NYLC Blog

There are 74 million people under the age of 18 in this country. Unfortunately a far smaller number will have been engaged as leaders in their classrooms and communities this year. This gap represents a tremendous opportunity cost, a huge pool of untapped talent, ingenuity, and human capital. At a time when our nation is facing so many challenges, we cannot afford to leave 74 million potential problem-solvers, 74 million potential servant-leaders out of critical national conversations.

In the many conversations I have had, the response to this statement is that collaboration with young people needs to happen, but most are honestly baffled by how to accomplish it in a meaningful way. This is where service-learning provides a compelling answer — with over 20 years of research and practice, service-learning is a proven strategy to mobilize this immense resource and connecting young people with learning objectives to advance enterprising solutions that are changing the world.

We need to think differently about how we engage related strategies and broaden our efforts with renewed vigor. NYLC has a clear strategy to focus on engaging elected officials and highlighting what young people themselves are accomplishing through service-learning. The Department of Transportation shadow day last year with Project Ignition students prompted the Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood to meet again with those students at the National Service-Learning Conference last April. Staff at the Department continue to talk about the impact of that visit, naming specific students whose expert research and insightful questions impressed them.

In September, NYLC hosted a bipartisan, bicameral Capitol Hill Briefing highlighting the successes in Guilford County Schools. The briefing included two students, Al and Tyler, and a panelist from the Department of Education among others. It went a long way to showcase how service-learning is a very effective part of a district-wide school improvement strategy.

We have prioritized drafting bipartisan legislation that would amend No Child Left Behind to make it easier to use existing resources from Department of Education to be utilized for service-learning strategies and professional development within schools and during out of school time. In 50 or so meetings on Capitol Hill with both sides of the aisle, this approach was widely supported. We continue to look for opportunities to advance this effort.

Through a series of regional summits convened by the National Center for Learning and Citizenship, at the Education Commission of the States, I was struck by the similar challenges facing civic education and how if we each thought about our approaches a bit differently, we could accomplish even more together. With service-learning, any subject area can incorporate civic dimensions into the learning objectives and give students real-world opportunities to practice taking civic-oriented action.

We have found like-minded approaches advanced by the Civic Mission of Schools around the Sandra Day O’Connor Civic Learning Act, which is being re-introduced with bipartisan support. Service-learning is included as a recommended strategy and is one of six proven practices for effective civic learning. At the Corporation for National and Community Service, there remains a commitment to engaging young people in national service and to supporting service-learning.

Looking beyond government, we have compelling private programs launching or expanding. The McCormick Foundation’s Democracy Schools are demonstrating how service-learning can be connected to hands-on practice of civics and are finding compelling results. Free the Children and We Act are bringing a social enterprise model of engaging youth in service connected to their schools from Canada to the US for the first time, and there are countless other examples.

I am not an advocate for, nor does NYLC embrace, service-learning for service-learning’s sake. I believe in, and am inspired by, this strategy for what it can achieve because it empowers young people to solve real problems, taps leadership in youth who are least often asked to serve, and can transform teaching, educational outcomes, and student engagement in schools and during out of school time. Accomplishing this requires us to go on the offence; to reach out purposefully and proactively; to build common ground.

The knowledge, skills, and traits we are building in youth and their adult allies will better position current and future generations to tackle new problems and challenges as they arise. And we can ensure that young people from all walks of life are active contributors in their own lives and communities — building a true democracy and leaving no ideas, innovation, or human capital on the table. This is our ultimate goal and we need you to help make it a reality.

On March the 12th, 11 bleary-eyed twenty-somethings gathered on a dark street near the Mississippi river. They were encumbered with suitcases, garment-bags, pillows, and burritos - and one by one, they filed into two vehicles (“Mama” van, and “Horace” the subaru) and struck out West

You entrusted your money to these 11, under the impression that they would be using it to attend some kind of professional development conference - but what had become of them? Not only the 11, but the money?

As the sun was rising on the 17th of March, “Mama” and “Horace” were seen rolling back into the Twin Cities, but somehow their cargo had been altered - their 11 twenty-somethings now bore wide grins, minds full of innovative ideas, and notebooks crammed with contacts and resources.

Thanks to your incredible generosity, you helped 11 St. Paul VISTAs attend and facilitate the 24th Annual National Service Learning Conference in Denver Colorado, hosted by the National Youth Leadership Council - and that’s no small feat! We were able to accomplish a LOT:

• 5 SOLID days,
• 4,000 collective miles of travel,
• 250 gallons of gasoline used,
• 32 haikus written,
• 2 mail carts of swag bags: stuffed,
• 99 workshops monitored,
• 1,980 workshop surveys administered and collected,
• 2,000 attendees registered and badged,
• Over 2,000 plenary audience members greeted,
• 1 Wendy Spencer, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, met and greeted,
• 158 live Tweets,
• 176 square meals consumed,
• 14 inter-van letters written,
• 6 Denver service projects completed,
• 6 Fleetwood Mac songs played on the Ukulele
• COUNTLESS sources of inspiration: found,
• UNBOUNDED stories of service rendered,
• PLETHORAS of connections to other people and programs,
• UNKNOWABLE numbers of future careers: informed.

What a journey! The help you offered was an incredible boon to our efforts, and we’ve all returned to the Midwest supercharged and inspired to continue making a difference in our professional and personal communities, by teaching, and learning, through service.

Here are some personal highlights and lessons-learned from the trip, as penned by members of the 11: 

“From the conference I took away the idea that building lasting partnerships to maintain sustainability and longevity of projects and organizations is better than continually seeking out funding by oneself.”

“My favorite moment from the trip was hiking in the mountains outside of Boulder.”

“I've been struggling a lot lately about service, my motivation for doing it, where it fits in with society, etc. [...] at [...] the Friday plenary session: Peace, Justice, and Education, I felt as though Naomi Tutu was speaking to me directly when she was talking about treating others as human beings, not as labels. It's our differences that make this world an amazing place, giving each of us opportunities of new experiences to expand our world. This, I feel, applies to my personal life just as much as my work. Interacting with and treating people as human beings is what makes us truly human.”

“[I’m] falling in love with the people I'm following up with as potential career opportunities in the next few years!”

“I plan on incorporating service into the EMS Academy through a massive project to train 30,000 residents of St. Paul as CPR instructors. Ideally the EMS Academy students will become stewards of this initiative and incorporate tangible, life-saving service, into their EMT educations.”

“One of the most inspiring sessions I attended was the United World College - USA, HIV/AIDS Peer Educators session.  There were about 25 junior and senior high school students from all over the world who did (and do all over) skits and songs to educate folks about sexual and reproductive health.  They were super energetic, well-informed, and extremely poised in discussing what is oftentimes difficult subject matter.  I was blown away by their professionalism and enthusiasm, and am inspired to think outside the box for ways to engage different kinds of learning into trainings, self- and peer-education, and in general more worldly perspectives on local problems.”

“I learned that only through the trust and support of adults may youth leadership be fostered. Witnessing an English teacher allow his students to occasionally misstep and falter in the midst of a presentation, only to have their confidence build over the course of the session, exemplified how meaningful and powerful his trust in them was. This moment inspired me to rely more on the actions of youth in the new program I am helping launch at my organization.”

“Something that I learned:  I learned that youth do amazing things! They are teaching peers and adults about world issues like the global water crisis, converting used kitchen waste to fuel to heat low income homes, and building incredible things like schools around the world. From the volunteer experience on Saturday, I learned about vertical gardening, and another VISTA and I are now getting together to submit a vertical gardening proposal in St. Paul.”

“My favorite and most proud moment of the trip was meeting Wendy Spencer, the CEO for the Corporation for National & Community Service, who met with our group of 11 VISTA members after her plenary session on Wednesday night - shaking all of our hands, taking pictures, and shooting a quick video for St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman about being excited for the Mayor's Day of Recognition for National Service on April 9th.  I was proud of the grace and professionalism of all our members, and how well they represented the Saint Paul VISTA Program, the office of Mayor Chris Coleman, and AmeriCorps members in general.”

From all of us, thank you! From the bottom of our hearts. We couldn’t have had this experience without your help, and it was not one we’ll soon forget!

- Angie - Natalie - Tracy - Matt - Maddie - Maggie - Brittany - Casey - Amanda - Allison - Claire -

I choose to risk my significance,

to live so that which came to me as seed

goes to the next as blossom,

and that which came to me as blossom,

goes on as fruit.

-Dawna Markova

On Saturday, April 6, several NYLC staff and friends gathered at Bethel University in Minnesota to celebrate Cheng Leng Xiong, winner of the Outstanding Youth Award, presented by HOBY. Cheng, a former NYLC Youth Advisory Council member from Saint Paul, MN, was celebrated with the award for his inexhaustible service to his peers, his friends, and his community. Like a tree that, through its growth, hopes to be of benefit to what it comes in contact with, Cheng is a steadfast support to all who have the good luck of coming to know him. He is not of the variety that engages in an act of service hoping to be observed — he would rather he not be noticed — but when, invariably, he is seen, he playfully passes the credit along to someone else. Truly, he wants to serve to be of benefit, not for the satisfaction or the attention.

He seems, as best as I can tell, to be that caliber of person who does the thing he does out of a real sense of commitment to bettering people and society. There are so many people and stories in our communities worth celebrating, and so it was with great joy that I was able to join in celebrating Cheng, a man of infinite inspiration. He is present and dedicated in so many communities and the lives of so many individuals. He is not only remarkable because of how widely he has committed himself to the better good of his community, but because of the courage with which he has done so as he transitions between his Hmong roots, his present place here in Minnesota, and on the many national and local councils of which he is a part. Through all of his engagements and relationships, Cheng remains the very picture of the ‘Servant-Leader,’ offering opportunities for his life to be a cultural exchange to those who he works with, inviting us to learn from his rich heritage as he shares himself in service. I am reminded, at the close of this short note, of one afternoon while working with Cheng at the National Youth Leadership Training. He was wearing a shirt that read, “create a leader, be the first follower.” I thought that there was no better way to describe him, succinct and lovely, a wonderful vision and aspiration.

Deborah DeCovis is an exemplary service-learning educator. Her classroom has no desks, no whiteboard, and no electricity. For what her classroom lacks in bricks and mortar, it makes up for in student engagement, practical knowledge, and a lasting connection to the curriculum.

Her classroom is the great outdoors.

At the National Park Service, biologist Deborah DeCovis teaches students ages 5-18. She engages local youth by introducing them to ecology, biology, and even archaeology. Using the parks as her classroom, she creates a connection between science, schoolwork, and the local community.

“Many of the students I work with are disconnected from the local environment, despite living in an area surrounded by public lands, incredible history and unique desert ecology,” Deborah said. The service-learning programs at the National Park Service do more than teach about the local environment. They also instill their student participants with a sense of pride and environmental ownership.

Students travel to Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National Monuments for full days, several times a year, to learn about ecology and biology. Topics include the identification of native and invasive plants through seed collection, invasive plant removal, planting native seedlings, educational hikes, water testing, soil testing, macro invertebrate analysis and resource management.

Her current service-learning project involves the collection of native seeds. In it, seeds are collected within the park and then propagated in school greenhouses. Students care for the plants for a season before replanting them within the park boundary.

“The park’s outreach program, as supported by the National Park Foundation Park Stewards and America’s Best Idea grant programs, has allowed the National Park Service to reach students that would otherwise not have an opportunity to visit parks,” Deborah said, proud to have the opportunity to instruct and inspire the youth who inspire her right back. “This program instills ownership, resource stewardship and a sense of personal responsibility.”

Read more about Deborah, and other environmental service-learning projects featured during Earth month, in the Generator School Network.