As a partner in the community, FGCU makes service an important part of its mission. Students are brought into this partnership through EaglesConnect, the service-learning program. Service-learning activities provide structured learning experiences in community settings and are designed to meet community needs, to fulfill specific undergraduate learning goals and outcomes, and reinforce and enhance classroom learning. The ultimate goal of EaglesConnect is to involve students in their communities in ways that encourage lifelong commitments to civic engagement.
Service-learning is an undergraduate degree requirement at FGCU. A student entering FGCU as a freshman or a sophomore must complete a total of 80 approved service-learning hours prior to graduation. A student transferring to FGCU as a junior or senior must complete 40 hours before graduation. Many hours may be gained through taking service-courses as part of students' course load.
Students are responsible for seeking prior approval for their service-learning experiences from the Center for Civic Engagement. This office develops service sites, provides the forms necessary to verify service- learning hours, and ensures service-learning hours are documented. The Center for Civic Engagement is located in suite 458 on the fourth floor of the library.
Nearly 200 agencies and organizations list service-learning opportunities with the Center for Civic Engagement. The EaglesConnect web site (www.fgcu.edu/connect/) includes a database of service sites, a service-learning handbook, a listing of upcoming group service-learning projects, a service-learning newsletter, and other valuable service-learning information.
EaglesConnect staff and FGCU faculty members help students design learning experiences to meet their needs and interests. Service-learning experiences are structured to meet community needs, and, equally important, these activities are planned to provide learning experiences. Service-learning activities help students learn new skills, explore career options, and develop an understanding of their communities and the ways they can effect change in them based on empathy and respect for others.
Circle of Friends: Community Tutoring Partnerships is a Center for Civic Engagement program that places trained tutors in selected elementary schools; students fulfill service-learning hours by tutoring. Students eligible for federal work-study funds may elect to be paid for tutoring rather than receive service-learning hours.
