Voices of Partnerships within the Critical Service-Learning Framework

Authors

  • Kiesha Warren-Gordon Ball State University Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology
  • Ken Hudson Executive Director Whitely Community Council
  • Frank Scott President Whitely Community Council

Keywords:

autoethnography, critical service-learning, community partnerships, traditional service-learning

Abstract

Over the course of the past three decades, service learning has become a major component in higher education. Heretofore, however, there has been no published research that focuses on the community partner or that assesses the role of the community partner within the community-service-learning (CSL) model. This paper fills that gap by focusing on the community partner relationship as delineated by Mitchell (2008), the community partner’s position in CSL, and the authentic relationships between the community partner, class, and instructor. Specifically, we address the following question: How do community partners articulate their voices within the CSL framework? This paper argues that community partners may articulate their own voices and concerns through the use of autoethnography, as well as through involvement in all stages of the CSL process, including course-planning and subsequent collaborative scholarship.

 

Author Biography

Kiesha Warren-Gordon, Ball State University Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology

Along with serving as a faculty member in the Criminal Justice and Criminology program, Dr. Warren-Gordon is also an affiliated faculty member in both the Gender and Women’s Studies, and Black Studies programs. She teaches a variety of course including; Victimology; Race, Gender, and Crime; and Human Services in Criminal Justice. Her research and scholarship is focused on identifying disparities in communities and working with community members to address those inequalities. In her newly created Human Services in Criminal Justice (CJC 398) course, she and her students are currently working with the Whitely Community Council to identify citizen safety concerns and assisting to implement best practices to engage community members.

When possible, she works to make triangulations of her research, teaching, and service. For example, along with partnering with the Whitely Community Council to identify safety concerns and working to support community engagement, she also serves as a member of the Whitely Community Safety Committee. Her work with aiding communities in identifying critical issues that affect peace and safety within those communities has become an integral part of her teaching, research, and service agendas. Additionally, she is the faculty advisor for the Multicultural Alliance, a criminal justice student organization that conducts community service activities in the Whitely community.

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Published

07/01/2020

Issue

Vol. 12 No. 2 (2020)

Section

Insights, Case Studies, and Applications

License

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