What are the Impacts of Service Learning Course on Our Community Partners?

Holland notes that Portland State University (PSU) has been aided in its integration of service learning with a 1993 Learn and Serve grant from the Corporation for National Service. The article reports how the community has been impacted by university service learning from 1995-1997. Partners were impressed, even surprised, by the quality and performance of the PSU students placed in their organizations. Most partners could not place an economic value on the service by the students to their organization, but stated that the development of a strong tie with the university and an individual faculty member were very valuable. Partners saw themselves as important teachers of the PSU students. Major concerns that partners noted were constraints of time and logistics (trying to fit student objectives into organizational needs).