Abstract

This 2000 article provides detailed suggestions for community organizations and higher education institutions interested in starting a community service work-study program. Suggestions were drawn from interviews with 13 campus directors and community-based organization representatives participating in the community service work-study grant program conducted by the Minnesota Campus Compact. From Lessons Learned from the Development of Community Service Work-Study Programs by the Minnesota and Massachusetts Campus Compacts.

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Issue

Community service work-study programs can be difficult to start, complicated to run, and involve many components. Several developments at the federal level have heightened national interest in community service, causing many colleges and universities to reevaluate the systems and partnerships in place to create a good experience for students and the community, and stay within federal mandates. Minnesota Campus Compact interviewed 13 campus program directors and community-based organization representatives participating in its community service work-study grant program.

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Action

This article provides a dozen specific and helpful suggestions for community organizations and higher education institutions interested in beginning a community service work-study program. Suggestions for community-based organizations:

• Find the right contact on campus. Identify the community service or service-learning coordinator at the campus. They can serve as a valuable resource to your organization for securing work-study students and other resources. Other helpful offices include financial aid, student employment and some academic departments, like education.
• "Sell" your community program to the campus. If you want to host a work-study student but are having trouble getting one, try "selling" your idea to the campus. Outline how it will be beneficial not only for you, but also for the community, student, and campus. Create a complete job description. Show how it will be a win-win situation.
• Sit down face-to-face with the campus coordinator and go through the program, so that you understand the program thoroughly. Ask what is expected of you, what you are to expect of them and other details of the program. Make sure to ask who will be responsible for paying the work-study students and who will be responsible for keeping track of their hours and how.
• Know the job you want your work-study student to do. By knowing exactly what you want your work-study student to do, you can come up with appropriate interview questions to make sure you get the right student. This will also help keep the student on task because you will have guidelines and deadlines. Don't underestimate what committed work-study students can accomplish for your organization.
• Think in terms of a continued relationship. Although students are usually only in school for four years, think about keeping the student for as long as possible. By keeping the same student, you save time (and money) on training them, as well as avoid the risk of getting an ineffective student. Think about keeping the student on for summer, as most students need summer jobs. Since work-study funds are often not available during the summer, this may mean you will have to pay the student out of your own pocket, but it may be worth it.
• Connect the job with the student's course of study. It may not always be possible, but try to make tasks relevant to the student's major or academic interests. By connecting the job with the student's main interest, s/he will not only be a better worker, but will also gain more from the experience and be more likely to stay committed.

Suggestions for colleges and universities:

• Hire a program director. There are many offices on the campus that need to work together in the community service work-study program, such as the financial aid office and the community service office. There needs to be an authority figure who can not only communicate between these offices, but with the community organizations as well. There needs to be someone who can serve as the ultimate authority for the program, who has a vision and can see that vision through.
• Get to know your community. Community organizations are often understaffed and very busy; they don't have time to reach out to the campus, nor do they know how. Get out into the community. Let community organizations know who they can contact for help, and what services you can offer.
• Look for places relevant to students' courses of study. One of the purposes of community service work-study programs is to give students experience relevant to their course of study. If your campus offers an urban planning major, make a point to reach out to community organizations that deal with housing or development issues. Make the experience as relevant as possible for the students.
• Screen students. Make sure that students really are eligible to receive work-study funds before you send them into the community. Mistakes often come at the community organization's expense. Also, try to make sure that the students qualifying for the program are up to the task. One ineffective student could damage campus ties with the community organization.
• Be financially prepared. It can take up to five years to work all the bugs out of the community service work-study program, and in that time the program will grow exponentially. Try to find a solid funding source for the first five years at least, and try to think in terms of sustainability.
• Get students involved. Advertise to students about this program; explain to them what it's all about. Remember that in five years there will be an enormous turnover of students. Have student trainers and peer advisors.

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Context

This paper by Minnesota Campus Compact (MNCC) intern Tracy Heaser was based on interviews with 13 campus program directors and community-based organization representatives participating in MNCC's community service work-study grant program. Responses ranged from concerns to advice they would give other campuses and organizations beginning such a program. While not all programs are alike, the interviews revealed some potential conflicts and specific steps to avoid them.

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Citation

Heaser, Tracy. "Getting started: Tips for beginning a community service work-study program", Lessons Learned from the Development of Community Service Work-Study Programs. Minneapolis, MN: Minnesota Campus Compact, 2000.

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Posted On

October 24, 2001

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For More Information

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Resources

Copies of the booklet, Lessons Learned from the Development of Community Service Work-Study Programs (#25H-425), are available by contacting Minnesota Campus Compact.

From The Resource Center library:
Lessons Learned from the Development of Community Service Work-Study Programs
Item number: M1965

Related Practices

• Structuring reflection in service-learning programs for work-study students

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Related sites

U.S. Department of Education work-study website

National Service-Learning Clearinghouse

Learn and Serve America

Topic Areas

• Community building
• Service-learning
• Nonprofit management
• Partnerships
• School-community partnerships
• Learn and Serve America
• Higher Education
• Volunteer
• Schools
• Students
• Higher Ed
• NSLC
• Education

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