Community Service
Community service connected with academic course work is an important component of the liberal arts education at UNC Asheville. Known as service-learning, these significant volunteer activities are designed to give students a broader perspective on life and learning. The Key Center for Community Citizenship and Service-Learning, located in Highsmith University Union, matches students with meaningful volunteer opportunities in the Asheville and Buncombe
County area. The Key Center seeks to engage students with the community by encouraging them to reflect on what they learn through service and to draw connections between what they learn in the community and what they learn in the classroom.
Projects range from a few hours to short-term projects lasting a few days or weeks as well as long-term internships with local service organizations and schools. Students volunteer at more than 100 area agencies and schools doing work such as:
- Tutoring basic skills such as reading and math in local schools
- Serving as mentors to at-risk youth
- Working on environmental projects
- Helping women and children who are victims of domestic violence
- Teaching English as a second language
- Helping local food banks and shelters for the homeless
- Working with children and adults with disabilities
The Key Center advances civic engagement and service learning in the following projects:
- Active Citizens Together in Asheville Day (ACT in Asheville Day). At the beginning of fall semester, new freshmen roll up their sleeves and get to work on much-needed projects in the city, from helping out at roadside cleanups to painting at a homeless shelter. The fall 2007 partnership with Asheville Housing Authority will see students installing energy efficient light bulbs and making other improvements to the quality of life for citizens in public housing.
- Mentoring through the I Have A Dream Foundation at Pisgah View Homes
- Tutoring at homework clubs in public housing
- Participating in Hurricane Katrina recovery work, including Habitat for Humanity's collegiate challenge
- Martin Luther King Jr. Service Summit in Atlanta
As a member of North Carolina Campus Compact, UNC Asheville has taken a crucial step toward the goal of becoming a fully engaged campus. Membership allows students to obtain placements through NC-ACTS!, which requires a commitment of 300 hours of public/community service over the academic year for a $1,000 educational award.
More Information
Key Center for Community Citizenship and Service Learning
200 Highsmith University Union
UNC Asheville
One University Heights
Asheville, NC 28804-8501
828.251.6583