Service Learning on the U.S./Mexico Border

This two-credit course offers Heidelberg students a unique opportunity to serve one of the neediest communities in the United States by providing a week-long summer enrichment program for its children. Before traveling to the border in June, the class meets once a week throughout the Spring semester to study the social and economic challenges faced by residents of the colonias (slums) of South Texas and to prepare activities – crafts, music, songs and games – to do with the children of the community during our stay there. Each day on the border, we spend two hours working with the younger children in the morning, and two hours with the teens in the afternoon. Our hosts for this experience are the women of Project ARISE, a grass-roots community organization.

ARISE began in 1987, when Sister Gerrie Naughton of the Sisters of Mercy began riding her bicycle through the South Texas colonia of Las Milpas, knocking on the doors of immigrant families to ask about the most pressing needs in that community. She began collaborating with the women of Las Milpas to develop sustainable grass-roots programs to meet those needs. Today, ARISE has community centers in five colonias along the U.S/Mexico border in South Texas, and through these centers the women provide many valuable services to their neighbors. For example, ARISE offers classes in "active parenting" and driver's license exam preparation, a diabetes support group, English classes, transportation for medical appointments and a summer enrichment program for the children of each colonia.

The ideal student for this trip ...

... loves children and has lots of patience for extremely hot, humid and non-luxurious conditions. (No whiners, please!) The ideal candidate for this trip also has an open mind to new experiences and to people who have had very different life experiences than yours. Because we will be in an immigrant (mostly Mexican) community, some knowledge of Spanish is a definite plus.

A special note for Honors students, Education students and others:

In addition to satisfying the "Other Cultures" General Education requirement, this course may be substituted for HNR 307 to fulfill the service learning requirement for the Honors Program; it also may be used as an alternative diversity experience to Education Camp.

Questions?

Please contact Prof. Cindy Lepeley at (419) 448-2037.