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On Thursday, April 27, the Office of Service Learning (OSL) and the Center for Faith and Public Life (CFPL) at ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ÊÓƵÎÞÏÞÖƹۿ´ celebrated a year of student projects and 2016 service learning courses, and introduced four new courses for the 2017-2018 academic year at their annual Service Learning Appreciation Celebration and Poster Session.

The formal event began with the recognition of Camille Giacovas ‘18, an international studies major and humanitarian action minor, who was presented with the 2017 Newman Civic Fellow Award for her work with the Refugee Youth Mentor program at Fairfield. The fellowship, one of 201 across the country, is part of Campus Compact, a national coalition of nearly 1,100 college and university presidents committed to improving community life and educating students for civic and social responsibility. Additionally, the Outstanding Community Partner Award was presented to International Institute of Connecticut. The Rev. Jeffrey P. von Arx Faculty Award for Excellence in Community Engagement was awarded to Dr. Patricia Calderwood, professor of Curriculum & Instruction in GSEAP.

The poster presentations, held in the Kelley Center Presentation Room, showcased over 20 student projects ranging from writing workshops between students and 5-8 graders from Columbus School in Bridgeport, to service trips to Tanzania and Nicaragua, to a robotics demonstration with Harding High School Robotics team. Projects were also developed across a variety of fields, from economics to nursing.

Below are some of the unique projects students and faculty presented:

Philosophy of Education

Dr. Bryan Crandall, a director for the Connecticut Writng Project and Professor in the Graduate School of Education and Allied Professions, hosted a series of four writing workshops with students from his Philosophy of Education class and students in grades 5-8 from Columbus School in Bridgeport. Columbus students visited campus to experience a college classroom and learn about writing and poetry while working in small groups alongside Fairfield students.

Robotics

Dr. Ryan Munden, associate dean of the School of Engineering, lead a course in which Fairfield students learn basic robotics concepts while mentoring the Harding High School Robotics team. As mentors, the engineering students provided guidance on how the team should approach building a robot and preparing the students for competition.

Imagining Shakespeare

Assistant professor of English, Dr. Shannon Kelley, lead a Shakespeare service learning course which worked with Urban Imapct, a non-profit serving youth in the PT Barnum community in Bridgeport. University students developed Shakespeare related activities for the participants while helping them with their homework.

Pictured: Back row L to R: Chastity Berrios, Solanlly Canas, Karen Pritchard, Julia Brown, Jennie Chieco, Mackensie Crowley, Alli Niccoli. Front row L to R: Stephanie Sawicki, Sydney Arestivo, Jillian Lucia, Riley Barrett.