Page 18 - Laker Connection Fall 2015

campus UPDATES
Year one of Clayton State University’s Partnering Academics and Community Engagement (PACE) initiative has come to an end. This year, specific Clayton State students engaged with their communities while learning about such diverse topics as English composi- tion, psychology, statistics, logic, politi- cal science, philosophy....and the list goes on.
We started small with four sections of our University Foundations course. Students in this first-year seminar worked with Rex Mill Middle school to get its LEGO robotics team ready for their competitions, helped to create an informed voters block on our campus by putting together a voter information guide, and crafted personal wellness advice for their fellow freshmen. Ap- proximately 100 students went outside their classroom walls to complete proj- ects in various community settings, set- ting the stage for the rest of their time on our campus.
In Spring 2015, PACE launched an ad- ditional eight community-engaged sec- tions cutting across the Core Curriculum with a total enrollment of approximately 200 students.
BY ANTOINETTE MILLER
Jennifer Parrott’s English composition class worked with Noah’s Ark, an ani- mal sanctuary in Locust Grove, GA, to conduct primary and secondary re- search on both the animals that live at the Ark and the services the organiza- tion provides. The students created a variety of promotional materials to raise awareness of, and donations for, the non-profit. Sanjay Lal’s critical thinking class worked with Clayton State’s Athletics Department to write argument essays on topics relevant to the health and wellness of athletes as they train. Laura Dean’s American government students created and deliv- ered Saturday tutoring sessions for AP American government students from multiple Clayton County high schools. Aaron Rafter’s introduction to statistics students collected and analyzed survey data with a Fayette County elementary school to support applications to further fund the school’s Cultural Arts Week program. The class also worked with Henry County’s tourism director to ex- amine trends in visitor spending and the origins of those who attended the At- lanta Motor Speedway. Christina Grange’s intro to general psychology students partnered with StoryCorps At- lanta to draft materials linking already-
published stories to concepts in psy- chology. Ben Buckley’s ethics in a his- torical and contemporary perspective students completed service hours around the Metro Atlanta area, reflect- ing upon how philosophers including Aristotle, Kant, and Nagel would view their activities. And, after a presenta- tion by a representative of Banking on our Future (Operation Hope), Gay Solomon’s survey of economics stu- dents prepared educational materials on personal financial responsibility for local middle school students.
Year two will be very busy for PACE. PACE will offer a wide variety of com- munity-engaged courses including Core and upper division courses. The first cohort of PACE Mentors will assist these new students to facilitate their project work while PACE continues to train and support faculty toward teach- ing community-engaged classes. We are also planning our inaugural Com- munity Partner Roundtable and Net- working event for October 2, 2015 in effort to grow our connections with our surrounding communities.
16 THE LAKER CONNECTION
PACE-i-fy!
PACE celebrates its first year of engaging students with their communities