Community-Engaged/Service-Learning for Community Partners

This site is a one-stop shop to on-board you to creating and listing your service learning opportunity for our CPP students. Review the Service Learning Community Partner handbook, along with the resources below. Reach out to the Center for Community Engagement with any questions or to request a consultation. We are happy to brainstorm with your service project ideas. Email us at cce@cpp.edu.

What is service-learning?

Service-learning is an academic course where a service project or service experience is part of the overall grade. In the spirit of learning-by-doing, Cal Poly Pomona faculty, staff and students actively support and engage in service-learning activities that build meaningful and sustainable community partnerships.

• Service-learning consists of academic courses that provide students with structured opportunities to learn, develop and reflect through active participation and thoughtfully organized community involvement.
• Service-learning integrates assessment and student reflection on the interrelationships between course content and community-based learning activities.
• Conducted in the community, it meets the needs of the students, faculty and community partners and fosters civic competence and engagement.

How does service-learning benefit community partners?

• Provides resources beyond funding or staffing capabilities.
• Creates an opportunity to serve as co-educators.
• Builds and strengthens relationships with academic institutions.
• Creates an opportunity for future trained staff members.

Interested in becoming an official partner?

The Center for Community Engagement (CCE) serves to create, maintain and sustain partnerships with our local, regional and global community. We look forward to partnering with you to enhance the experience of students in their daily lives, classrooms and work environments. To initiate a partnership with the department for service-learning, the site must:

• Maintain a current nonprofit 501(c)(3) status, be a government agency, be a school district or be a business that is impacting community issues.
• Have a physical location or main office.
• Provide on-site supervision of students.
• Have a valid website.

Please note that once you meet the criteria, we will conduct a site visit to ensure the safety of our students. Sites should not have students promoting a particular religious doctrine or political candidate or they risk be removed as a partnership site. We also highly encourage that you provide training or orientation to all students who choose your site for their service-learning experience.

Your application will be reviewed within 2-3 weeks and you will be contacted directly upon completion of this step.

NOTE: The Request To Initiate Partnership and Service-Learning Agreement forms MUST be filled out by Community Partner ONLY. Students who complete the form, will have their request DENIED.

Step 1: Submit a Service-Learning Request to Initiate Partnership (For new Partnership ONLY)

This form should be filled out by a community partner ONLY. Students who complete the form, will have their request DENIED.

Complete the Request to Initiate Partnership form online. To process your application in a timely manner, please ensure to answer all questions thoroughly. Please note your “Main Contact” information will be listed in the database for our students and faculty to view as the point of contact for your organization. If your application is on behalf of a pre-selected student, please indicate in the application.

Step 2: Sign a Service-Learning Partnership Agreement

The Request to Initiate Partnership will be reviewed and, upon approval, a Service-Learning Partnership Agreement will be sent to your organization to complete, review and sign. The agreement will be valid for 5 years. Your organization and service-learning information will be uploaded to BoncoSERV Database.

Step 3: Complete Site Visit Form

To ensure your service-learning opportunity is process in a timely manner, please submit your request at least 6 weeks prior to the start of the semester.

Please view our school's academic calendar for semester dates.

Service-Learning Community Partners Handbook

This handbook is to help guide and assist you in the service-learning process at CPP. It also includes the recent COVID-19 in-person placement guidelines.

Community Partner Process (Flowchart)

Community Partner Process (Flowchart) provides a simple guide on how your organization can become an approved service-learning site for CPP students.

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