The SOCHE Segue - March 2010
Earn What You Learn
We’ve heard the saying that anything worth doing is worth doing right… But let’s not forget about the value of having to try, try again. We can learn lessons from any lecture or bestseller, but we earn lessons from doing.
In this issue of the SOCHE Segue, we’ll share with you a few examples of active learning in the SOCHE community, including:
- SOCHE’s student research program – a partnership with the Air Force that allows science, engineering and math students to gain hands-on experience in real labs
- Miami University students who chose to spend their spring break serving their community
- Cedarville students who retraced the Civil Rights movement by bus
Through these stories – and more – I hope you’ll consider furthering your education by leaving your desk, stepping outside, and getting things done.
Sincerely,
Sean Creighton
SOCHE Student Research Program
SOCHE offers a unique internship program for undergraduate and graduate students in the fields of engineering, chemistry, physics, mathematics and computer science. Through SOCHE’s Student Research Program students are placed in research internships at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, where they are paid competitive salaries as they work in state-of-the art laboratories.
Projects become available on a year-round basis, so encourage students to submit an application for SOCHE to keep on file.
For more information, contact
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or
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.
Learning Through Service
They could have escaped the Ohio weather during spring break, but a group of Miami University Hamilton (MUH) students decided to stay put to research and serve low-income and impoverished areas of Hamilton during their break.
The 11 students spent time in local homeless shelters, nonprofit agencies, faith-based organizations and businesses to learn about the impact of joblessness and poverty in the area. They met with community leaders to build partnerships and to understand the importance of financial literacy in different socioeconomic classes.
The students began the week with a poverty simulation from 2-5 p.m. Monday, March 8, at Second Harvest Foodbank in Fairfield. The session guided them through understanding life in poverty with different circumstances.
“This is the first time we are offering a spring break trip to work with inspiring community partners who are doing incredible work here in Hamilton,” said Jessica Reading, community placement coordinator, Ohio Campus Compact AmeriCorps VISTA. “As a response to the decline in civic health in the state of Ohio, educating our citizens about the increasing rates in unemployment, joblessness and poverty is increasingly important. The Center for Civic Engagement at Miami Hamilton and local Hamilton community leaders believe the potential to impact our local community is just as important as any other alternative spring break.”
For sophomore organizational leadership and applied sociology major Ashley Hampton, the choice of this spring break was easy. “This is really going to impact my education and goal of being a community or nonprofit leader one day,” Hampton said. “I can’t think of many times I will get the chance to stay in my local community for a week and really immerse myself in the problems of poverty, joblessness and homelessness. We are going to be put face to face with the problems of Hamilton, and get to explore why they are there and how we can help to fix them as a college and a community.”
Seven of the students also will be presenting at IMPACT, a national conference on advocacy, social justice and service March 19-21 in Little Rock, AR. They will share what they learned throughout the STAY-cation, explore issues related to poverty and joblessness in local communities and strategize with others on how younger generations can enter the decade educated and ready to make a positive impact in their communities.
“I really hope to learn how to make a difference by doing this” Hampton added. “But at the very least, (I’ll) connect with the community so in the future I know where to go if I want to truly help.” – muohio.edu
Student Leadership Conference
Save the date for SOCHE’s 2010 Student Leadership Conference, “In Search of Character.”
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Mike Thomson
Friday, April 23, 2010
9:00 am – 2:30pm
Clark State Community College
Springfield, OH
Click here to download SOCHE’s 2010 Leadership Conference Flyer
Summer Internship Search
For many students, the first time that theory translates into practical experience is the internship. Ah, the internship…
It sounds like a step above a summer job. In reality, it can be far less glamorous. But, a good internship can open doors.
As you guide students in their search for summer learning, keep in mind these key details:
- A paid internship doesn’t necessarily equal a good internship. If you can afford to, go where the best experience is – not necessarily the biggest paycheck.
- Get off the computer. Finding a position takes face-time – not just emailing resumes. Attend meetings and volunteer at places where you’ll rub elbows with the people who work in the field you’re studying.
- Interview like it’s a full-time position. The impression you leave will surely outlast the short-term gig. Down the road, that can either help you or hurt you.
- If you hate it, it’s okay. Sometimes the most valuable lesson you can take away from an internship is that a job or career is not a good fit for you after all.
Wittenberg Launches New Website
Wittenberg University recently launched a completely re-designed Web site, which seeks to engage prospective students and members of the Wittenberg community in new and compelling ways. From four home page features that users can scroll through to a dynamic one-stop news source titled “News Around the Hollow” to social media and interactive elements, including a new Alumni Network, Wittenberg’s site offers something for everyone interested in the nationally ranked liberal arts institution. The site was designed entirely in-house by members of Wittenberg’s Office of University Communications.
Civic Engagement Conference
Since the advent of the Morril Act in 1862 that established land grant institutions to contribute agricultural and technical resources to their communities, America colleges and universities have wrestled with how to effectively serve their communities and provide services for public good. Today, university engagement has become more widespread and common practice in higher education. Because universities are anchored in their regions and often have vast resources, talent, expert knowledge, they are being called upon to play an increasingly important role in economic and community development. What are Ohio colleges and universities doing to serve their communities?
SOCHE, Ohio Campus Compact, and The Ohio State University have collaborated to host a conference on April 6 that will share multiple examples of community and economic engagement from across Ohio. In addition to showcasing ongoing work by faculty, students, and administrators, the conference will closely examine the leadership it requires from a college or university to help communities transition.
For more information on the upcoming conference Higher Education’s Leadership in Economic and Community Transition, click here to visit the event summary.
Member News – Cedarville Students Participate in Civil Rights Bus Tour
Earlier this semester, a group of 30 Cedarville students, faculty, and staff traveled south for the University’s annual Civil Rights Bus Tour.
Led by dean of multicultural and special programs Carmille Akande, students traveled through several states over a five-day excursion to retrace the history of the Civil Rights Movement.
Beginning in Atlanta, the group visited the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, which included stops at The King Center, his birthplace, home church and final resting place. They continued on to Alabama with stops in several cities to visit the Rosa Parks Museum, the National Voting Rights Museum and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, finishing up at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee.
“It is one thing to learn about history, but it is entirely different to walk in the footsteps of history,” junior Nate Davidson said. “Marching over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, standing in Kelly Ingram Park and 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, and walking through where Rev. King was assassinated in Memphis – this trip surrounded us in the history and allowed me to understand the Civil Rights Movement in an entirely new way.”
Member News – Central State University Wins National Step Off Competition
Central State University’s chapter of the Phi Alpha fraternity recently won the national Sprite Step Off competition in Atlanta, Georgia. As first place winners, the team won $100,000 in scholarship dollars.
Read the team’s essays about their journey to the National finals and their first place honors on the Sprite Step Off website.
Member News – Urbana University Receives Choose to Read Ohio Grant
The State Library Board recently awarded $59,335 in Choose to Read grants, including almost $10,000 to Urbana University. Choose to Read Ohio (CTRO), a project of the State Library of Ohio and its partners, is a statewide initiative to encourage the reading of Ohio literature across Ohio communities.
Champaign County residents will be invited to read the book trouble don't last by Shelley Pearsall during September – October 2010. trouble don't last features a young Kentucky slave who travels through Ohio on the Underground Railroad in an attempt to reach Canada and freedom.
Urbana University education majors are working this spring to prepare lesson plans that will be shared with area teachers who choose to participate in the project. 
"We hope fifth and sixth graders throughout Champaign County will be introduced to the book next fall and will want to share what they have learned about the Underground Railroad with their parents and families," said Ann Corfman, associate professor of education and CTRO grant co-director.
Area residents will have an opportunity to learn more about the Underground Railroad during fall 2010 at several events that are being planned for the Urbana University campus. All of the events will be free and open to the public.
"As part of the project, we are also trying to take pictures of known Underground Railroad sites in Champaign County," reports Julie McDaniel, Urbana University librarian and CTRO grant co-director. "Our goal is to show area students as well as residents that they see these safe houses in their every day travels."
"Some people in Ohio might take the Underground Railroad for granted," continues McDaniel, "until you see a map of known routes for the railroad. Ohio was heavily traveled by slaves seeking freedom. When you compare the maps of Indiana or Pennsylvania, there were many fewer routes. It is important for us to understand the significant role our area played in this freedom seeking."
Teachers or schools interested in participating in reading trouble don't last, can
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or call 484-1337. Anyone with information about Champaign County Underground Railroad stops is also invited to contact McDaniel.
In this Issue:
Member News – Cedarville Students Participate in Civil Rights Bus Tour
Member News – Central State University Wins National Step Off Competition
Member News – Urbana University Receives Choose to Read Ohio Grant
Benefits of the SOCHE Student Research Program
Career Identification: “Is this what I really want to do?”
On-the-job, career-related experience
Financial Assistance
Flexible, year-round work schedule
Requirements for Employment
Sophomore through Ph.D. student
Degree-seeking student in good academic standing
Ability to work year-round
U.S. citizen
Term-of-the-month
Service Learning: a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities.
Upcoming Events
Higher Education’s Leadership in Community and Economic Transition
April 6, 2010
9:00 am to 3:00 pm
The Ohio State University
Wright State University’s “Quest for Community”
Friday, April 09, 2010
8:00 am to 3:15 pm
Wright State University
updayton’s “Young Creatives Summit”
Friday, April 16, 2010
12:00 pm to 5:30 pm
Dayton Convention Center
Faculty Development Roundtable
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Antioch College
Student Leadership Conference, “In Search of Character”
Friday, April 23, 2010
9:00 am to 2:30 pm
Clark State Community College
Bridging the Four
Generations in Higher Ed
Monday, May 17, 2010
9:00 am to 3:00 pm
Wright State University
Institutional Vulnerability and Strategic Responses in Today’s Marketplace
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
University of Rio Grande
More Stories About Higher Education
Costs for Higher Education Go Higher
(CBS News)
Easier FAFSA Inspires Hope for More College Aid
(US News & World Report)
Big Classes Encourage Experiments in Teaching
(The Chronicle of Higher Education)