Sample Exemplary Projects

CiviConnections projects focus on a wide variety of community issues and academic topics.  All programs, however, combine local historical inquiry and community service-learning.  In addition, programs situate students' efforts within learning about national history and examining government documents.  Here are brief descriptions of some exemplary CiviConnections projects from 2004-2005.

FAMILY VIOLENCE PREVENTION - High school students living in a community with a high incidence of domestic violence took on this issue after one of the teachers at the school was killed.  Students investigated the history of family violence in the local community, then examined state and federal laws surrounding family violence.  Students invited community officials, members of the religious community, women's shelter workers, and survivors of domestic abuse to participate in a legislative hearing-style presentation at the school.  Service activities included partnering with several anti-domestic violence and child welfare agencies to volunteer and carry out supply drives.  Students also produced a video documentary (featured at the celebration), violence prevention posters put up in the school, and a ceramic tile mural commemorating victims of domestic abuse.

HELPING ANIMALS - Fifth graders in a community in which the animal shelter burned down got involved in helping the Humane Society continue their important work.  Students made brochures to educate the community, collected cash donations at the county fair, and purchased supplies for the animals and for an animal clinic with the funds collected.  A community yard sale netted more funds to help with a clinic to spay and neuter pets.  Speakers came to the school to further students' knowledge of animal-related laws.  Students made connections between their service work and both social studies and English, through writing articles and editorials for the local paper.  Thanks to the class' efforts, community members began making donations to the Humane Society and some students and their family members began donating their time at the shelter.

FOCUS HUNGER - After studying local and world hunger, middle school students in a low income community decided to form a partnership with the local food bank.  By the end of the project, students had clocked hundreds of hours of volunteer time after school.  They also raised thousands of dollars and completed a successful food drive that resulted in over 1600 pounds of food being collected.  Students learned letter-writing skills as they reached out to community members to contribute food or funds. 


SERVICE TO SENIORS - A partnership with a veteran's home where local veterans retire to live led to intergenerational enjoyment for elementary, middle and high school students and older citizens of this small Wisconsin community.  Students began by interviewing the veterans to find out what needs they had and activities that would benefit them.  Students investigated the history of early veterans' organizations, related government documents, and the local veteran's home.  After their research, the students prepared posters and plays to present their information to each other and for the residents at the veteran's home.  Service activities involved putting together "we care" packages for the residents, holding an intergenerational dance, singing patriotic songs, and spending an entire day at the veteran's home doing projects with the residents.

COMMUNITY REVITALIZATION - Middle school students focused on improving the image of their declining railroad town.  Research concentrated on the local historical buildings and important time periods in the town's and the railroad's history.  Students planted daffodil bulbs to spell out the name of their town in the spring.  They also cleaned and stacked bricks from a torn down building to create a new patio and helped restore an old bank.  Students took digital photos of their work and produced a PowerPoint presentation.  The local newspaper and TV station featured several stories on the students' service efforts, including a front page article documenting the over 1,500 hours contributed by the middle school students to revitalizing their community.

POI TO THE WORLD - Poi (taro) is a native food in Hawaii, the site of this project conducted by 7th and 8th graders focusing on nutrition.  Studying the history of the health declines of the native Hawaiian people, students learned that they have the worst health in the nation, with an exceptionally high obesity rate. More than ten community partners supported students' efforts to change this situation with advocacy and informational booths at community events, a canned foods drive, and a monetary collection for nutritional meals.  Several students and their teachers were selected to feature this project at the National Service Learning Conference in Long Beach, Califonia in March 2005.