20th Annual National Service-Learning Conference Grows Hope, Cultivate Change

PRLog (Press Release) - Mar 16, 2009 -
This week thousands of young leaders, educators, and community leaders from all 50 states and at least 35 countries will convene in Nashville, Tenn., for the 20th Annual National Service- Learning Conference, March 18–21. Unlike most professional conferences, these participants — a third of them young people — will get their hands dirty in Nashville helping with community-based projects. They also will engage in more than 150 workshops and general sessions, as well as a “HopeWalks” event Saturday morning to benefit children affected by HIV and AIDS in Liberia, West Africa.

“We are excited to bring over 2000 service-learning practitioners to Nashville,” says Jim Kielsmeier, the National Youth Leadership Council’s CEO and founder. “This year’s event is especially exciting, as the Obama Administration has a strong interest in national service and its k-12 application: service-learning,”

General session speakers include Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder; James Hildreth, Director of the Center for AIDS Health Disparities Research at Meharry Medical College in Nashville; Peter Benson, President of the Minneapolis-based Search Institute; and Dame Elizabeth Hoodless, Executive Director the United Kingdom’s leading volunteer and training agency Community Service Volunteers.

The conference also features a number of special events, including:
o   Service-Learning World Forum, now in the third year, engages youth as leaders in promoting peace, making environmental change, and championing social justice causes such as HIV/AIDS prevention.
o   Second Annual Teen Driver Safety Summit showcases projects designed by students participating in Project Ignition, a grant program on teen driver safety issues sponsored by State Farm and NYLC. A $10,000 Best of the Best Award will be given for the past year’s competition.  
o   Administrators’ Forum helps school administrators foster service-learning. Paul Houston, former executive director for the Association for School Administrators and president of the Center for Empowered Leadership, will lead the session.
o   Service-Learning Showcase features student-lead projects from 25 states for attendees to gather best practices, ideas, and information.

A number of service-learning projects are underway during the conference, both at the convention center and in the community. The on-site service-learning projects feature a Red Cross Blood Drive, quilt-making, and toiletry-kit assembling. The off-site projects range from planting trees at George Washington Carver Park, to water monitoring at the Shelby Bottoms Nature Center, to using mobile positioning technology to assist the Nashville Homelessness Project track the needs of homeless persons.

A number of online opportunities exist for those unable to participate in-person at the Nashville event. Visit www.nylc.org/conference to learn more about the conference, related events, or to virtually participate.

(Note: Many of the conference speakers are available for on-site or follow-up interviews, which can be arranged through Maddy Wegner, Communications Director 612-619-1577—mobile phone).

About NYLC
NYLC has been at the center of service-leaning programs and policy development since 1983. The organization convenes the Annual National Service-Learning Conference, offers adult and youth trainings, runs model programs, directs service-learning research, and develops service-learning resources.

About Service-Learning
Service-learning is a teaching method that enriches learning by engaging students in meaningful service to their schools and communities by integrating the process with established learning objectives. It emphasizes critical thinking and problem-solving, and tackles real issues, such as alleviation of poverty and hunger, environmental sustainability, and eliminating the educational achievement gap.