Too much of a good thing?
Re-focusing the benefits of community-engaged learning

Wendy MacDonald

Can you ever have too much of a good thing? Some non-profits think so. Without more intentional thought to the impact of student involvement in community organizations, goodwill, positive intent and benefits may be lost to ineffective relationships and untapped potential.

Because of its potential to generate many benefits, community-engaged learning (CEL), supported by campus-community partnerships, has expanded dramatically in recent years. Whether through service-learning, practicums, field work or other forms of applied learning, students participating in a CEL program are exposed to a wide range of experiential learning opportunities through work placements in community-based organizations. It sounds like a win-win for both campuses and communities. So what’s the problem?

Succession Planning

What would you do in your organization if a key employee resigned, fell ill or had to be fired tomorrow? Would you be prepared?

Succession planning is not an issue that many organizations address in any systematic way. Because many organizations are small (with fewer than 10 employees) and because they may be facing other organizational challenges, thinking about who the next executive director might be or what would happen if the director of finance suddenly left is not high on their priority list.

Take a moment to check out the list of HR Council Bookmarks on delicious.com, featuring links to websites and online resources that we feel are worth a visit.

Some recently added bookmarks:

Peut-on abuser d’une bonne chose?
Se recentrer sur les avantages de l’apprentissage en milieu communautaire

Wendy MacDonald

Peut-on abuser d’une bonne chose? Certaines organisations communautaires pensent que oui. Si l’on ne réfléchit pas sérieusement aux effets de l’engagement des étudiants au sein des organisations communautaires, il se peut que beaucoup de bonne volonté, d’intentions louables et d’avantages certains soient perdus en raison de relations inefficaces et d’un bassin de talents qu’on n’aura pas su exploiter.

À cause des nombreux bienfaits qu’on peut en retirer, l’apprentissage en milieu communautaire (AMC), qui est soutenu par des partenariats entre les campus et la collectivité, s’est énormément développé ces dernières années. Que ce soit à la faveur d’un apprentissage par le service, de stages, de travail sur le terrain ou d’autres formes d’apprentissage appliqué, les étudiants qui participent à un programme d’AMC sont susceptibles de connaître une vaste gamme d’activités d’apprentissage expérientiel grâce à des stages dans les organisations communautaires. Il semble que cette situation soit à l’avantage des campus et de la collectivité. En ce cas, pourquoi s’en inquiéter?