2021 | Volume 15

Community-Engaged Learning at Michigan State University

The Center for Community Engaged Learning supports university faculty and academic staff across all colleges and majors as they partner with communities to create community-engaged learning (CEL) experiences for students as a part of academic coursework or beyond-the-classroom experiences.

Student volunteer paints trim on a building.

Skills Gained

Many students who participated in CEL reported that they:

  • Improved their critical thinking about issues.
  • Learned about cultures different from their own.
  • Improved their understanding of how communities and/or cities function.
  • Critically reflected on their own values and biases.
  • Improved their problem-solving skills.
  • Improved their written and verbal communication.

Total Registrations for Academic and Beyond-the-Classroom CEL

2018-2019

32,348

2019-2020

36,933

Academic Community-Engaged Learning

Academic community-engaged learning experiences are for students as a part of academic coursework. Community-engaged learning strategies in the classroom range from direct service to advocacy to social innovation to philanthropy and more.

Academic CEL Registrations:

2018-2019

14,088

2019-2020

14,297

Number of community partners who worked with Academic CEL staff:

2018-2019

46

2019-2020

45

 

Placements focused on:

  • Community administration
  • Community nutrition
  • Education
  • Health and wellness
  • Human services
  • Pre-school and day care
  • Recreation leadership
  • Seniors
  • Hospitals
  • Youth mentoring

Beyond-the-Classroom Experiences

Beyond-the-Classroom experiences are co-curricular opportunities that are not tied to specific academic coursework, but simply reflect the student's personal goals or desire to give back to their communities.

Beyond-the-Classroom Registrations:

2018-2019

18,260

2019-2020

22,636

School bus ready to be loaded with bags of donated school supplies.

Day of Service Hours

2018-2019

5,620

(1,124 participants)

2019-2020

7,385

(1,477 participants)

Sponsors who helped break down barriers to CEL with transportation assistance

Generous financial assistance from Michigan State University Federal Credit Union allowed CCEL to employ eight driver ambassadors, coordinate two shuttle vans, and register 249 (2018-2019) and 205 (2019-2020) student riders.

Generous financial assistance from Capital Area Transportation Authority enabled CCEL to distribute over 5,000 CATA bus tokens to student volunteers each academic year.

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