The office of Community-Based Learning is dedicated to supporting teaching strategies that utilize service-learning, community involvement, and real-world learning opportunities to encourage civic engagement in our students in addition to improving our community as a whole. If you’re interested in creating a project for students that benefits local nonprofits and the populations they serve, you might consider applying for the Community-Based Learning (CBL) Mini Grant.
The CBL Mini Grants are designed to support any additional costs incurred by your community-engaged project. This could include, but is not limited to: supplies, guest speakers, transportation, or refreshments (Covid permitting). We are prepared to give up to $500 per course; the number of courses we can fund is dependent upon the availability of funds. Full-time and part-time faculty are welcome to apply.
Last year, Denise Filley received a CBL Mini Grant along with Marilyn Senter and Tina Pulley. In Filley’s Applied Psychology class, students learn about Maslow’s hierarchy and address the needs of the individual. They also learn how knowing these needs and then working to reach outside oneself into society grows oneself and allows one to make an extraordinary difference. Filley created a hands-on project for students to experience this principle. Students made fleece blankets for disaster victims at Heart to Heart International and assembled hygiene kits for domestic violence survivors at Safehome. Grant funds were used to purchase supplies for these projects.
The deadline for applications is May 19, 2021 for projects implemented in the fall 2021 semester. Applications will be evaluated by the Community-Based Learning advisory committee. If you have any questions, please reach out to Tara Karaim at tkaraim@jccc.edu.