HELP Grant
April 1, 2016
By Emma Alexander, Honors Communications Intern
How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before beginning to improve the world."-Anne Frank
With the help of a recent grant, Purdue Honors students are doing just that. From Tippecanoe County to Afghanistan, students are making an impact via service learning. The grant, entitled Honors Engaged Learning in Practice (or HELP for short) was awarded to the Purdue Honors College to support the development of six courses that use service-learning as a central aspect of their curriculum. These courses are offered as HONR classes in Spring 2015 and Fall 2016. The classes will then be taken to faculty's home departments so that they may be extended to all Purdue students through their departments in the future. In addition to classes, a summit on service learning was hosted on campus this spring.
Dr. Elizabeth Brite, who is teaching one of the classes supported by the grant, shared her thoughts on how the grant and the opportunities it has created, benefit the Honors College and its students.
It greatly increases the opportunities for students to engage in service-learning. Students can take courses in which they will participate in a public health program in Kenya, design technologies for elderly populations here in West Lafayette, teach English online to Afghan students, do archival work for Purdue's special collections and the local historical society, and more.
Dr. Brite also expounded upon her class.
My course, Beyond Afghanistan, explores the culture and history of Afghanistan and Central Asia, and examines the meaning of our recent engagements with this part of the world. Within the class, students can elect to participate in a service, where they serve as conversation partners to Afghan students in Afghanistan who are looking to improve their language skills. We do a number of reflection activities on this work, where we consider the cultural meaning and value of the service experience. Other students in the class elect to do research work, and we all really teach each other - I provide background on culture and history, research students share their acquired knowledge, and service students share new knowledge acquired from their cultural exchange.
For more insight, we also spoke to a student currently enrolled in Dr. Brite's "Beyond Afghanistan" class, Anand Balar. He shared his thoughts on the experience.
The service learning we get a chance to do is unlike any other opportunity on campus. Working with students in Afghanistan via modern video and voice chat technology is an amazing experience that really helps put our lives here at Purdue into perspective. Reflecting on my experience, I can say that it has made me learn more about myself and an entirely different culture that I wasn't accustomed to. At the end of the day, that's the knowledge I know I will walk away with.
Fortunately, it's not too late to get involved. Four new service courses will be offered through the Honors College this fall 2016. Course descriptions and information can be found on our HONR course page.
There is also a Purdue Journal of Service Learning, which provides opportunities for undergraduates to publish on their service experiences. To learn more about service learning at Purdue in general, you can visit the CIE service learning page.
