Recipients

Dr. Dwight Giles of the University of Massachusetts, Boston and Dr. Janet Eyler of Vanderbilt University

Janet Eyler, Ph.D.
Peabody College
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, Tennessee

Over the past 27 years, Dr. Eyler has made an extraordinary contribution to Vanderbilt University by establishing service-learning as a top-five university priority. She helped form the Vanderbilt University Service-Learning Task Force, which for more than a decade has played an integral role in institutionalizing service-learning. Her dedication and leadership have led to many accomplishments, including the establishment of an assistant provost position for service-learning. With the garnering of grants to support faculty and community partnership development, she has helped transform the university.

With the help of colleague Dwight Giles, co-recipient of the 2003 Ehrlich award, Dr. Eyler developed a graduate course on service-learning in higher education. Eyler thinks of it as ‘’˜meta-service-learning,’ where students learn about service-learning by providing service to faculty or programs developing or implementing service-learning.’ The program allows students to learn while their instructors leverage their efforts to help service-learning grow.

In addition to her contributions at the local level, Dr. Eyler has framed pedagogical models and research agendas involving service-learning at the national and international levels. From her classroom and teaching practices have come accomplishments such as developing the Annual International Research Conference on Service-Learning. Combining her own research with her practitioner outreach through workshops and publications, Dr. Eyler has been able to create a service-learning master’s degree program at Vanderbilt’s Peabody College. Dr. Eyler has also published three books, 11 book chapters, and 29 articles and reports, and has given nearly 150 presentations.

As Vanderbilt president Gordon Gee and assistant provost for service-learning Sharon Shields note, Dr. Eyler ‘has helped community partners, students, colleagues, and administrators understand the value and relevance of service-learning in undergraduate and graduate education.’

Dwight E. Giles Jr., Ph.D.
University of Massachusetts- Boston
Boston, Massachusetts

At the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMass Boston), Dr. Giles has made major contributions to the campus as both a member of the faculty and a resource for the advancement of community service and service-learning. This work caps 30 years of involvement in developing campus-based service and service-learning across the nation.

At UMass Boston’s Graduate College of Education, Dr. Giles has enhanced students’ knowledge of and involvement in service-learning by adding required and elective coursework on service-learning to the curriculum. Dr. Giles is also the faculty co-chair of the university’s Service-Learning Advisory Committee, which works closely with the Office of Service-Learning and Community Outreach. In addition, he contributes to the New England Resource Center for Higher Education (NERCHE), where he consults regularly as a senior associate.

Dr. Giles has a long history of working to advance service-learning as a key pedagogy. At Cornell he chaired the committee that established the university’s Public Service Center, and at Vanderbilt he was an active member of the Service-Learning Task Force, where he helped to develop the position of Assistant Provost for Service-Learning.

Dr. Giles has also made an invaluable contribution to Massachusetts Campus Compact (MACC). MACC executive director Barbara Canyes notes that he has been an ‘active proponent and counselor, collaborating on innovative ventures for our annual conferences; advising, mentoring, and training MACC VISTA members; and serving as a sounding board and consultant for the development of a comprehensive vision for higher education service in Massachusetts and beyond.’

Dr. Giles has authored or co-authored three books, and 19 articles and book chapters, and 13 papers; in addition, he has given more than 80 conference presentations on service-learning. Dr. Giles has also worked with the National Society for Experimental Education alongside colleague and co-recipient Janet Eyler, publishing research agendas on strategies for service-learning, as well as special issues for the Michigan Journal of Community Service-Learning.

Finalists

Jeffrey B. Anderson, Ph.D.
Seattle University
Seattle, Washington

As associate professor of education at Seattle University, as well as director of the university’s Academic Service-Learning Faculty Fellows Program and co-chair of the Service-Learning Task Force, Dr. Anderson has made a number of valuable contributions to the field of service-learning. Drawing from his expertise in middle and secondary school education, Dr. Anderson refined the innovative Master in Teaching (MiT) program, through which the university forms collaborative partnerships with K-12 schools. He also created a new course, ‘Service Leadership,’ designed to prepare pre-service teachers to use service-learning as a teaching method, infuse service-learning into elementary education, and create enduring links among higher education, community organizations, and K-12 schools. The course involves MiT students, K-12 students, teachers, administrators, and community-based organization staff in designing and implementing service-learning initiatives that benefit all of those involved.

Dr. Anderson also contributes to the field through publications, presentations, and research, including serving as lead editor of Service-Learning in Teacher Education: Enhancing the Growth of New Teachers, Their Students, and Communities (AACTE, 2001). Notes Susan Secker, Seattle University’s vice-president for planning and associate provost, ‘It is obvious that he cares very deeply about social justice, civic engagement, and enhancing students’ personal growth and academic achievement.’

Lynne A. Bond, Ph.D.
University of Vermont
Burlington, Vermont

Through her commitment to the principles and practices of engaged learning and her work as a distinguished scholar, teacher, and leader, Dr. Bond has played a critical role in shaping the University of Vermont’s service-learning movement. As the recipient of the University Scholar award (the University of Vermont’s highest research award) in 1999 and the university’s Kroepsch-Maurice Outstanding Professor award in 2000, Dr. Bond has set a high standard of excellence in her work.

Dr. Bond’s community-based approach to scholarship was instrumental in obtaining a grant to form the University of Vermont/ Burlington Community Outreach Partnership Center (COPC). The COPC supports high-quality service-learning, community-based action research, and community education and service. It involves faculty, students, and staff in mutually beneficial partnerships with community organizations and residents. Dr. Bond’s role in promoting service-learning also involves giving colloquia presentations on service-learning and gathering and disseminating models of best practices in service-learning. Dr. Bond was a member of the University of Vermont’s Service-Learning Task Force, which led to her co-founding and co-chairing the President’s Committee on Community Engagement. She is also a charter member of the Faculty Fellows for Service-Learning Program, through which she has created relationships with institutions and organizations worldwide.

Jose Calderon, Ph.D.
Pitzer College
Claremont, California

As professor of sociology and Chicano studies at Pitzer College, Dr. Calderon has built recognition of the importance of service-learning and community work, paving the way for other faculty to build community engagement into their curricula. Providing leadership among all ranks of faculty by modeling the difficult balance of engagement and scholarship, Dr. Calderon has been one of Pitzer College’s primary forces behind service-learning. In part because of his efforts, The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) has recognized Pitzer College for its model of experimental education, using innovative pedagogy to develop vital and reciprocal relationships with communities locally and globally. Dr. Calderon directs numerous programs and activities, including an alternative spring break, in which students live and work with farm laborers to learn about the concept of unionizing.

President Laura Skandera Tombley comments, ‘His energy stands out on this campus, and he was worked tirelessly to create a model of action scholarship with the momentum to carry many people in its wake.’ One hallmark of Dr. Calderon’s work is that he supports leadership from within, rather than relying on conventional top-down solutions to predefined problems. This approach is evident in his efforts with the Pomona Economic Opportunity Center (PEOC), through which he has involved students and laborers in creating an ESL program, establishing courses in health and immigration rights, and gaining support from the city of Pomona.

Mark Chesler, Ph.D.
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan

Throughout his 35-year career at the University of Michigan, Dr. Chesler has been a ‘boundary spanner’ and leader of service-learning and participatory action research. Brining together the Division of Academic Affairs and the Division of Student Affairs at the University, he has established one of the longest-running service-learning courses in the nation: Project Community (Sociology 389). Students in this course learn in the classroom and in the community about sociology, cultural sensitivity, and issues related to inequality, diversity, and privilege. As University of Michigan president Mary Sue Coleman comments, ‘Mark has been the faculty service-learning pioneer at the University of Michigan, and has established a service-learning legacy for generations to come.’

With the help of faculty colleagues, Dr. Chesler developed the nationally recognized Intergroup Relations, Conflict, and Community program at the University of Michigan. Through this and other work, he has brought his vast knowledge of working across cultures to students, faculty, and community members. He is a nationally recognized scholar in the multicultural organization movement, and has published extensively in that field. His many efforts on behalf of service-learning were a significant factor in the establishment of the Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning, which provides service-learning opportunities for thousands of students a year. In addition, through his Project Community course, more than 10,000 students have been able to serve and learn.

Rita Duncan, M.A.
Tulsa Community College
Tulsa Oklahoma

For the past 12 years as assistant professor of sociology at Tulsa Community College, Rita Duncan has been actively engaged in promoting service-learning. Strongly advocating for a service-learning graduation requirement, Professor Duncan requires her students to engage, collectively and individually, in community-based projects that bring theory to practice. These projects have yielded impressive results, both tangible and intangible, including 22,000 hours of service and several thousand dollars’ worth of goods provided to the Tulsa community. Professor Duncan’s previous work in the social services field and the close contacts she made their have allowed, many students to seize the opportunity to get involved in a wide variety of service-learning programs.

Professor Duncan and her students work to address the new needs that arise within the community each semester by refining and implementing new service programs. Projects include MomaTalk, a support group for single mothers living in public housing; Jackson Elementary School Safe Walk, an escort program for elementary school children; the Needs Assessment Survey, a personally constructed and administered survey of community needs; and many others. In addition to her commitment to her students, Professor Duncan plays a large role in extending service-learning among other faculty, public school teachers, and across the state through projects and presentations.

Richard M. Eberst, Ph.D.
California State University, San Bernardino
San Bernardino, California

In more than 30 years of work, most recently as professor of health science and human ecology at California State University, San Bernardino (CSUBD), Dr. Eberst has made outstanding contributions to the field of service-learning. With the creation of a new office of Service-Learning at CSUSB, Dr. Eberst served as the coordinator of service-learning for two years. In this and other work, Dr. Eberst has been a strong advocate for service-learning as an integral part of the university’s engagement with the community.

Helping to resolve regional challenges, Dr. Eberst founded ‘Focus 92411: A Neighborhood Partnership’ in one of the most challenged neighborhoods in California. He also helped to found the Inland Empire Community Benefits Collaborative, the African-American Health Initiative, and the Accelerating Community Transformation Project, as well as several academic service-learning programs. In addition, he assisted in the development of the new CSUSB strategic plan, one of whose goals is the ‘advancement of partnerships to help improve overall quality of life in the region.’ Based on his commitment and experience in community engagement, Dr. Eberst was appointed Founding Director of Community-University Partnerships (CUP).

In addition to his local efforts, Dr. Eberst has taken on a national role in service-learning as four-time national president of Eta Sigma Gamma, a national health education organization; president of the American School Health Association; and a member of the CSU System-Wide Director of Service-Learning collaborative, which was instrumental in Governor Davis’s adoption of the ‘Governor’s Call to Action for Service-Learning.’

Diann S. Gregory, CNM
Miami-Dade Community College, Medical Center Campus
Miami, Florida

As a professor in the Midwifery Sciences Department at Miami-Dade Community College, Professor Gregory has been a significant force in the community of midwifery education and in the provision of birthing services to the underserved. At Miami-Dade Community College, she has fully integrated service-learning into the Medical Center Campus’ midwifery program and has established a model for midwifery programs across the nation.

Recognized for her excellence in teaching with multiple awards, such as the Endowed Teaching Chair in 1996-1999 and again in 2000-2003, and a National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development Excellence Award in 1997, Professor Gregory is also known as the ‘champion for pregnant teens.’ Gregory and her students provide well-woman care, prenatal care, and doula services to women at the COPE Center, a school for pregnant teens. Recently Professor Gregory, with her colleagues and students, worked to develop New Born Care Kits for teen mothers. She has also provided community workshops to inform students and others about medical topics such as sexually transmitted diseases, breast self-exams, Pap exams, and family planning.

In addition to her teaching and service, Professor Gregory has published multiple articles and created online courses on maternity and social service topics. She has received more than 15 awards for her involvement in service and service-learning.

Marlene Groomes, Ed.D.
Miami-Dade Community College, Homestead Campus
Homestead, Florida

Dr. Groomes has been intensely involved in service-learning for the past decade. As associate professor in the Department of Psychology at Miami-Dade Community College’s Homestead Campus, Dr. Groomes has created and implemented a number of service-learning projects through which hundreds of students have contributed thousands of hours of service. One such project is SOAR, created after Hurricane Andrew. Dr. Groomes’ students provided tutoring and mentoring to at-risk middle school students in South Dade and were trained to prevent high-risk behavior. Other projects have helped the Homestead Police Department and the Department of Justice to reduce crime in two high-crime areas and involved students in preparing a conference on domestic violence awareness and creating anti-drug education programs for the South Dade school community.

In addition to working with students and the community, Dr. Groomes has explored service-learning in her research. In her doctoral research she documented the positive impact of service-learning, showing that service-learning is one of the most effective ways of enhancing student success, developing skills, and improving self-esteem. In recognition of her role in service-learning, Dr. Groomes has received numerous awards, including the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) Excellence Award, Endowed Teaching Chair, Miami-Dade Community College Excellence Award, and the Miami-Dade Community College Phi Theta Kappa Faculty and Staff of the Year Award.

Beth Ann Johnson, M.A.
Pima County Community College District
Tuscon, Arizona

As what colleague Mark Homan calls ‘the single most significant contributor to service-learning at Pima Community College and Southern Arizona,’ Professor Johnson has been deeply involved with service-learning for many years. A professor of early childhood education, Professor Johnson began her service-learning work 15 years ago, when she helped bring service-learning to widespread recognition and utilization at Pima Community College as a faculty advisor. Since then she has helped to create the college’s Center for Service-Learning. Professor Johnson has held numerous training sessions for faculty across disciplines to assist them in bringing service-learning into their coursework.

In addition to her work at Pima, she has helped to bring together other area colleges and universities, K-12 school districts, community agencies, and other organizations in a coalition to promote service-learning throughout the community. In developing workshops and programs targeted at literacy, such as Project FUEL (Fostering Undergraduates to Effect Literacy), Professor Johnson ‘has been a tireless, thoughtful, and effective advocate for service-learning,’ notes Homan.

Among her many positions in the service-learning area, Professor Johnson has been the editor of the Pima Vision Newsletter, the Literacy Project coordinator and chair of the Department of Justice Studies & Early Childhood Education. Currently she is co-chair of the Faculty Success Program and serves on several other committees. She is also founder and president of Teach Me Write, Inc., a family and community literacy resource organization.

William B. Macgregor, Ph.D.
Montana Tech of the University of Montana
Butte, Montana

In his work as professor of professional and technical communications at Montana Tech of the University of Montana, Dr. Macgregor has distinguished himself as a leader in developing service-learning initiatives. Through his courses on business and professional writing and scientific and technical writing, he has incorporated service-learning into 123 projects since 1995, completed by more than 400 students working in small teams. Two of these projects are the preservation of a paupers’ cemetery and the opening of the Underground Miner Training Center. In this mining town, these efforts have made a significant impact.

As a Senior Faculty Fellow, Dr. Macgregor has encouraged his colleagues to adapt courses to include service-learning and has successfully worked with the Montana Campus Compact to achieve that goal. Through his efforts, Dr. Macgregor has been awarded thousands of dollars in grants and funding to continue his research and scholarly work in order to benefit the greater community. Having published and presented much of his work, he has extended his commitment to service-learning well beyond the borders of the community.

Dr. Macgregor’s grassroots work encompasses both a local and a national scope. He is national chair of the Educators for Community Engagement, where his leadership has helped that organization grow. He is also active with Butte CPR (Citizens for Preservation and Revitalization) the Butte Lead Levels Advisory Committee, and the Distaff Side, a committee of the Butte historical Society devoted to celebrating women’s culture and history in Butte.

Sam Marullo, Ph.D.
Georgetown University
Washington, DC

Through teaching, research, and service, Dr. Marullo has led efforts to integrate community-based research and service-learning at both the local and national level. His achievements highlight extraordinary versatility in his work as a scholar, teacher, and administrator as a sociology professor at Georgetown. One notable accomplishment is his creation of the Program on Justice and Peace (PJP), an academic minor within all four undergraduate schools at Georgetown, which requires at least 40 hours of community service. ‘Sam built the PJP program on the strong foundation of his own research in peace and justice studies,’ notes Georgetown president John DeGioia.

Dr. Marullo co-authored Community-Based Research and Higher Education: Principles and Practices (Jossey-Bass, 2003), documenting the development of community-based research and its place in service-learning. As director of the Volunteer and Public Service Center, Dr. Marullo has significantly improved the number and quality of outreach efforts and enhanced professional service to the community. He led the effort to create the new Center for Social Justice, through which Georgetown has been able to strengthen its commitment to community-based intellectual work on a worldwide level. He also developed the Community Research and Learning (CoRAL) Network among Washington, DC-based colleges and universities, which promotes fully integrated community-based research, teaching, and service. CoRAL has mobilized 60 community-based organizations and 40 faculty members, completing more than 30 collaborative projects that serve the city’s residents.

Susan Ostrander, Ph.D.
Tufts University
Medford, Massachusetts

For the past ten years, Dr. Ostrander has integrated community service projects in her undergraduate courses on class, race and gender inequalities as a sociology professor at Tufts University. Organizing students to provide volunteer services in several nonprofit organizations and public agencies, Dr. Ostrander has both integrated service-learning into her coursework and made a major impact on the community.

As an engaged scholar, Dr. Ostrander conducts community-based research while studying service-learning strategies and models across higher education institutions. She has taught and written about nonprofits, social movement philanthropy, and social justice for more than two decades. She is the author of numerous articles, research reports, and book chapters, as well as three books. Also notable is her study of university civic engagement and community partnerships, which demonstrated the need to develop an articulated and practical rationale to guide civic engagement initiatives.

In addition to her scholarly work, Dr. Ostrander has had a major influence on the development of service-learning at Tufts. She laid the groundwork for establishing the University College of Citizenship and Public Service, a university-wide initiative to prepare students in all fields of study for a lifetime of active engagement. She has also worked to develop long-term partnerships between the university and community nonprofit organizations. In addition, Dr. Ostrander is active in the Association for Research on Nonprofits and Voluntary Action.

Armeda Reitzel, Ph.D.
Humboldt State University
Arcata, California

Dr. Reitzel has incorporated service-learning into her coursework and extended her expertise throughout Humboldt State University and the greater community for more than 20 years. As a professor of communication, service-learning advocate, and classroom volunteer, she is frequently invited to share her expertise in classes and workshops with community K-12 teachers. Most recently her efforts have focused on the Klamath-Trinity Joint Unified School District, which educates the youth of three local Native American tribes.

Having been successful in raising grant funding for service-learning, Dr. Reitzel has initiated projects to implement, promote, and research service-learning initiatives at the local, state, and regional level. Continuing her long-time dedication to the field, she features service-learning experiences in all of her university classes, conducts service-learning workshops for K-12 teachers in California and New Mexico, shares her research and scholarship with colleagues in the disciplines of communication and ESL, connects with local agencies to form partnerships, and writes service-learning grants for her classes.

In addition to her extensive engagement in service-learning, Dr. Reitzel is involved in a major research project: documenting the ‘lifespan development’ of service-learning teacher-scholars. She has written and presented extensively on service-learning, engagement, and diversity. Currently she is working on an article about service-learning in teaching ESL. Dr. Reitzel has twice received an Outstanding Faculty Award for her work.

Mark Veazie, Ph.D.
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona

Through his dedicated research, teaching, and service activities at the University of Arizona’s College of Public Health, Dr. Veazie has integrated the concept of service-learning into all of his scholarly and teaching activities. As Jill Guernsey de Zapien, Associate Dean for Community Programs, and Joel S. Meister, Associate Professor of Public Health, comment, ‘His passion for providing meaningful training and education opportunities to students, faculty, and community members has promoted a vision of a ’˜democracy of knowledge’ among all who work with him.’

Dr. Veazie’s focus is on employing service-learning as a core pedagogical strategy for public health education that promotes social justice. He has developed productive collaborations and partnerships to design service-learning programs with many tribes and Native American groups in Arizona. For example, he piloted the first Native American Program for Service-Learning with six tribal health departments and urban Indian groups, which gave academic credit for the students involved. The success of this project led him to include the concept of service-learning in courses for all of his students.

Dr. Veazie is a core faculty member in the CDC-sponsored Prevention Center, the Southwest Center for Community Health Promotion. At the center, he has worked to mount an effective set of community-based interventions that promote community-university partnerships, participatory research, and the enhancement of communities’ capacity to improve and sustain the health of their residents.

Harold Ward, Ph.D., J.D.
Brown University
Providence, Rhode Island

As a professor of environmental studies at Brown University, Dr. Ward has worked to engage his students in projects that have enhanced their learning while benefiting the residents of Providence and the greater community. In all of his courses, community-based problem solving is the core of teaching and learning. Kath Connolly, Senior Assistant Director of Brown’s Swearer Center for Public Service, notes, ‘Few faculty have so completely embraced a truly shared sense of purpose, urgency, and commitment with the community.’

Through partnerships with community organizations, Dr. Ward has helped address numerous local and statewide environmental policy issues. For example, the state’s recycling system had its roots in his classroom, and his students’ work focused attention on the city’s child lead poisoning problem. He is frequently invited to provide counsel for the many strategic environmental committees and initiatives in Rhode Island. In addition to serving the local community, Dr. Ward’s work has had a significant impact at the regional and national levels. His intellectual leadership has been cited as having a major influence on the development of undergraduate environmental studies programs across the nation.

Dr. Ward directs the Brown Center for Environmental Studies program, through which he has helped other faculty who teach environmental studies to incorporate service-learning into their courses and encouraged interdisciplinary partnerships. Dr. Ward also helped to establish and champion the Swearer Center for Public Service. Dr. Ward has written and presented extensively on environmental issues and service-learning.

Being a part of Campus Compact has let us touch the heart and soul of building better communities while improving teaching and learning for faculty and students. James A. Drake, President, Brevard Community College