, an undergraduate English major who has participated in all three Alternative Break Immersion excursions and who helped organize the trip to Goshen, said the experience was labor intensive but very humbling.
“Every time I go on these trips, I realize I’m a lot more fortunate than many people,” said Pilla. “When you see someone who doesn’t have a place to live, it makes you feel lucky and good about yourself that you can do something to help,” she said.
Abdas-Salam, a Chicago resident who also was part of the Alternative Break Immersion trip last year, said the Indiana excursion was rewarding in part because it opened her eyes to problems that families face in semi-rural areas.
“I learned to get along with different types of people and it was great to help these families with painting, roofing, gardening and a lot of other things that needed to be done,” said Abdas-Salam, who wants to enter the not-for-profit field after graduating in 2013.
During the trip, students also spent time working at a home for recovering drug addicts and individuals with disabilities. They were assisted in their volunteer work by student volunteers from Boston University and by prison inmates doing community service. The group also had the opportunity to have dinner with members of the area’s Amish community.
Bailey Swinney, an undergraduate sociology major who went on the trip, said one of the best experiences was taking a tour after working hours in downtown Goshen where a guide from La Casa showed the group how volunteer efforts over time have helped Goshen regain its economic footing. “I loved having the opportunity to put social justice theories discussed in Roosevelt’s different classes into action,” said Swinney.
The trip gave Emily Wilkie, an undergraduate majoring in sociology and women’s and gender studies, a fresh, hands-on perspective on what it means to be homeless, addicted and/or disabled.
“I learned a lot from the open and honest discussion members of our group had. It was truly an amazing experience and I would recommend it to anyone thinking about attending the Alternative Spring Break Immersion trip next year,” she said.
Friday, March 23, 2012
Grants to Support Transformational Service-Learning
The Mansfield Institute for Social Justice and
Transformation (MISJT) is pleased to announce its annual grant program to
support the development, teaching, and administration of transformational
service-learning courses at the university. Grants for faculty members have a $3,000 maximum amount, and
will support transformational learning classes to be offered in Fall 2012,
Spring 2013, and Summer 2013.
The brief application, along with an explanation of
transformational service-learning and the grant program, can be downloaded as
an MS Word document at http://tinyurl.com/misjt-2012rfp
We at the Mansfield Institute are ready and able to
help faculty as they prepare their grant proposals and use transformational
learning. The MISJT has two web pages with related information: http://misjt.blogspot.com/ and http://roosevelt.edu/MISJT/TransformationalLearning.aspx.
Your application should be submitted as an attachment
to Steven Meyers at smeyers@roosevelt.edu by Monday, April 16, 2012. Applicants will be notified about
decisions within two to three weeks of the deadline. This grant program is
supported by funding from the McCormick Tribune Foundation.
Saturday, March 10, 2012
What is all the buzz about transformational learning (TL), and what is TL anyway?
Students and faculty will be presenting the innovative work that connects teaching with outreach in the community. Stop by our celebrations at both campuses in April. Learn how social justice teaching and scholarship is leading to real change and how you can get involved next year.
Chicago Campus:
Thursday, April 18
5:00 p.m. Presentations about transformational service learning and the Scholar Activist Fellowship program in the Congress Lounge.
6:00 p.m. Reception and celebration in the Fainman Lounge.
RSVP: nstange@roosevelt.edu
Schaumburg Campus:
Friday, April 13
10:00 a.m. Presentations and discussion in Alumni Hall
11:00 a.m. Reception and celebration in Alumni Hall
RSVP: jtani@roosevelt.edu
Chicago Campus:
Thursday, April 18
5:00 p.m. Presentations about transformational service learning and the Scholar Activist Fellowship program in the Congress Lounge.
6:00 p.m. Reception and celebration in the Fainman Lounge.
RSVP: nstange@roosevelt.edu
Schaumburg Campus:
Friday, April 13
10:00 a.m. Presentations and discussion in Alumni Hall
11:00 a.m. Reception and celebration in Alumni Hall
RSVP: jtani@roosevelt.edu
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Roosevelt University researcher and her students worked behind scenes for passage of new state law
Kathleen Kane-Willis, director of
the Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy at Roosevelt University,
predicted that deaths from drug overdoses in Illinois will
decline thanks to a new state law, the Emergency Medical Services Access
Act, which was recently signed by Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn.
“The number one reason why folks don’t call 911 is the fear of police
and prosecution,” said Kane-Willis, who has been advocating with
grassroots organizers since 2010 for bi-partisan passage of the new law,
which gives limited immunity from prosecution to those who call 911 or
who seek medical treatment in a drug overdose situation.
With its passage, Illinois becomes the fifth state in the nation (New Mexico, Washington, Connecticut and New York have approved similar legislation) to grant limited immunity to drug users who are overdosing and to those who reach out on behalf of a drug user in an overdose situation. The law protects individuals from prosecution when small amounts of most illegal substances are involved. It does not protect drug sellers or traffickers.
In Illinois, the grassroots coalition that worked for passage of the new law in 2010 and 2011 included parents who lost children to overdose, researchers, Roosevelt University students in Kane-Willis’ Drugs, Alcohol and Society class, Students for Sensible Drug Policy in Illinois and drug-treatment providers.
“We did background research and went down to Springfield to advocate for the new law,” said Clay Wallace, a Roosevelt graduate sociology major (also pictured) who was the teaching assistant for Drugs and Society, a transformational learning class. Wallace, a resident of Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood, enlisted the support of his state representative, Democrat Barbara Flynn Currie, who co-sponsored the Emergency Medical Services Access Act.
“This was democracy in the making, and it showed me that lawmakers are willing to look at things on a practical level. The bottom line is no one wants people to die from a drug overdose and our lawmakers understood that,” he said.
“I hope this new law will someday be remembered as the first in a series of policy reforms that helped lead to a substantial reduction in the lives lost due to substance abuse,” said retired Chicago Police Captain John Roberts, a resident of Homer Glen in Will County, whose 19-year-old son died of a heroin overdose. Roberts is the founder of the Heroin Epidemic Relief Organization (HERO) and a member of the broad-based coalition that worked behind the scenes for passage of the new law.
The bill’s sponsor in the Illinois House, Representative Kelly Cassidy said “Simply put, this bill will save lives. I am thankful to the advocates who worked so hard for so many years to pass this bill. I am particularly grateful to the parents who shared the stories of their tragic losses to raise awareness and hopefully prevent others from enduring what they have."
“The number one reason why folks don’t call 911 is the fear of police
and prosecution,” said Kane-Willis, who has been advocating with
grassroots organizers since 2010 for bi-partisan passage of the new law,
which gives limited immunity from prosecution to those who call 911 or
who seek medical treatment in a drug overdose situation. With its passage, Illinois becomes the fifth state in the nation (New Mexico, Washington, Connecticut and New York have approved similar legislation) to grant limited immunity to drug users who are overdosing and to those who reach out on behalf of a drug user in an overdose situation. The law protects individuals from prosecution when small amounts of most illegal substances are involved. It does not protect drug sellers or traffickers.
In Illinois, the grassroots coalition that worked for passage of the new law in 2010 and 2011 included parents who lost children to overdose, researchers, Roosevelt University students in Kane-Willis’ Drugs, Alcohol and Society class, Students for Sensible Drug Policy in Illinois and drug-treatment providers.
“We did background research and went down to Springfield to advocate for the new law,” said Clay Wallace, a Roosevelt graduate sociology major (also pictured) who was the teaching assistant for Drugs and Society, a transformational learning class. Wallace, a resident of Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood, enlisted the support of his state representative, Democrat Barbara Flynn Currie, who co-sponsored the Emergency Medical Services Access Act.
“This was democracy in the making, and it showed me that lawmakers are willing to look at things on a practical level. The bottom line is no one wants people to die from a drug overdose and our lawmakers understood that,” he said.
“I hope this new law will someday be remembered as the first in a series of policy reforms that helped lead to a substantial reduction in the lives lost due to substance abuse,” said retired Chicago Police Captain John Roberts, a resident of Homer Glen in Will County, whose 19-year-old son died of a heroin overdose. Roberts is the founder of the Heroin Epidemic Relief Organization (HERO) and a member of the broad-based coalition that worked behind the scenes for passage of the new law.
The bill’s sponsor in the Illinois House, Representative Kelly Cassidy said “Simply put, this bill will save lives. I am thankful to the advocates who worked so hard for so many years to pass this bill. I am particularly grateful to the parents who shared the stories of their tragic losses to raise awareness and hopefully prevent others from enduring what they have."
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