An Experiential Learning Requirement for NM Community Colleges Putting “Community” back in Community Colleges
Feb 23, 2016
An Experiential Learning Requirement for NM Community
CollegesPutting “Community” back in Community
Colleges
PurposeTo explore setting up an experiential / service
learning requirement for New Mexico community college studentsThis means creating or modifying existing
service learning (SL) program(s) for use statewide.
Administering program through the New Mexico Legislative Lottery Scholarship authority To address current funding difficultiesTo act as an additional eligibility requirement
Essential QuestionsWhy modify the Legislative Lottery
Scholarship?Why set up such a program? (i.e. justifications)What similar programs may already exist?What components would this program need?What costs / benefits might be realized?What roles would community colleges play?How might younger students or community
members be involved?What conclusions can we draw about this
proposal?
New Mexico Legislative Lottery ScholarshipSince 1996, funds from profits on lottery
ticket sales have been used to award over 90,000 college scholarships, resulting in 38,000 have graduated1.
Unlike most federal student aid, the Legislative Lottery Scholarship is not based on need
Therefore, this is an extremely popular option:13,619 students used it in the Fall 2010
semester, for example2. This is out of a total of 142,000 college
students in New Mexico, but is still a sizeable amount3.
1. http://www.nmlottery.com/about/scholarships/2. http://www.nmvoices.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/lottery-scholarship-report-2013.pdf 3. http://www.nmvoices.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/lottery-scholarship-report-2013.pdf
Legislative Lottery Financial WoesStudent demand and tuition costs have risen,
but ticket sales remain level.As a consequence the scholarship fund has
exhausted profits and required a funding fix from the NM Legislature1.
This will almost certainly require the NMHED to use its authority to change: The amount of funding that the scholarship
covers orThe eligibility requirements for the scholarship
1. http://dacc.nmsu.edu/fa/status-of-new-mexico-lot.html
Alternative RequirementsMany proposed changes to the scholarship
requirements are being proposed, such asIncreasing the GPA requirements Increasing the credit hour requirementsBasing the scholarship on financial need
All of the above would be problematic because:They tend to be exclusionary and arbitrarily setIn the case of financial need this would mean huge
amounts of additional paperwork too They include no mechanism to help students
achieve higher GPA, more credit hours, etc.
Service Learning OptionRequiring students to participate in SL does
not have previous defects:Does not exclude based upon academic ability
or needProvides a mechanism to help students
enhance skillsPotentially benefits the community in which
they serveMay generate grant funding from state,
federal, or private sourcesMay help student employment prospects, or
allow some students to earn compensation for work
So Why Modify Lottery Scholarship Program?Already an existing state program with authority to
set scholarship requirementsFederal financial aid requirements could not be easily
modifiedScholarship fund is having difficulty as presently
structuredSome sort of modification will be required to maintain
solvencySignificant numbers of students make use of
program14000 student participants annually would be enough
to make a difference in community
JustificationExperiential or Service Learning (SL) is a well-
recognized educational technique for achieving meaningful student learning outcomes. Some proponents included Dewey, Kolb, Piaget,
Jarvis, and Fenwick (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007, p. 163)
Many community colleges claim service learning is core valueCNM, for example states “serving the community
is a core part of our institutional mission”http://www.cnm.edu/depts/service-learning
Other JustificationsOther countries have mandatory service requirements for
higher education students Mexico, for example:http://
www.aacu.org/diversitydemocracy/vol16no4/canton_ramos.cfm
Opportunity for maturation42% of students are first time freshmen30% of community college students are under 21
Work experienceOnly 62% of full-time students work and go to schoolStudents may be able to work in this program instead of a
less educationally relevant job. http://www.aacc.nche.edu/AboutCC/Pages/fastfactsfactsheet.aspx
Community Engagement & Sustainability as Core ValuesMany areas of service learning are possible
We are choosing to target those that promote sustainability.
CNM claims commitment to both community engagement and sustainabilityCNM Strategic Direction Goal: “Community
Success: Lead and support high value workforce and community engagement1”
Committed to “course-level sustainability learning outcomes2”
Service Learning in sustainability would be consistent with both objectives
1. https://www.cnm.edu/student-resources/get-help/cnm-core-values 2. http://www.cnm.edu/about/sustainability
Existing programsAmeriCorps
Perhaps the best known examplehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps Under auspices of Corporation for National and
Community Service www.nationalservice.gov
Mission:“to provide opportunities for Americans of all ages to help improve the nation through service—making our streets safer, our environment cleaner, our children healthier, and our schools better”*
* http://learningtogive.org/papers/paper180.html
AmeriCorps BranchesState and National Programs
http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/upload/state_profiles/pdf_2013/NM%20AmeriCorps.pdf
VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America)Primarily serves low-income individuals and areashttp://
www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/americorps-vista NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps)
Partnership with non-profits, municipalities, churches, and secular organizations
http://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/americorps-nccc
Senior CorpsOpportunities for people 55+ years old to servehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/senior-corps
State / Local ProgramsUNM’s Community Engagement Center
http://clps.unm.edu/about/history/ AmeriCorps style modelInitiatives in about 30 communities/areas throughout New
Mexico1
State, federal, local, tribal TeacherCorps, FoodCorps, Tribal Service Corps, etc.
“There is no other service corps program in the state of New Mexico with its breadth, comprehensiveness, and community connections.”
Other colleges / universities have similar programsNMSU’s Service Learning for Educational Distinction (SLED)
Programhttp://emd.education.nmsu.edu/grant-programs/service/
1. http://clps.unm.edu/initiatives/
Other programsNon-comprehensive program examplesNumerous local, state, and federal opportunities exist
The EPA’s Office of Solid Waste, for example has the program below:
http://www.epa.gov/osw/education/pdfs/svclearn.pdf Private/ Non Profit SL Programs with a sustainability
componentNavajo Nation Amizade “Global” Service Learning
Partnership with Dine College in Crownpoint, NM http://amizade.org/programs/locations-to-serve/the-navajo-nation/
Youth Development Incorporated New Mexico Early childhood through college level support programs for youth http://www.ydinm.org/index.php/about-ydi
Other private program examplesEarthship
Biotecture AcademyTaos, NM
Sustainable building practices
http://earthship.com/academy
What components would an SL program need? Enrollment
Lottery Scholarship participants required to enrollPartnership with high schools and community
colleges to facilitate this Ultimately the student’s responsibility, however
Identification of skills and interests of participants Matching students to existing programs, and needs Based on student existing skills, knowledge, interests
Level of commitment for participants How much participation should be required at a
minimum? How should service beyond the minimum be credited?
What components would an SL program need? Initial and On-going Orientation / Training
What kinds of minimum training will be needed for participants?
What training will take place on-site?What kinds of on-going learning support would
be needed i.e. classroom meetings, seminars, web
conferencing How often should this be done?
What kinds of reflection or student work products should be expected of participants?
What components would an SL program need? Partnership with existing programs
As shown, numerous programs exist in NM But they are a patchwork of funding, needs, and goals Are there enough programs to absorb available students?
If not, what can be done? Need job developers / volunteer placement coordination May have to create waiting lists
Need proposals from partners Outline goals and make sure consistent with state SL goals Memo of Understanding (MOU) that specifies
Number of volunteers Scope of work / educational objectives Cost sharing
Cost and BenefitsSetting up such a program may be expensive
Budgets are already tight for NM Lottery Scholarship fund and for Community Colleges
Grant monies may be available to defray costsState, Federal, and private monies may be available to
help set up a program like thisFunding from programs like AmeriCorps /
Corporation for National and Community ServiceUS Department of Education grants
https://www2.ed.gov/students/involve/service/edpicks.jhtml?src=ln
Many private, non-profit educational grants available
Additional Costs & BenefitsStudent Time Availability
Students may not have the time to volunteer Work of family commitments Class schedules
Time flexibilityPartnerships with schools and possibly employers may address
these time conflictsDistance learning technology and flexible class scheduling can
also ease time conflictsStudents may earn money or other benefits because of nature of
work For example, students working in child care might also be able to get
childcare services for their own families Students may be able to earn money for working beyond required hours
Role of Community Colleges (CC)Many colleges already are committed to
community engagement and service learningMay have to expand or modify courses offered
to support these programsMay have to provide some initial and on-going
skills training to participantsCould take an active role in helping to find
program participants and place students Ultimately the college benefits, because the student
is able to pay tuition Some of these volunteer programs may serve CC
needs as well
Role for youth or community membersProgram primarily envisioned for college
studentsHigh school students, or college graduates, or
seniors could still volunteer in many existing programs
Possible for high school students to earn “credits” for service that could be applied when they go to college This might mean not having to do SL requirements
when first enrolled in CCNon-college volunteers would still be needed
Organizations can divide up workload more appropriately by age and skill levels
Concluding pointsCurrent proposal involves some financial
risks, but also a lot of potential benefitsIf properly administered it should address
existing problems with Legislative Lottery Scholarship
Should also provide great educational and professional opportunities for students
Should be a great benefit to the community and the environment.
Isn’t this what a Community College is supposed to be about ? !