UpDate - Vol. 13, No. 32, Page 9
May 19, 1994
Community Service Project combines study, real life

     A unique two-course program in the Department of Political Science and
International Relations combines academic work with hands-on experience to
teach students about community problems and the agencies that are trying to
address them.
     The Community Service Project, supported by the Office of
International Programs and Special Sessions and Career Planning and
Placement, began in Winter Session with a course taught by Richard Sylves
and Theodore Davis Jr. The spring semester component was taught by Marian
L. Palley, program coordinator.
     The Winter Session course prepared students for the spring semester
experiences by introducing them to community problems and organizations
that are involved in serving populations at risk.
     Robyn Forest, a senior English major from Reston, Va., volunteers at
the Emmaus House. She said her experience is an important addition to her
University education.
     "I think it is important for students at the University to realize we
are a privileged minority," Forest said. "It's like we are living in a
bubble. It would be sad for UD students to live their lives without
realizing there are sad and needy people who don't live our privileged
lives."
     These sentiments are echoed by Russ Huxtable, a junior business and
political science major from Wilmington, who helps at Habitat for Humanity.
     "It is too easy for students to live in isolation from the community
of need around them.
     This course offers a way to get involved and make a difference in the
lives of people who need it," Huxtable added.
     Jesse DeFrees, a sophomore international relations major from Reading,
Pa., who volunteers at the Big Brothers and Big Sisters, noted that the
community service work offers both career and personal enrichment.
     "The first thing that some might think is career enhancement," she
said, "but it (community service) broadens your perspective as a person and
makes you grow."
     This program makes a difference for the students and community. As
Rebecca Felix, a senior biology major from Baltimore who volunteers at
Newark Manor Nursing Home, said, "Interacting with them (the elderly) has
made me realize I can relate to them so much better than before," Felix
said. "It makes you realize that you will some day be old and you can still
be alive and enjoy life. It has made me learn a lot about myself."
     The students enrolled in the course were from a wide range of majors,
and most had prior community service experience.
     The sentiment of Nicole Chupka, a junior sociology and political
science major from Wilmington, who volunteers at Habitat for Humanity,
echoed the attitudes of the other student volunteers, "We are making a big
difference!"
     The Community Service Project will be offered again next Winter
Session and spring semester.
     For information, call Palley at 831-2355.
                                                  -Michael Hail