Service Learning

CCA's Service Learning Program provides hands on experience in learning about one's community and exploring community services. The project is offered in collaboration with the Syracuse City School District to 7th grade students attending Syracuse's Alternative Schools. The program also promotes a commitment to education and service learning.

"Community service is a powerful tool for youth development," one that transforms youth from a cause of problems to a "source of solutions," reports the Alliance for Service Learning. Service Learning demonstrates that at-risk youth are also a positive force for community improvement.

CCA community service activities and projects vary in type and duration. Some are school-based and others located in community agencies throughout the Syracuse area. Projects involve individual as well as group assignments; some may last a semester, while others are task and time-limited. Youth work with the elderly, assist in recreational programs, work at food banks, help beautify their neighborhoods, and provide a school newspaper. Through their experiences, they demonstrate their value to themselves and to our communities.

Besides actual community service, youth participate in classroom learning experiences which draw upon their volunteer activities. Uniting education with community work experience is expected to increase the student's interest in and commitment to school and offer a way for youth to transition into the world of work.