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Edison State students visited Greenville and Ansonia
campuses last spring to talk to fifth, sixth and
seventh graders about
the short and long-term effects of drug abuse.
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Edison State communications students huge on community service
GREENVILLE - In the past 12 months 97 Edison State communication
students have provided 3,469 hours of service to their communities.
They participated in the Empowering Darke County Youth After School and
Summer Tutoring programs, and teams went off campus to talk to young
people about bullying and the dangers of drugs abuse. In addition, one
team each semester chose to talk to adults about bullying and literacy
at the Greenville Public Library.
“The Fundamentals of Communications class is about being able to
‘provide’ information, such as academic skills or life-changing
choices, to a diverse audience,” Edison adjunct instructor Bob Robinson
said. “There are few audiences more diverse than elementary and middle
school students. These kids are different ages, have different skills
and attitudes, and come from different backgrounds and life
experiences. The academic challenges they may need to overcome are as
unique as they are.
“My students understand this. They learn the skills they need to help
each student; they also understand the role they play in a student’s
right to learn and are able to work as team members with a clear
purpose. They are role models that younger students can look up to.
It’s a communications experience that cannot be duplicated in a
textbook or classroom.”
Edison State’s High school (College Credit Plus) students come from
every school district in the county, while adult students come from a
variety of Darke County communities. In the tutoring program, they work
under the supervision of experienced tutors and substitute teachers.
This is a unique program among the wide offerings at Edison State
Community College, one in which Chad Beanblossom, Vice President
Regional Campuses, has been strongly supportive.
“As always, Edison State students spend an extensive amount of time
volunteering in our community,” Beanblossom said. “Their hours spent
with the Empowering Darke County Youth Program and working with local
youth is just as valuable to our students as it is to those they serve.”
The tutoring community service is strongly recommended, but not
required, according to Robinson. “Students who are unable to
resolve time or schedule conflicts have the option of completing a
research project and taking a final exam, which the tutoring project is
intended to replace. Some students have also completed their tutoring
hours in their home school districts under the supervision of a
classroom teacher.”
The team presentations are required, and typically take 20 or more
hours of preparation, both inside and outside of class. They are the
eighth and final speech of the semester, and are scheduled during the
final week in lieu of class attendance.
“After weeks of preparation, practice in class tends to get stale,”
Robinson noted. “However, once they find themselves in front of middle
school students, they are ready. They ‘get into it’ and are typically
graded 9.5 or 10 out of 10 by the students’ teachers. The preparation
and skills they learned throughout the course pay off.”
Edison State students are nervous, and some complain, about the
Empowering tutoring requirement. They are given the opportunity to
evaluate the program and assignment at the end of the semester. In
three years, only two students out of more than 200 have failed to see
the value of the time they have spent.
“One student made his thoughts known at the beginning of the term,”
Robinson said. “They weren’t positive. By the end of the term he
continued helping even after his commitment was completed. In his
evaluation, he said, ‘Thank you for the great opportunity to work with
these kids.’”
Since its inception, the Empowering tutoring programs have provided
over 15,000 hours to 612 students in every school district in Darke
County. Edison State students have contributed nearly a third of those
hours. If you would like more information about the Empowering
programs, email empoweringyouth101@gmail.com or go to Facebook.
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Edison State students work with kindergarten through eighth
graders needing extra help through the
Empowering Darke County Youth
tutoring programs.
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