July 2006
Bubel-Aiken Foundation Funds Inclusive Service-Learning Project at ICIAll youth have the need to belong, be valued, and feel that they can make a positive impact on their world. For children and youth with disabilities it’s especially important to have opportunities to give back to their communities and build friendships with peers. A new ICI project, the Inclusive Service-Learning Project, combines service-learning and social inclusion in curricula that will bring together young people with and without disabilities for service-learning activities that benefit their communities.
The project, which began July 1, is developing inclusive service-learning curricula for elementary, middle, and high school levels that will be pilot-tested at target schools in Minnesota, Iowa, Los Angeles, and Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, as well as in after-school programs run by the YMCA in New York City. “Some schools and youth-serving organizations have inclusion programs, and service-learning programs are becoming more prevalent, but rarely are the two combined well,” explains project director Brian Abery. “This project will get those programs working together. Through participating alongside each other in planning and carrying out service-learning projects, young people with and without disabilities will have the opportunity to develop friendships and to appreciate what each brings to the effort. This also provides a chance for children and youth with disabilities to help their communities work on real-life problems and to be valued for their contributions to the solutions.”
With first-year funding of $82,000 from the Bubel-Aiken Foundation, the project is developing the initial lessons in the curricula, which combine classroom-based instruction with opportunities to engage in service-learning activities in the community. Special and general education teachers in the target school districts and YMCA staff will be trained to implement the curricula as the first lessons are pilot-tested. “Our hope is that ultimately we’ll have the opportunity to offer complete curricula packages to schools and youth organizations nationwide,” says Brian. “We’re excited about working with the Bubel-Aiken Foundation on this ground-breaking project, and about the interest that State Farm Insurance Foundation has shown in collaborating in the future stages of development.”
The Bubel-Aiken Foundation, established in 2003 by singer Clay Aiken, works to “bridge the gap that exists between young people with developmental disabilities and the world around them.” This is ICI’s first project with the foundation, and it is funded by a grant from the Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education, to the foundation, with which ICI contracts. The project team includes Pam Stenhjem and Julia Washenberger , ICI; Terri Vandercook, University of St. Thomas; Jo Montie, consultant; Barbara Wheeler, University of Southern California UCEDD; Emily Iland, California coordinator for the Yes I Can Social Inclusion Program developed at ICI; and Kristy Barnes and Linda McMaster from the foundation. For further information about the project, contact Brian at
abery001@umn.edu or (612) 625-5592.
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