COURSE DEVELOPMENT GRANT APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
The Service Learning Program invites applicants for Faculty Course Development Grants. The Grants are for faculty interested in creating and teaching a Service Learning course in the within the academic year. The $2,000 grants will be awarded to faculty on a competitive basis and are intended to underwrite the cost of preparing a new “SL” designated course, participating in professional development workshops, undergoing an assessment of the course, and volunteering at least 10 hours alongside the students in the class.
The selected faculty receive $500 at the end of the semester and the remaining $1,500 after they have completed the final assessment of their course. Because the Service Learning Program wants to ensure the highest quality of student experience, courses that receive an “SL” designation will only be taught by the faculty who receive a Course Development Grant. The Service Learning Program intends to solicit applications each spring for faculty who want to teach “SL” designated courses.
Purpose of the Grants:
In order to ensure a high-quality experience for all students, we must intentionally develop the competency of at least 20% of our faculty to teach Service Learning courses so that the quality, quantity, and diversity of courses are offered to guarantee that all students can enroll in the kind of Service Learning course that matters most to their course of study.
Service Learning is defined as:
- A 4-credit undergraduate (or 3-credit graduate) course that includes 25 total hours of service from each student enrolled in the course
- Inclusion of three of four Service Learning program learning outcomes in the course syllabus
- Inclusion of a written reflection assignment sequence addressing connections between service work and academic learning goals of the course
- Submission of a final assessment (a Qualtrics survey and written essay) from each enrolled student on behalf of the Service Learning program
Community Engagement is defined as:
- Any undergraduate or graduate course that includes an assignment, project, or out-of-class opportunity for service with a local community partner organization
- Though encouraged and supported by the Service Learning program, student service hours do not have to be tallied, and learning outcomes do not have to align with the Service Learning program expectations
- Examples of community engagement include: a client-based project, a community-based qualitative and/or quantitative research project, attendance at a volunteer event off campus, completion of traditional volunteer service hours at a nonprofit organization whose mission aligns with some element of the course’s academic objectives
Faculty interested in applying for a Course Development Grant should:
- Have a conversation with either Dr. Blosser or Dr. Kozma about your course idea. You must have first talked with them before you can apply. They are also happy to read and edit your application before you submit it.
- Look at the Definition of Service Learning at High Point University and the Guidelines for Service Learning Courses posted at: https://www.highpoint.edu/servicelearning/guidelines-for-service-learning/
- Complete a Course Development Grant Application. Applications can be obtained from the Director of Service Learning.
If your application is selected, you will be required to:
- Actively participate in four professional development workshops offered on Friday afternoons. If you teach during this time, we ask that you schedule an online class or other class activities so you can attend the workshop.
- Create a syllabus to be submitted to the Service Learning Committee. The workshops will help you develop your syllabus.
- Teach the course in following academic year.
- Volunteer at least 10 hours with your course’s community partners during the semester in which you teach your course
- Participate in a post-assessment of your course
- Share your course materials and expertise in future Professional Development Workshops, if needed
If you have further questions or comments, please contact Rev. Dr. Joe Blosser at jblosser@highpoint.edu or 336-841-9337.
Apply Now!
Be part of the 9th cohort of SL Faculty
Please talk with Dr. Joe Blosser or Dr. Cara Kozma about your course idea first. Then come and complete the application.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. You will know within two weeks of submitting the application if you will receive a grant. We only have 10 grants available, so we urge you to apply soon. Applications must be submitted by September 13, 2019.
Read all the guidelines for applying at: https://www.highpoint.edu/servicelearning/grant-process/
Download the application here: Grant-Application_spring19
Please submit your signed grant application electronically to
Dr. Joe Blosser (jblosser@highpoint.edu)
Here are a few syllabi from courses taught by HPU faculty (please keep in mind some of these syllabi also fulfill the University Gen. Ed. Requirement for Ethics — your course will likely not fulfill this requirement). Many of the syllabi include an old EPC form, which should just be ignored given the current APIRC approval system:
ART 3081 Documenting the Community through Photography
COM 3385 Applied Research in Strategic Communications
CRJ 3650 Life Skills for Inmates
ECO 2050 Introduction to Microeconomics
INT 3280 Contract 1 FALL 2013 Schedule
PHL 2043 Business Ethics Honors
WGS 3100 Feminist Theory and Praxis
There are endless numbers of resources for Service Learning, but at HPU we are developing Service Learning a bit differently through a focus on moral questions, like issues of justice, freedom, equality, human rights, the common good, etc. Not all Service Learning resources share such an emphasis on ethics, so you will need to use the following resources carefully and critically as you develop your proposal.
Here are some websites to get you started on planning a course:
National Service Learning Clearinghouse Resources
Corporation for National & Community Service
UNC Faculty Resources and Course Guide
Elon’s Faculty Development Guide
Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning
Click here for a list of National Resources for Service-Learning
The Service Learning Program is engaged in an extensive assessment strategy to improve the student learning and community service aspects of the program. The Service Learning Committee has created and approved an assessment strategy based on the LEAP Outcomes and the VALUE rubrics created by the Association of American Colleges and Universities.
Faculty Instructions on how assessments will be done: SL_Faculty_Assessment_Instructions
The rubric we will use to evaluate student work is here (a highlighted portion is the specific focus objective for the year): SL Assessment Rubric
We urge SL faculty to complete their own internal mid-term evaluation. A sample evaluation tool can be found here: Midterm_Service_Learning_Survey
Course Selection Criteria:
In approving courses to be designated “SL”, the Service Learning Committee will seek a balanced set of courses that
- Have broad student appeal
- Have a specialized focus
- Make a unique contribution to the community
- Focus on an ethical aspect of the subject
- Embed ethical questions in the syllabus and assessment tools (for example, the course should ask questions about justice issues, distribution, fairness, civic responsibility, good character, citizenship, the meaning of the common good, etc.)
- Thoroughly integrate reflection on the theoretical and the practical
- Represent the interdisciplinary nature of service learning
- Further the University’s mission and profile as a school that emphasizes experiential learning in order to encourage civic responsibility and character development