Jayhawks Flock To The Polls!

The CSL in a Nutshell

Your Monthly Updates from the KU Center for Service Learning

Civic Engagement: Make Sure to Vote!

November 3rd, 2020 is Election Day! To vote in any election, you need to be registered to vote.

Since voting laws vary across states, it can become very confusing. However, there are some great ways to find out about how and where to vote! This year, experts are expecting higher than average voter turnout and with the COVID-19 pandemic, election results reporting may take longer than expected.

The CSL has great resources about voting, and other ways you can stay engaged after the election. No matter the outcome, this election season has been difficult and we know that some may need some time and resources to process what is happening. If you do need any help here are some links to some campus and community resources available to you!

Visit our website for resources on how

you can learn about how you can be an impact voter!

October Student Spotlight:

Logan Stenseng

This month our student spotlight is Logan Stenseng! Logan is the Student Senate Officer for Government Relations and a CSL Civic Engagement Ambassador. This year, he and his team have worked to integrate voting and civic engagement into every part of KU.

Student Senate has made elections a priority this year. Student Senate's goal is to make civic engagement institutionalized at every level of the University so that KU and its student body is always to be involved as possible. On October 7, Logan was featured in the Chancellor’s Weekly Update and discussed the importance of voting and political engagement leading up to the election.

If you would like more information or have any questions, email Logan at senategovrel@ku.edu.

Upcoming Opportunity:

Kansas Service + Civic Engagement Conference

Registration and proposal application now open for the Kansas Service + Civic Engagement Virtual Conference, hosted by Johnson County Community College from November 10-12, 2020.

November 10

12pm: Opening remarks from keynote speaker Dr. Tiffany Anderson,

November 11

2-4pm: Live student presentations

November 12

12-1pm: Faculty and staff meeting
1-2pm: Now What: Student Hangout

Find more details about registration, and our agenda on the conference page! Questions about the conference?

Let us know at csl@ku.edu.

October Service Spotlight:

Alternative Breaks!

Alternative Breaks provides immersive volunteer experiences that educate students and foster a life-long commitment to service. This year, we are proud to announce our hybrid virtual Alternative Breaks! Our coordinators have worked hard to provide students with a variety of service opportunities to address the changing needs of nonprofit organizations in the midst of a pandemic. For the first time ever, we will be providing students with virtual service opportunities. We hope that this digital format will make service more accessible than ever.

For those willing and able, we are also offering in-person; volunteer opportunities in the Lawrence and the surrounding communities. Service areas include environmental activism, education, disaster relief, and public health in the form of COVID-19 response.

Participants in Alternative Winter Breaks can also register for UNIV 492: Alternative Breaks to earn course credit for the experience.

The course content of UNIV 492 begins with the premise that community service is a valuable response to the social problems that we face in today's society and that understanding of self, knowledge of social issues, and commitment to service are essential for effective engagement in communities. For more information about UNIV 492, visit csl.ku.edu/credit-courses.

Alternative Winter Break Applications are open from October 26th to November 6th.

To complete an application and find more information about our non-profit partners, visit kuab.org or contact kualbreaks@gmail.com.

We can’t wait to volunteer with you!

Service Opportunity Spotlight:

Community Service Advocates

In order to make service opportunities as impactful and widely available as possible on our campus, it is important that we in the KU service community communicate, network, and collaborate on our common efforts.

The Center for Service Learning is reaching out to organizations and students who are actively involved in service to attend our first Community Service Advocates meeting. The mission of this collaborative is to help provide our KU service community intentional space to connect around overlapping initiatives, events, and programs. We hope this to be a resource to you and your organization, to better be able to promote, partner, and build on the good work that we all are doing.

The first meeting will be held virtually on Microsoft Teams on Thursday November 12th at 7:15pm! To join, RSVP here.

If you would like more information about how to get involved,

email wchaney@ku.edu.

Upcoming Opportunity:

CSL Awards!

The Center for Service Learning is asking you to help us with our annual awards for faculty, staff, students, and community partners. We would love for you to help us recognize someone for their contribution to our service community.

We will be accepting nominations until December 18th.

To nominate someone for a CSL award, please click this link and complete the online submission form below.

Self-nominations are encouraged!