Service-Learning Leaders Honored at The National Service-Learning Conference

Youths and adults, from California to Virginia, were honored for their
outstanding achievements at the Fourth Annual State Farm® Awards
Ceremony and Luncheon, held on March 19, at The 16th Annual National Service-Learning Conference
in Long Beach, Calif. The awards recognized individuals and
organizations that have contributed significantly to the
service-learning movement.

NYLC's Alec Dickson Award, which goes to a seminal leader
in the field, carries the name of the British founder of Overseas
Voluntary Services, a precursor to the Peace Corps. This year’s
recipient, Nadinne Cruz, has directed Stanford University’s Haas Center
for Public Service, introduced and taught courses in service-learning
both at Stanford and Swarthmore College, directed the Higher Education
Consortium for Urban Affairs in Minnesota, and is currently working on
a book on service-learning, while mentoring former students, staff, and
emerging leaders in the movement.

NYLC also annually presents the State Farm® Youth Leadership for Service-Learning Excellence and Service-Learning Practitioner Leadership Awards.
Top youth honors went to Fulton Academy, an alternative high school
located in Fulton, Mo. Fulton Academy students spent three hours every Friday
leading, planning, and implementing service-learning projects that
addressed local needs while meeting learning objectives. Their favorite
projects of the past year included toy recycling and helping a senior
citizen prepare a woodpile for the winter months.

The practitioner award went to Missourian Jan Schuster, who has led
service-learning efforts in Kirkwood, Mo. for 14 years, establishing
programs at every grade level, and training hundreds of practitioners.
Recently retired, she continues her work through a wide variety of
state and national programs, including NYLC's National Service-Learning Exchange

Youth Service America teamed with State Farm to present the Fourth Annual Harris Wofford Awards,
named after the former Pennsylvania senator and CEO of the Corporation
for National and Community Service. The awards are presented to one
young person, one institution, and one media organization. The youth
award went to college student Katie Pugh, of Sylacauga, Ala. Among her
many service efforts, Pugh devoted a year towards developing a high
quality service-learning program for her school district. She worked
closely with students, teachers, school administrators, and community
leaders to create a service-learning program for which students would
be awarded a Carnegie Unit Credit upon completion. The institution and
media awards were presented to Alternatives, Inc. of Hampton, Va., for
its efforts in advancing the local youth agenda, and the Jasper Texas
Newsboy newspaper for its coverage of youth leadership.

With support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, The John Glenn
Institute at Ohio State University named Dr. Lawrence Bailis, Associate
Research Professor at the Heller Graduate School at Brandeis
University, and service-learning consultant Dr. Richard Bradley this
year's John Glenn Scholars in Service-Learning. The award honors
scholarship efforts that contribute to advancing the understanding or
adoption of service-learning with an emphasis on kindergarten through
12th-grade education.