Service-learning is a great way to develop professional competency and serve the community.  It allows students to test skills and facets learned in the classroom, sharpen problem-solving abilities, and work collaboratively with diverse groups of people for collective action.  It offers students an opportunity to explore the connections between the theoretical realm of the classroom and the practical needs of the community.

Service-learning is defined as, "a credit-bearing, educational, experience in which students participate in an organized service activity that meets identified community needs and reflect on the service activity in such a way as to gain further understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility" (Bringle & Hatcher, 1995).

Service-learning is inherently linked to civic and community purposes: it reinforces the skills of critical thinking, public discourse, collective activity, and community building. Moreover, because the service activity is occurring in the context of an educational setting, faculty ask students to reflect upon their service experiences in relation to particular community principles, civic ideals, universal virtues, and course content. Perhaps the most important long-term benefit of service-learning is the opportunity it can provide for students to connect to a community and clearly identify their own civic duties.

The UVU Volunteer & Service-Learning Center seeks to support faculty by providing:

- current service-learning resources and information
- examples of on-campus, in-state, and nation-wide curricula that include service-learning components
- workbooks and other resources that guide faculty through the service-learning curriculum
- ideas and examples of possible service-learning course projects
- training and resources to help students to reflect upon the service they participate in through the course
- contact to key community agencies and officials who are supportive of service-learning initiatives
- journals and other publications where faculty can publish their research on service-learning in the curriculum
- access to Campus Compact, a national organization that seeks to promote and support service-learning
- access to group/one-on-one training development workshops and the Faculty Service-Learning Fellowship
- access to on-site office hours for the faculty coordinator of academic service-learning

Go to the Volunteer & Service-Learning Center link for more detailed information on how to get involved in the service learning activities available at UVU.