Description: Rural communities in northern New England face a declining job base, a shrinking middle class, the loss of open space, the outmigration of young people, and crippling fuel costs. Fragmentation of forest and agricultural lands threatens the availability of resources for traditional industries such as forest products, tourism and recreation, further eroding economic opportunity. The Plymouth State University Center for Rural Partnerships uses the research, outreach, and educational capacities of the university to foster collaborative projects that maintain and enhance the quality of life in rural New Hampshire. This panel discussion will focus on the purpose, creation and maintenance of this regional engagement model, with particular focus on logistics, organization, funding, development, and outcomes for small rural colleges.

Presenters: Thaddeus Guldbrandsen, Ph.D., Director, Center for Rural Partnerships, Plymouth State University, NH; Frances M. Belcher, Research Assistant/Regional Collaboration Coordinator, Plymouth State University, NH

Description: The new elective classification system of the Carnegie Foundation began in 2006 with Community Engagement as their first elective area. Carnegie classifications have been a benchmark for higher education institutions since 1970. The creation of this new classification on community engagement is closely coupled with the theme for the "greater good". It provides institutions a process to carefully consider if their curricular program and partnerships are truly reflected in the institutional identify and if it is linked with the "greater good" for all including local, state, national and global communities.

1. understand the philosophy and background of the new Carnegie Elective Classification.
2. have the opportunity to learn more about programs, courses, and activities of colleges and universities that have been selected in the 2008 classification.
3. learn about the application process of Carnegie.
4. Learn specific strategies and processes can be utilized to prepare for the application process.
5. have the opportunity to talk with past recipients of the Elective Classification.
6. learn about the positive aspects of achieving this classification and ways to capitalize on its assets.

Presenter: Julie Elkins, Director of Academic Initiatives National Campus Compact, National Campus Compact, Boston, MA; John Saltmarsh, Director, New England Resource Center for Higher Education, University of Massachusetts, Boston

Description: Project planning and management tools can assist faculty in designing and implementing successful service-learning projects. This workshop will describe and demonstrate project management tools that can assist with the design and implementation of service-learning projects. Illustrated with examples from a multi-year, affordable housing service-learning project in Vermont, core project planning tools for organizing service-learning will be shared. Workshop participants will have an opportunity to discuss project management challenges or concerns through a facilitated discussion. They will also engage in a collective problem-solving exercise where they can apply appropriate tools and strategies to the challenges identified in the group discussion.

Presenters: Daniel Baker, PhD, Assistant Professor Department of Community Development and Applied Economics, University of Vermont, VT; Kelly Hamshaw, Program Assistant and Liaison to the Department of Community Development and Applied Economics, Community-University Partnerships and Service-Learning, University of Vermont, VT.

Description: US urban hubs annually experience students, staff, and faculty streaming from multiple institutions into campus-community partnerships. Despite benefits, multi-institutional landscapes complicate engagement partnerships. What practices and policies foster positive outcomes and address community issues, while helping students think and solve problems at a more systemic, global level? Session presenters partner in several campus-community partnerships across the Five Colleges in Holyoke. Videos, documents and analysis portraying initiatives in Holyoke will inspire an interactive problem-solving session focused on questions such as: whose voices define "the community", whose priorities drive complex, multi-faceted campus-community partnerships, where is collaboration or bi-lateralism most appropriate?

Presenters: Alan H. Bloomgarden, Ed.D., Coordinator of the Community-Based Learning Program, Mount Holyoke College; Elizabeth Bieber, MACC VISTA, Five Colleges/Mount Holyoke College, MA; Ariel Sykes, Student Community Fellow and CBL Program Mentor, Mount Holyoke College, MA; Megan Harding, Coordinator, Full Service Community School Initiative, William R. Peck K-8 School, Holyoke, MA; Imre Kepes, El Arco Iris, Holyoke, MA.

Description: A crucial part of student learning during internships involves struggling with new experiences and ideas. Many students are geographically distant from our civic engagement offices and lack familiarity with their host culture (whether they are in Bogota, Beijing, or Boise). In this workshop we will explore the students' experiences in internships away from campus and share assessment data gleaned from reflection tools. We will consider how the study abroad conception of pre-departure and re-entry fits with this civic engagement work and discuss the ramifications for community organizations.

Presenters: Sarah Barr, Director of Academic Engagement Programs, Center for Community Engagement, Amherest College, MA; Ethan Kolek, Associate Director of Institutional Research, Director of Evaluation, Amherst College, MA; Yohanna Briscoe, Summer Internship Coordinator, Student, Amherst College, MA.

Description: Explore how Universal Design for Learning (UDL) applies the latest brain research to the world of higher education and learning. Participants will investigate how to adapt UDL principles within their own universities and colleges. Various methods of representing information and creating an environment of engaged learning through UDL principles will prepare educators to create inclusive and welcoming educational environments for all students. By applying a variety of techniques and tools to their work, participants will make learning more accessible for their students.

Presenters: Susan Edelman, Ed.D., Research Associate Professor, Center on Disability and Community Inclusion, University of Vermont, VT; Holly Parker, Faculty Development Specialist, Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), University of Vermont, VT; Ellen McShane, Ed. D., Director of Academic Support Programs, University of Vermont, VT.

Description: Join a panel of College Advisers as they discuss direct service and capacity building methods to tackle and improve student success in college. The College Advising Corps is on of MACC's flagship programs, working to tackle issues of access and success, and the advisers work full-time with low-income and first-generation high school students across the state of Massachusetts. This session will provide a forum for participants to unpack challenges surrounding college retention and develop concrete strategies to take back to their community.

Presenters: Ashlee White, MA College Advising Corp Member, MA College Advising Corps; Benjamin Tarshis , MA College Advising Corp Member, MA College Advising Corps; Matthew Thomas, MA College Advising Corp Member, MA College Advising Corps; Angela Robins , MA College Advising Corp Member, MA College Advising Corps; Shawna Russo, MA College Advising Corp Member, MA College Advising Corps.

Panelists: Rene Moodley, Shawna Russo, Benjamin Tarshis, Ashlee White

Description: How will we educate artists and designers for the future? What kinds of collaborations or partnerships between campus and community are most effective in addressing community issues while helping prepare students to become global thinkers and problem-solvers? Much of what determines students' commitment to embark on projects 'for the greater good' relies upon their immediate sense of place and purpose. In the FY-Involve/Infuse/Inspire course, we strive to help incoming students acclimate to the interior space of the school while simultaneously extending their reach onto the peninsula of Portland. Consciously and incrementally, the FY-In faculty helps to ground and launch the new population of first-year students into action, inviting all to research, problem-solve, collaborate and-ultimately-help to link with pressing issues of food politics and hunger. In our session we will engage attendees in an activity titled 'charity vs. change' and share resources on the effects of portability as an artistic and public engagement strategy.

Presenters: Alida Payson, Education Coordinator, Cultivating Community (Community Partner); Sarah Marshall, Farmer, Cultivating Community (Community Partner); Christina Bechstein, Asst. Prof./Head Sculpture, Faculty Coordinator of Service Learning, Maine College of Art, ME; Megan O'Connell, Adj. Associate Prof. Art History & Graphic Design, Maine College of Art, ME; Charles Melcher, Associate Prof./Head Graphic Design, Maine College of Art, ME; Reagan Furqueron, Assistant Prof. Woodworking and Furniture, Maine College of Art, ME; Jess Sheldon, Americorp VISTA, Maine College of Art, ME.

Moderator: Audra Grady, Academic Administrator for Experiential Learning, Brandeis University, MA

Participants:

Bristol Community College - Creating a Culture of Engagement Within and Beyond the Classroom Through Civic Engagement and Service-Learning Opportunities

Description: Bristol Community College has a nationally recognized Civic Engagement Program designed to enhance students' learning and foster the development of a service ethic by offering students the opportunity to use their education and talents to provide needed services in their community. The SERVE, LEARN, LEAD Program model will be shared with participants, as well as sample service projects, syllabi, and examples of reflection activities.

Presenters: Mary Zahm, Professor of Psychology, Director of Civic Engagement, Bristol Community College, MA; Rebecca Clark, Assistant Professor of Human Services, Assistant Director of Civic Engagement, Bristol Community College, MA.

College of the Holy Cross - Building Student Civic Leaders: The CBL Scholars Program

Description: This year, the Donelan Office of Community Based Learning at Holy Cross piloted the CBL Scholars Program, designed to build student leaders in community engagement and service learning. The Scholars work with students, faculty members, and community partners to promote and support community based learning, and to provide a more meaningful and mutually beneficial experience for all individuals and organizations who participate. Information will be shared on how these peer educators can help students to integrate their academic and experiential learning.

Presenters: Lauren Buckley, MACC AmeriCorps*VISTA, Community Based Learning Coordinator, College of the Holy Cross, MA; Casey O'Keefe, Community Based Learning Scholar, College of the Holy Cross; Jordan Duffy, Community Based Learning Scholar, College of the Holy Cross; Jacqueline Mulvehill, Community Based Learning Scholar, College of the Holy Cross; Carson Townsend, Community Based Learning Scholar, College of the Holy Cross; Julianna Stuart, Community Based Learning Scholar, College of the Holy Cross.

George Washington University & University of Massachusetts Amherst - STELLAR: An Extra-Curricular Context for a Service-Learning Curriculum

Description: A new program at George Washington University as developed by the Office of Community Service called Service Through Engagement, Learning, Leadership and Responsibility (STELLAR), guides students through their undergraduate experience in service-learning outside of academic courses. This poster session will present STELLAR's approach to service-learning and highlight best practices related to both in-class and out-of-class settings as well as long-term and short-term methods to this pedagogy.

Presenters: Carrie Hutnick, Academic Programs Manager, Community Engagement Program, Commonwealth Honors College, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Timothy Kane, Director of the Office of Community Service, George Washington University, Washington, D.C..

University of Vermont - The Rubenstein School Stewards Program: A Model for Co-Curricular Programming

Description: The Rubenstein Stewards Program is an initiative in the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources (RSENR) at the University of Vermont (UVM) to encourage engagement and leadership development in undergraduate students. The presenters will discuss the development of the Stewards Program, and will highlight how co-curricular programming like the Stewards Program can foster leadership, professionalism, and civic responsibility among undergraduate students.

Presenters: Sarah Kugel, Steward Co-Leader, RSENR, University of Vermont; Casey Leigh Cullen, Steward, RSENR, University of Vermont; Eliese Dykstra, Steward, RSENR, University of Vermont; Ian Altendorfer, Steward, RSENR, University of Vermont; Dana S. Gulley, Steward, RSENR, University of Vermont; Kate Grimsley-Houran, Steward, RSENR, University of Vermont.

Wellesley College - Engaged Communities: Wellesley College Lumpkin Institute Service and Learning in Boston

Description: The Lumpkin Summer Institute for Service Learning challenges students to explore and participate in social change in the Greater Boston Area. In this session the presenters will share an overview of the program and the connection between scholarship and service. A former Lumpkin student will discuss her experience with the program, including information program syllabi, intern projects, learning/teaching activities, and suggested readings.

Presenters: Melissa Hawkins, Director of Service and Stipend Programs, Wellesley College, MA; Verónica de Darer, Senior Lecturer in Spanish and Education, Faculty Director of Lumpkin Service Learning Institute, Wellesley College, MA; Amy Keir, Undergraduate Student, Wellesley College.