Ruth's Service Leaning Blog Entry 2 Spring 2012

As an educated, privileged citizen in our society, what is your role in creating a society rooted in equality and justice?  Do you feel you have a responsibility and why or why not?
As an educated privileged citizen my role in creating equality and justice is to be involved in my community at both the local and national level.  The key is to be able to make changes, be involved, and set an example.  Through service learning hours, I have been able to give back to my community, not just volunteering but being able to help whether it is managing a project or researching a problem area for a non-profit organization.  Helping others succeed especially those less fortunate, has been a rewarding outcome from my service learning experience.  Following the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm (2011) is to be able to move from understanding in the learning process to action and commitment.  Action and commitment means taking an opportunity and creating changes for diverse populations.  Service learning creates an environment for reflection on our own personal beliefs and values stimulating personal growth.  I feel it is my responsibility to help create an environment of equality and justice for others, by giving of my time, talent and service to others.   As referenced from Zaccagnini and White (2011), the DNP plays an important role in today’s healthcare environment by advocating for equal access for all populations.                        

What have you learned about yourself and what are your future plans?

I have grown through the opportunities provided through service learning hours.  Learning through others, reflection, and personal growth are attributes obtained through my service learning hours.  I have formed a connection with my community again.  Now that I am almost finished with the DNP program, I will have time to reach out to other non-profit organizations that need help designing and setting up a program or just serving on a board of directors.  I have also learned that no matter how busy I am, I can always find time to make a commitment and give back to others.  Critical reflection also played an important role in service learning hours.  Critical reflection provided the means to examine and improve on the learning experience.  The service learning experience sets Regis University apart from other DNP programs, in other words, service to others.  

Thanks to everyone for this wonderful experience!  See you at graduation!     

Ruth

Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm from http://www.loyolajesuiut.org/IPP.htm

Zaccagnini, M. E., & White, K. W. (2011). The doctor of nursing practice essentials: A new model for advanced practice nursing. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett.  

Week 8 New Service Learning Site 2012

What are you currently doing with this organization and how do you see it evolving as you sustain your commitment to them?

The question I will address is can a 9 Health Fair provide the community with a quality successful Health Fair, meeting the needs of those less fortunate who do not have healthcare benefits or services available to them?  The Service Learning I am doing this semester is helping to organize a 9 Health Fair.  A 9 Health Fair provides free screenings to the public, including PAPs, breast exams, prostate exams, and blood pressure checks.  The public can also choose to pay a minimal fee for a chemistry profile.  With today’s economy and the cost of healthcare, the 9 Health Fair plays a key role in providing health screenings for those who cannot afford to pay for the services.  Location for the Health Fair is off a main street which has bus service.  An anticipated number for the Fair is approximately 300 people which will run from 7 a.m. until 12 p.m.  A nurse practitioner owned and operated clinic is the facility where the Fair will be held.  All providers and staff are donated hours.  Recently, I spent time with the practitioner at her clinic, conceptualizing and diagraming the layout of each screening station.  Next, we put together the beginning of a volunteer list.  I will reach out to other healthcare professionals to elicit help for the day of the 9 Health Fair.  A training will occur two days before the Fair, which I will help design and present.  There are many tasks requiring time before the Health Fair.  I will be canvasing the businesses in the area for food and snacks for the public and the volunteers.  Not only is the time volunteered but so is the food and other services provided.  The project plan is quickly evolving.

What do you envision being the shortcomings and strength of your service learning commitment? 

One of the shortcomings is not having enough time.  I want to be able to help make the 9 Health Fair at the clinical site a great success and that takes time.  Time is of an essence presently especially with trying to complete my capstone project.  Thank goodness for the computer and e-mail, this is a great way to communicate with others, especially trying to recruit volunteers.  Having enough volunteers could feasibly be a shortcoming, since traffic will need to be directed besides making sure all goes well on the day of the Health Fair.  The different schools of nursing have committed students which will be a wonderful learning experience for the students.  Strengths of the service learning are the healthcare service provided to the community.  According to Ash and Clayton (2009), civil learning and personal growth are both applied learning pedagogies.  The clinic site is off a major bus line making the site accessible to many.  The many volunteers coming forward, the community help, and the businesses in the area is an excellent example of collaboration.   

Ash, S. L, & Clayton, P. H. (2009). Generating, deepening, and documenting learning: The power of critical reflection in applied learning. Journal of Applied Learning in Higher Education, 1, 25-48.                    

Second Entry

I have continued to do my Service Learning at Seeds of Hope.  The organization continues to give scholarships to children, enabling them to attend a Catholic school, which they would not otherwise be able to attend. 

The best thing that happened during my service hours at the organization Seeds of Hope, was the great success of the fund raiser entitled Party Peeps and Poker.  I recently received an e-mail stating that we raised over $50,000 for the event, which will provide so many scholarships and improvements for the six Catholic schools in urban neighborhoods.  This event was sponsored and attended by the young philanthropists of the community.  It was invigorating to see these young adults support and give so generously to this great organization.

The worst thing that happened this semester is that I would like to give many more service hours to this organization.  There are opportunities, but presently my time is limited.  Once I have completed my DNP I hope to be able to volunteer hours to tutor students who attend one of the six Catholic schools.  I have been impressed with the leadership of the organization, who make each individual who gives their time to the organization, feel like appreciated. 

The most challenging thing has been opening my busy calendar to find time to give to the organization.  The different events that help support Seeds of Hope take a lot of time to organize and plan.  Thankfully, the organization's leadership team is young and energetic and are great role models for the organization.  The development manager is a ball of energy and is a great people person.

As an individual and a professional, what I can do differently for Seeds of Hope is to be more generous with my time.  I do not want to discontinue my service to this organization once I finish my DNP.  As a matter of fact, I hope that I will be able to give more time.  I have met some wonderful and generous people through the organization.  It is so heartwarming to see the smiles on the faces of children from these schools when they are asked to sing or speak at one of the fundraising events. The next event is a golf tournament the end of August and then a big formal event in November.  I have recruited friends to help support and give time to the organization.   The organization depends on caring and generous people to make Seeds of Hope thrive.  I look forward to continuing my service learning journey with Seeds of Hope.

Ruth             

Sevice Learning Second Semester

I have decided to continue doing my service hours at the same non-profit organization that I was at my first semester.  The organization is Seeds of Hope.  It seems like there is activity going on all the time within the organization, and it is not difficult to get my hours in.  In fact, the organization would have more hours to give me if I had the time.  With school finished for the summer the opportunity to tutor children is not an option but there are other activities going on. 

On June 10, 2011, I participated in helping to make one of the Seeds of Hope fundraisers a success.  The event was the 7th annual Young Philanthropists' fundraising event, "Party Peeps & Poker."  It was a great event and it was enlightening to see young adults, 20 and 30 year-old support a wonderful organization.  The money raised supplies scholarships and financial support to the Catholic inner-city schools in Denver.  Organization is one of my strong points, and works well to help support the Seeds of Hope organization.  I was able to help with the organization of the event and participate with more organization during the event.  The night was filled with music, food, drinks, poker, and a silent auction.  It was heartwarming to see the many volunteers and young adults who came out for the event. So many people are so generous.  One of the highlights of the event, was a young artist who did a painting of the skyline of Denver during the activities of the event, culminating with the painting being auctioned off.  The event was a great success, with much generosity shown.  I am looking forward to giving more hours of service to this wonderful organization.          

  

Service Learning Blog 2 - Week 15

Are people you came in contact with through this experience having some needs met through the community activities?
I volunteered at a fund raising event for Seeds of Hope on April 7th.  The event was the Hope Springs Eternal luncheon.  This is one of the events to support the six Schools in Urban Neighborhoods (S.U.N. schools). The event was a busy, but also rewarding.  I heard that the event was a success with raising over $10,000 for the schools.  Archbishop Chaput attended the event and was on of the speakers.  I will be volunteering for their next event, which is Party,Peeps, & Poker on June 10th. The non-profit is always in need of volunteers. 
Are community activities like these necessary and/or sufficient to fulfill these community and individual needs? Definitely, these fund raisers are necessary to provide assistance to these Catholic inner-city schools.  Many children would not be able to attend a Catholic school without the help from Seeds of Hope.  Seeds of Hope helps economically disadvantaged students in the inner-city with tuition assistance to attend Catholic Archdiocesan schools.  Children of all faiths can attend these schools. 
Do you see other means to do so?
Yes, there is the opportunity to be a tutor in the schools.  I hope to be able to do this once I finish the DNP program. 
What was the best/worst/most challenging thing that happened this semester?
The best thing was when one of the waiters at the Hope Springs Eternal came up to me after the event, as he was clearing the tables, and said thank-you, my daughter is able to attend one of the S.U.N. catholic schools because of this program.  That is all I needed to hear, to know that this is a wonderful non-profit to volunteer for.  I cannot think of a worst thing because the experience has been rewarding.  Probably the most challenging thing was when everyone was checking out and collecting their silent auction purchases after the event, and being able to coordinate runners, get the correct purchases to the guest, and keep everyone happy. 
What have you learned about yourself?
I have learned that I need to continue to volunteer, and give back to my community, even if I feel like I do not have the time.  The smiles I saw on the children's faces that attended the event from some of the schools was heart warming to know that Seeds of Hope does a tremendous service for our community and our children.  I also learned that I love to use my organizational skills to help an event be successful. 
What are your future service learning plans?
I plan on continuing to volunteer for Seeds of Hope, and will be helping with the Party, Peeps, & Poker event in June.  After completing the DNP program, I plan to spend time tutoring at one of the S.U.N. schools. 

Ruth         

Service Learning Blog Entry 1

I have now spent four hours doing my Service Learning Practice.  The Seeds of Hope Charitable Trust is the organization I have chosen to work with.  The Seeds of Hope Charitable Trust was established in 1996.  The mission of Seeds of Hope is to make a Catholic education available to economically disadvantaged children.  Seeds of Hope supports Catholic elementary and high schools serving a low-income, high minority population in the inner-city of Denver.  Tuition assisted grants, scholarships, vouchers, operating support, and grants for programs and technology are ways in which Seeds of Hope support these schools.  The organization is in alliance with the Archdiocese of Denver and concerned business and community leaders.  The primary focus is the the Six Schools in Urban Neighborhoods (S.U.N. schools).  The S.U.N. schools are located in areas that are impacted by poverty and violence and the households are predominantly single-parents.  The Seeds of Hope also serve seven other Focus Schools.  The funding for Seeds of Hope is through a number of individual donors, foundations, corporations and family foundations.  91% of every dollar donated to Seeds of Hope goes directly to programs.

The reason I chose this charitable organization was because I believe all children should have an opportunity for a quality education. I feel that an education is the building blocks to the success of our children's future. I am the product of a Catholic education and so is my son.  Education was a priority supported by my parents growing up.  My parents worked hard to send all eight of their children to a Catholic elementary and high school.  I have passed that passion on to my son.  Catholic elementary schools in the Archdiocese of Denver have a 97% graduation rate.  If I can help increase this percent by supporting this organization, I will do what I can to help.

Currently my volunteer hours have been helping to support a fundraising event that will take place in April.  The first contact with the organization was an orientation to the Seeds of Hope Charitable Trust.  An orientation is the first step to the volunteer process.  I have spent a total of four hours of volunteer work.  The fundraising event has required over 1,200 invitations to be sent out.  I have helped with the envelope stuffing and will be helping to gather donated silent auction items for the event and putting together gift baskets for the silent auction. I plan on volunteering at the event in April. There are many opportunities to contribute volunteer hours to this organization.  The organization has multiple fund raising events throughout the year.  There is also the opportunity to tutor students at the schools and volunteer time to help the school nurses.  My plans are to continue with the fundraising and eventually start to tutor children.