Developing Community College Students’ Civic Engagement Through Service-Learning Learning Communities

• In Event: Roundtable Session 4
  In Roundtable Session: Creating Social Change: Do Multicultural Service-Learning Opportunities Make a Difference?

Abstract

Declining civic participation among American young adults has revived support for institutions of higher education to proactively contribute to the development of civically responsible and engaged citizens. Institutions of higher education have found that service-learning experiences and learning community structures contribute to developing students’ sense of civic responsibility and civic engagement, but much of this research has been conducted at 4-year institutions. The current study examines the impact of service-learning Learning Communities on first-year community college students’ attitudes and beliefs about civic engagement and social responsibility.

Authors

• Steven Hart, California State University - Fresno

• Jason C. Immekus, University of Louisville