SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today announced 35 grantees will receive $1.7 million in funding to support districtwide partnerships and a statewide regional service-learning network through the California Department of Education's CalServe Initiative.  For a list of the grantees, please visit Funding Results: CalServe District Partnership and Funding Results: CalServe Regional Service-Learning Network [Note, the preceding Web addresses are no longer valid.].

Service-learning is an instructional strategy whereby students learn and develop through active participation in thoughtfully organized service that is conducted in and meets the needs of the community. 

"Service-learning makes academic content come alive as students apply their knowledge and skills to real-life situations," said O'Connell. "Students become more engaged in their studies and see that they can make a difference. Taking an active role in addressing community needs fosters responsible citizenship and contributes to character development." 

A recent statewide evaluation reported that 83 percent of students participating in service-learning activities achieved a proficient level or above for the academic content standards being delivered through this instructional method.

CalServe's goal is to make service-learning a regularly used instructional method in California's educational institutions. The program involves more than 130,000 students and about 15,000 community volunteers annually in urban, rural, and suburban communities throughout the state. 

CalServe is supported by a federal grant authorized by the National and Community Service Trust Act signed into law in 1993. This law provides funding for the Corporation for National and Community Service in Washington, D.C. Part of the Corporation called Learn and Serve America is the K-16, or kindergarten through college, branch that operates a federal grants program and provides funds to California's CalServe Initiative.  The program seeks to address community needs in the areas of education, public safety, the environment, health, and human needs, as they learn the content standards.

In this round of funding, grants were made available to local education agencies in California to support the implementation of opportunities for kindergarten through grade twelve students to participate in quality service-learning experiences that deliver the academic content standards as students address real community needs. Applicants were required to demonstrate a commitment to establish a districtwide or multiple district service-learning initiative to advance service-learning within schools and communities. 

Each applicant is required to provide matching funds and partner with at least one public or private nonprofit community-based organization. Applicants are also encouraged to collaborate with parents/families, faith-based organizations, and other members of the local school community to ensure that the service-learning initiative is comprehensive, age appropriate, and sensitive to cultural and community needs and interests. The grantees were selected based on the quality of their plans, ability to comply with the reporting requirements of the grant, and their willingness to participate in state-sponsored evaluations to determine the impact of service-learning on students, schools, and communities

The partnership and collaboration requirements helped the California Department of Education receive the National Network of Partnership School award in October 2006 for the third consecutive year.  For more information, please visit CDE Wins National Partnership Award. 

For more information on the CalServe Initiative, please visit Service-Learning.