College’s Spring 2023 Service-Learning Fellows

Stephanie Oudghiri, Abby Laufman, and Angie Holtsclaw have been selected as spring 2023 Service-Learning Fellows. The semester-long Service-Learning Fellows Program is designed to foster the development and institutionalization of service-learning courses and curricula, projects, and scholarly pursuits at Purdue, as well as strengthen collaborative efforts and outcomes in communities. The projects will begin in January 2023.

Oudghiri, clinical assistant professor in Curriculum Studies in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, and Laufman, community and mentoring engagement coordinator, say their partnership and collaboration with the Civic Theatre of Greater Lafayette, Indiana, is crucial because it is the only community theater in the area.

“The primary purpose of ‘Community Issues and Applications for Educators’ (EDCI 35000) is to cultivate authentic relationships between Purdue’s preservice teachers and the communities they plan to serve,” Oudghiri said. “Connecting with Civic Theater will help students learn the importance of integrating arts into everyday lessons and how to provide hands-on learning opportunities in their future classrooms. Students will be able to see real-life examples of how much of an impact the arts have on children and all the learning opportunities within.”

“Ultimately, these service-learning engagements within this course are designed to foster ethically-minded, culturally-responsive teachers who act as advocates for equity and justice within their classrooms and future communities,” Oudghiri said.

The service-learning project of Angie Holtsclaw, clinical instructor in Special Education in the Department of Educational Studies, is ‘Experiential Learning: Encountering Self-Determination and Generalization Across Cultures’ (EDPS 49000). It is connected to the Greece Study Abroad program where students will engage in new cultural experiences and analyze these experiences from the lens of self-determination and generalization.

“While in Greece, students volunteer with the Estia Agios Nikolaos community in Galaxidi, Greece,” Holtsclaw said. “The Estia community is a life-sharing community where individuals with and without disabilities live and work together and where their cornerstone principle is lived, that ‘each person is unique and can be helped to develop his or her unique capabilities in a nurturing environment via creative work, artistic stimuli, and direct interaction with nature.’”  

“The goal of the service-learning activity while in Greece is to support Estia in their mission by assisting them in rebuilding their flock of poultry,” Holtsclaw explained. “This flock will allow residents to care for the animals and gather eggs to be used in their meals. Any additional egg production can be sold in the Galaxidi area to further support Estia’s mission.”