BEC Grant Applications Now Being Accepted

Anika Knox, BEC Project Leader

Building Ethical Communities through Service-Learning (BEC) is wrapping up yet another great project year. BEC is sponsored by The School for Ethical Education and the Albert Schweitzer Institute. BEC is a youth leadership and service-learning program for students in Connecticut schools and after-school programs. At its core, the BEC program works to help students create caring and responsible classrooms using the strategy of service learning. During their engagement in the BEC program, students discover shared values, develop ethical reflection and collaborative work skills, and apply these skills during the planning and implementation of a meaningful service-learning project. Twenty-four student teams from around Connecticut participated in BEC during the 2000-2001 academic year.

Service-learning is a teaching strategy that involves students in learning experiences that connect community service projects directly to academic objectives. Research has taught us that service brings meaning to academics for many students. “It gives the student who cannot see the need to learn, a new focus for learning. For students who are eager to learn, service-learning gives them a way to expand their knowledge and develop more fully the talents and skills they already have”¹. The interest in school subjects increases when students see the practical application of school knowledge to real world situations.

BEC begins each project year with a day-long fall workshop. During the workshop, students learn and practice the skills and strategies necessary for planning and implementing a successful service project with a focus on character development. The skills developed during the workshop are key to creating a caring and responsible learning environment that proactively resists the violence, bullying, and intolerance so prevalent in our society.

After the workshop, teams return back to their schools and organizations with the goals of recruiting additional team members and implementing their project. The BEC staff assists with a continued focus on skill development and project implementation with monthly contacts and site visits.

Teams are provided resources and continued learning opportunities which include: materials to aid with integration of service into their existing curriculum, an on-line resource link for students to share their project experiences, and the opportunity for students to present at Connecticut’s Character Education Conference held in the spring. In addition, BEC offers a small grant to each of the participating teams to help with project implementation.

Project year 2000-2001 has been a huge success for both the BEC staff as well as the service teams involved. Projects ranged from the creation of a peer mediation team (New Haven) and a student character committee (Wolcott) to the development of a new student welcome committee (Uncasvile) and a multicultural cookbook with proceeds distributed to a local shelter (Bridgeport). Cloonan Middle School in Stamford developed an intergenerational project between their students and the residents of the geriatric unit of Stamford Hospital. The goal of the project was to create a community between the students and the adults at the residence. With several planning meetings behind them, the day of the first visit arrived. Several students were concerned that they would not know how to act when they met the residents. With a little hesitation, the students began to introduce themselves. Bit by bit the sound of conversation between the students and adult residents could be heard, then a giggle and soon the room resonated with laughter. By the end of the visit the students and the residents were telling jokes and planning the next meeting. One student, who was so nervous in the beginning that she did not even want to walk into the building, was the first to volunteer to help get the residents settled back into their rooms. The students walked out of the building saying, "I can’t wait to come back, I know just what we should do next time."

BEC is entering its 4th year this fall and we invite you to learn more about the program. Applications are being accepted for the 2001-2002 academic year. In addition, The School for Ethical Education is hosting two free information sessions this spring - Wednesday, May 16th and Thursday, May 17th from 4-6pm. Each information session will provide an opportunity to learn more about the BEC program, meet the staff, and ask questions. For information on the BEC program or to reserve a spot at one of the free information sessions, please contact Anika Knox at 203-783-4441 or e-mail at aknox@ethicsed.org.

¹ Dunlap, N.C, Drew, S.F. & Gibson, K. (1994). Serving to Learn: K-8 Manual. Columbia SC: South Carolina Department of Education. Page 10.