Weaving Service Learning Into the Fabric of Your College

Institutionalizing service-learning can be a rich and complex process. The ideas of sustainability in this article are offered as points to keep in mind as we go about getting service-learning programs more solidly grounded within our institutions. Ideas are organized into the following categories: institutional mission, faculty outcomes, student outcomes, community impact, coordination of services, and advancement of the field. Most topics are accompanied by a checklist and thought prompts. The checklist provides a guide for improving service-learning programs from the perspective of many different constituencies across an institution. The thought prompts are key words that frequently surface in discussions about institutionalization. They could serve as ideas for action, memory prompts, or discussion starters.