Service Learning and Community Colleges: Where We Are

To determine the level of involvement in service learning among community colleges, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) conducted a national survey of over 1,100 colleges in spring 1995. The following institutional and program profile, based on responses from 773 institutions, emerged from the survey: (1) four out of five community colleges indicated that they were interested in service-learning; (2) 75% of the respondents considered community service as part of their institutional mission; (3) rural colleges were more likely to have service-learning programs than urban institutions; (4) most colleges relied heavily on institutional funds to implement service-learning programs; (5) curricular areas varied, but social science and humanities courses were most likely to incorporate service activities; (6) 85% of colleges providing service-learning activities offered up to 10 courses with a service option; (7) the most important reason cited by respondents for success with service-learning programs was faculty support, followed by administrative support and community support; (8) insufficient funding and the absence of faculty release time were the two most significant impediments to success cited by respondents; and (9) service experiences were evaluated most frequently by examining agency evaluation forms or student activity logs. Contains 13 references. (Author/TGI)