First-Year Civic Engagement: Sound Foundations for College ...

opportunities of CSU students and Colorado’s at-risk secondarystudents while simultaneously advancing university strategic goalsin the areas of outreach, diversity, and curricular innovation.The Key Service Community also works in partnership withthe UCAN Serve AmeriCorps Education Award Program tooffer student participants service scholarship awards that can beapplied to school loans or to finance undergraduate and graduateschool or vocational training.AssessmentThe experiences of first-year students in the Key ServiceCommunity are assessed in relation to impacts on retention,GPA, enhanced academic learning, appreciation for diversity,leadership and civic engagement. These assessments are donequantitatively through self-report questionnaires as well asqualitatively through focus group interviews and rubrics appliedto students’ academic work (see Supplementary Materials Linkto assessment instruments).Selective Summary of Preliminary Outcomes - Fall 2005Mid-year Assessment: the general freshman population by a modest amount. with their decision to participate in the program.Summary of Civic Engagement Experiences their volunteer work service project was adequate their communitySummary of Academic Experiences help on campus classroom material Conferences helped them achieve their academic goals (51% wereneutral) (only 4% disagreed)Summary of Cultural/Diversity Experiences experiential learning opportunity cross-cultural learning standingof people different from them because of theirexperience in Key welcoming of people of their background and culture for different culturesStudent Self-Evaluations of Academic Service-LearningCourse – Spring 2006 them to apply skills and concepts discussed in class enhanced their understanding of course material them to improve their problem-solving skills deepened their interest in the subject material of the courseSupplemental Materialswww.key.casa.colostate.edu/serviceI. Contributors’ Names and Contact InformationMain contact for the submission:Michelle WellmanCoordinator, Key Service CommunityColorado State University100A Aylesworth Hall1032 Campus DeliveryFort Collins, CO 80523-1032Phone: 970-491-2243Fax: 970-491-1133Email: michelle.wellman@colostate.eduCo-Applicant:Clayton A. Hurd, Ph.D.Associate Director–Service-LearningOffice of Student Leadership and Civic EngagementLory Student Center, Rm. 195Colorado State UniversityFort Collins, CO 80523Phone: 970-491-5755Email: clayton.hurd@colostate.eduII. Institutional Descriptiona. Colorado State University, Fort Collins, COb. Public, land-grant institutionc. Carnegie Doctoral/Research University-Extensived. Residentiale. 18,801 full-time equivalent undergraduate students and4,093 first-year (non-transfer) studentsf. Ten resident halls with the capacity for 4,800 students718 apartment units for students with families190 apartments for older or graduate studentsAll incoming first-year non-transfer students are expected tolive in one of the 10 resident halls.