Purpose of the Community-Engaged Learning Coordinator Program

Community-Engaged Learning Coordinators (CELCs) are members of seven key South Bend area partner agencies who have a special commitment as part of their position to focus on academic community engagement with Notre Dame faculty and students. They participate in a learning community with other CELCs and academic community engagement professionals at the Institute for Social Concerns to deepen our shared understanding of how to create successful placements and projects for community-engaged learning. The Institute for Social Concerns honors their time with financial support to the hosting agency. 

This model was created to recognize key partners as co-teachers as well as supervisors of students who learn in, about, and with community. The CELCs are available to help students find placements in their agencies that meet both the needs of the community-engaged organization and the student. They are aware of the importance of finding ways to connect the students’ real life experiences with their academic work. In addition, they are committed to making reflection a part of the student’s experience in their organizations. The Community-Engaged Learning Coordinators are willing and able to find the right placements for students who come to them either individually or as part of a course related assignment.

To learn more about the history and success of the CELC program, read this article co-authored by Institute for Social Concerns faculty, staff, and CELCs: “‘The Community-Engaged Learning Coordinator Model: Investing in Infrastructure for Community Impact through Service-Learning.” Service-Learning to Advance Access & Success: Bridging Institutional and Community Capacity (2019).

How can Community-Engaged Learning Coordinators partner with faculty?

Community-Engaged Learning Coordinators have a special commitment to working with Notre Dame faculty on community-engaged research, teaching, and learning. As members of this program, CELCs: 

• reserve time to meet with faculty members as co-teachers to develop community-engaged placements and projects that align with the learning goals outlined by the faculty member in ways that also, critically, meet their organization’s needs;
• meet monthly with CELC colleagues and Institute for Social Concerns community engagement professionals to discuss best practices for academic community engagement based on their daily experiences and on the published literature on this work;
• distinguish community-engaged learning students from volunteers to make sure students have an experience that aligns with the learning goals of the partnering faculty member as well as meeting their own goals;
• develop informed plans to enact the four core areas of hosting community-engaged learning students: 1) orientation, 2) placement, 3) supervision, and 4) reflection; and they
• work with faculty before, during, and after the course or project to assess the success for individual students, for the organization, and for the faculty member.

These partners have a special commitment and deep experience working with community-engaged learning faculty and students. Contact Dave Lassen, Ph.D, Community-Engaged Learning Program Director (dlassen@nd.edu) to start a conversation about community-engaged learning partnerships, or reach out directly to one of those partners listed below.

 

COMMUNITY-ENGAGED LEARNING COORDINATORS AND SITES