Service Learning

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GRADUATION REQUIREMENT

SERVICE LEARNING

To promote a culture of service throughout the college, all students seeking an Associate or Bachelor’s degree are required to complete a minimum of 15 documented hours of Service Learning. To find out more about how to complete these hours, students may refer to the Service Learning FAQs or use the resources linked below. Students should talk to their advisor, program chair, or instructors for program-specific information.

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MERCY COLLEGE SERVICE LEARNING DEFINITION

Service Learning is an experiential learning opportunity that mutually benefits the provider and recipient of service, enhances academic objectives, meets a community-defined need and encourages a college-wide culture of service. These goals are accomplished through specified project objectives, a structured service activity, and guided reflection.

GOALS FOR THE SERVICE LEARNING COMPONENT:

To create a rich context for learning that will enable joining theory with experience and thought with action.
To apply discipline-specific and interdisciplinary knowledge as well as critical thinking skills to community defined needs.
To foster knowledge, sensitivity, and the challenging of assumptions in regards to various topics such as cultural competence, leadership skills, social justice issues, and community needs – especially as these topics apply to health science.
To build community connections and foster ongoing communication with community members, agencies, groups, and organizations.

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SERVICE LEARNING PROCESS & PAPERWORK Service Learning Paperwork Guidelines Service Learning Project (SLP) Proposal & Verification Form Robert Greenleaf’s Ten Characteristics of a Servant Leader	SERVICE LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES & COMMUNITY PARTNERS Catholic Charities Central Iowa Shelter & Services Children & Family Urban Movement Joppa Outreach	OTHER RESOURCES AmeriCorps Campus Compact Iowa Campus Compact

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Service Learning Award

FrequentLY Asked Questions

What is the Service Learning Award?

This award is created to honor graduating Mercy College students who have furthered the College’s mission and demonstrated its core values and institutional outcomes of Servant Leadership by completing at least an additional 15 or 30 service learning hours beyond what is required for their program graduation.

How many service learning hours are required to earn the award?

The breakdown of required service learning hours are listed in the chart below:

Program	SL Hrs Required to Graduate	Add’l SL Hrs Req. to Earn Award	Total SL Hrs Req. to Earn Award
Certificate	0	15	15
Associate	15	15	30
Bachelor’s	15	30	45

What is “service learning” and how is it related to “servant leadership”?

“Service learning” is NOT community service. Specifically, it is an experiential learning opportunity that mutually benefits the provider and recipient of service, enhances academic objectives, meets a community- defined need and encourages a college-wide culture of service. In general, “servant leadership” refers to three different things at Mercy College. First, it is a concept that describes a person who is a selfless influencer of others seeking the highest good of those being served. Robert Greenleaf articulates 10 characteristics of servant leaders that the college embraces. (See complete description here.) Second, servant leadership is the name of a core course in Mercy College’s core curriculum that is required of degree-seeking students that introduces and reinforces the concept of servant leadership. Third, servant leadership is one of the college’s institutional outcomes which means it is a measurable expectation of what students will know, feel and do after completing their learning experiences at Mercy College no matter what their academic program. As such, the desired outcome for graduating students is to be servant leaders who are able to exhibit personal and social accountability and to address community, national and global needs through service. Thus, service learning provides opportunities for students to practice servant leadership and to grow as servant leaders.

How are service learning hours earned, approved and documented?

Approved service learning hours must have 3 components:

An intentional focus with specific objectives identified by the student in collaboration with the student’s chosen college faculty or staff advisor and the chosen community partner supervisor, if applicable.
Service hours that are completed and documented on a SLP Verification Form and verified by the chosen college faculty or staff advisor or community partner supervisor, if applicable.
A final written (or oral) evaluation of the student’s service learning outcomes with an overall reflection of the experience that is reported to the student’s college

Note: Either a copy of the student’s actual report/reflection OR an email/note from the student’s advisor verifying completion of the student’s report/reflection must be uploaded on the Award Application form along with the student’s required, SLP Verification Form in order to qualify for the award.

What two types of service learning projects are possible?

Advisor-facilitated or student-initiated service learning projects. Advisor-facilitated service learning project is a college sponsored Service Learning (SL) experience that is typically coordinated within a course (ex: SVL-285 Servant Leadership & NSG/PHI-280 Caring) or by a college faculty, staff member or department. Overseen by a faculty and/or staff member, the project has specific objectives identified and students complete their service hours and required project evaluation/reflection under the direction of the student’s faculty and/or staff advisor. A student-initiated service learning project is student-planned and/or client-based Service Learning (SL) experience (approved by a college faculty, staff member or department) working within the college and/or within a service agency/community partner in the community.

What about past service learning hours that may have been earned while a Mercy College student?

Any hours earned that were required to complete for a course (e.g. SVL 285 or NSG/PHI 280) or for a program graduation requirement (e.g. PTA, Nursing) are NOT eligible and cannot be counted toward the award. Only those service learning hours earned through the approved processes that are above-and-beyond the minimum service learning requirement for a given course and/or academic program are eligible and can be counted. Thus, if students have completed hours on a previous service project(s) that could possibly qualify for the award, but have not for some reason or another, recorded/documented and evaluated/reflected on the project experience, then students may petition their advisor (or a Service Learning Advisory Council member) to possibly retro-earn service learning hours. These unique instances will be considered and approved on a case-by-case basis (without any guarantees of eligibility) by the advisor.

Who qualifies as a service learning advisor?

Any Mercy College faculty or staff member who has been approved by the Service Learning Advisory Council, may serve as a service learning advisor. This could be any officially-designated leader within the college and/or within a service agency/community partner in the community.

Where can students serve?

Every semester a list of Mercy College’s Community Partners and/or a menu of possible service learning projects are published and available to students. To obtain this information, please contact Dr. Joe Moravec at joseph.moravec@mchs.edu or Dr. Audra Meyer at audra.meyer@mchs.edu.

What is the paperwork process and what is required?

It depends on the type of Service Learning (SL) experience chosen (i.e. advisor-facilitated or student-initiated). For complete instructions and details, please consult the Service Learning Paperwork Guidelines document.

What should be included in a student’s service learning final oral or written evaluation?

Thoughtfully provide either a verbal or written reflection (500 words minimum) to your advisor on your entire service learning experience(s). Use the following questions to help guide you in your reflection process:

What service project(s) did you complete? (Provide a brief synopsis of your project(s).) What objectives did you seek to accomplish? Did you meet them? Why or why not?
What did you like best about the experience(s) and why?
What was the most challenging part of the experience(s) and why?
In what ways did your experience(s) connect you to key concepts of servant leadership (e.g. awareness, empathy, healing) and Mercy College’s Core Values (e.g. knowledge, reverence, integrity, compassion, excellence)?
In what ways did their service learning experience help them demonstrate and grow as a servant leader?
How will your service learning experience help prepare you as a healthcare practitioner in your future career?
Do you think that you will be more likely to serve in your community in the future because of this award experience? Why or why not?

How does a student apply for the award?

Upon completion of all of their accrued, eligible service learning hours (above and beyond graduation requirements), students must indicate their intentions through completing the Service Learning Recognition Award Application form via the Mercy College website. Through the application process, students must submit/upload all required documents that are requested concerning their eligible, service learning hours. (Again, consult the Service Learning Paperwork Guidelines document for complete details and instructions.) The entire application process MUST BE COMPLETED by no later than 30 days prior to a student’s graduation date. Note: Students are still responsible to make sure that they have submitted to the Registrar’s Office documentation of any other service learning hours that may be required for their program graduation.

What can students expect once the award application process is complete?

The Service Learning Advisory Council will oversee the auditing of students’ service learning hours and forms to verify their award eligibility. Once approved, students will be notified and receive the awarded recognition cord which they, in turn, can wear and be recognized at Commencement.

Why is there a Service Learning requirement?

To build upon the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy, promote a culture that values service, and acknowledge the higher purpose of higher education institutions, Mercy College includes a Service Learning component within its curriculum.

What are Robert Greenleaf’s servant leadership principles?

Read Robert Greenleaf’s Ten Characteristics of a Servant Leader.

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Service Learning

GRADUATION REQUIREMENT