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LEARNING IN DEED NATIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT
THE W.K. KELLOGG FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES MAJOR INITIATIVE TO IMPROVE COMMUNITIES AND TEACH THE VALUE OF CIVIC PARTICIPATION BATTLE CREEK, Michigan – May 12, 1999 – The W.K. Kellogg Foundation today announced Learning In Deed: Making a Difference Through Service-Learning, a four-year, $13 million national initiative to broaden the use of service experiences linked to daily classroom instruction – known as service-learning – in school districts across America. The purpose of the Initiative is to improve communities and teach youth the value of civic participation. The Kellogg Foundation believes that meaningful service to the community combined with curriculum-based learning builds stronger academic skills, encourages lifelong civic commitment, and improves workplace and personal development skills among youth. Working with teachers, administrators, community leaders, parents, students, policymakers and national leaders, the Kellogg Foundation aims to make service-learning a common teaching practice across America. “By tapping into the capabilities and contributions young people have to offer, we are building leaders for today and tomorrow,” said Christine M. Kwak, Kellogg Foundation program director for Learning In Deed. “We already know that service-learning experiences help young people in a variety of ways. As citizens, it gives them an increased sense of civic responsibility and a commitment to community involvement. As students, it helps improve school performance and academic engagement. And as individuals, it reduces their involvement in risky behavior, improves their self-confidence, and gives them real-world experiences and a passion to make a difference for others.” A major part of this Initiative is a five-state demonstration project aimed at improving the quality and depth of service-learning practice in K-12 schools nationwide. California, Maine, Minnesota, Oregon and South Carolina will receive grants from the Kellogg Foundation, administered by the Education Commission of the States (ECS), to identify practices and policies that are most effective at fostering service-learning. This Initiative will encourage states across the country to learn from the work of the five states so they, too, can combine classroom studies with service to the community. “At a time when so many people in our country have so little faith in civic institutions – from school boards, to the City Council, to Congress – we need to actively help our young people see the importance of getting involved in their communities,” says Frank Newman, president, ECS. “What better way to do this than to promote quality service-learning opportunities? Service-learning not only encourages civic participation, it also strengthens academic learning for students because it is tied to the real world.” The Kellogg Foundation is forming a national commission that will communicate the value of service-learning, promote standards of quality, and encourage organizational and financial investment in the expansion of service-learning opportunities. In addition, Learning In Deed will bring together like-minded organizations to share information and to build a broader constituency for service-learning. The Initiative also supports a K-12 service-learning research network, providing opportunities for researchers to meet, share information and participate in conversations about best practices in the field. * * * The Education Commission of the States is a national, nonprofit organization that helps governors, legislators, state education officials and others identify, develop and implement policies to improve student learning at all levels. A bipartisan organization, ECS was formed in 1965, and is located in Denver, Colorado. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation was established in 1930 “to help people help themselves through the practical application of knowledge and resources to improve their quality of life and that of future generations.” The Foundation’s activities focus on a vision of a world in which each person has a sense of worth; accepts responsibility for self, family, community and societal well-being; and has the capacity to be productive and to help create nurturing families, responsive institutions and healthy communities. Foundation grants focus on health; food systems and rural development; youth and education/higher education; and philanthropy and volunteerism, as well as on the cross-cutting themes of leadership, information systems/technology, capitalizing on diversity, and social and economic community development. Grants have been made in the United States, Latin America, the Caribbean and southern Africa. For more information about Learning In Deed, call 202-778-1040. ### |