1995 Tom Ehrlich appointed CSU Distinguished University Scholar by Chancellor
Barry Munitz. Dr. Ehrlich led the effort at expanding service learning throughout the system.
Dr. Ehrlich is now a senior scholar at the
Carnegie
Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching where he continues his research and writing
about civic and political engagement.
1997 The Community Service Learning
Strategic Plan was developed and focused
on expanding service learning throughout the system. The plan had two key objectives:
- Engage students at each CSU campus in at least one community service-learning experience
prior to graduation.
- Offer a continuum of community service opportunities at each CSU campus, including a wide
variety of community service-learning experiences, as well as extra-curricular and
co-curricular community service experiences.
1998 On January 28, the Board of Trustees unanimously endorsed the
Cornerstones Report, a systemwide
planning framework that articulates the values, priorities and expectations for the future of
the CSU. The creation of Cornerstones Report preceded the Strategic Plan for Community Service
Learning; however, it was not formally endorsed until 1998. The first principle in the plan
explicitly articulates what a graduate of the University is expected to know, including, "the
ability to value one's own self and the communities of which one is a part, to make moral and
ethical decisions, and to act in a socially responsible manner." This declaration emphasized
the need for service learning and civic education as part of students' educational
experiences.
2000 In March, the Statewide Academic Senate of the California State
University passed a resolution
(AS-2488-00), which urged the
Chancellor and the Board of Trustees to work with the Governor and the Legislature to
"provide the CSU local campuses and their faculties with the infrastructure support
required to provide opportunities for all CSU students who so desire to engage in a broad
spectrum of meaningful service activities within their communities."
2000 Also in March, in parallel to the Academic Senate, the CSU Board of
Trustees passed a landmark resolution
(.pdf) on community service learning:
RESOLVED, By the Trustees of The California State University, that the
chancellor require each CSU president to ensure that all students have opportunities to
participate in community service, service learning (deemed academically appropriate by
faculty), or both; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Board of Trustees, through the chancellor, endorse campus
efforts to make service an expectation, condition, or requirement for the undergraduate
education experience; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the chancellor report to the Board of Trustees, on an annual
basis, CSU's increasing efforts to provide those opportunities to all students.
2000 Governor Gray Davis authorized $2.2 million to support the development
of new service-learning courses and infrastructure across the CSU. Since then, the funding
has continued at the annual level of $1.1 million and is focused on infrastructure
development.
2000-2003 Through AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America, the Office of
Community Service Learning at the CSU Chancellor's Office is awarded $2.4 million to
coordinate the Service Learning for Family
Health AmeriCorps Program. and
Institutionalizing Community Service
Learning in the CSU (Learn and Serve Grant Program 2000-2003).
2000-2005 Supported by funding from the J. Paul Getty Trust, six CSU campuses
(Dominguez Hills, Fullerton, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Northridge, Pomona) participated in the
Linking Service Learning and the Visual
Arts program that greatly expanding programs and opportunities for students in the
arts to participate in service learning.
2001-2003 In partnership with national Campus Compact and California Campus
Compact, OCSL offers Engaged Department
Institutes to 30 academic departments from across the CSU.
2003-2006 The Corporation for National and Community Service/Learn and Serve
America program awarded the CSU a $1.2 million grant
Realizing the Civic Mission of Education
in the CSU, a three-year initiative to support long-term institutionalization of
service learning and civic engagement.
2004 In the 2004-2005 academic year, over 15 percent of the CSU student body,
more than 65,000 students, had the opportunity to participate in service learning.
2005 A landmark study analyzing the social and economic impact of the
California State University on the state of California, the California
State University: Working for California, was released. The study finds that "the
California State University is a national leader in community service and service learning.
The product of individual initiative, campus-based organizations and university policies,
these volunteers help strengthen local communities and improve the livability and
attractiveness of the state" (CSU Impact: Quality of Life)
