蓝莓视频 faculty are always looking for ways to add an experiential learning component to their courses.
Dr. John Fazio, Assistant Professor of Management, has found the perfect way to blend time in the class with experience in the real world in his Business Consulting course (Management 454). During the 2021 spring semester, 22 students were divided into four teams and they independently worked to solve problems and improve performance at four local nonprofit organizations.
Marietta鈥檚 Director of Civic Engagement Maribeth Saleem-Tanner said her office has partnered with Dr. Fazio鈥檚 class for the past six years to support service learning in the course.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a great learning experience for the students, who get to work alongside passionate nonprofit professionals and volunteers as they develop their ability to successfully partner with clients to create positive outcomes,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 also a wonderful opportunity for nonprofits, who get the experience of presenting their organizations and projects to the students and working alongside the student team. Each year, we鈥檝e ended up with a competitive process because so many local organizations are interested in the chance to work with students on these projects. We can tell by the response that it鈥檚 an opportunity that the nonprofits are enthusiastic about and need. It鈥檚 a good learning experience for the students, too, which is the gold standard for a 鈥榳in-win鈥 in service learning.鈥
Extensive experiential learning, professional opportunities and integrated leadership training allow students to apply the broad knowledge and in-demand skills gained from studying the arts and sciences.
This year鈥檚 students completed consulting projects at four southeastern Ohio nonprofit organizations: O鈥橬eill Senior Center, Boys and Girls Club of Washington County, Ohio River-Valley Red Cross and the Ohio-West Virginia Youth Leadership Association.
The student team of Kyle Gallagher 鈥21 (Chesterland, Ohio), Justin Harvey 鈥21 (Canal Winchester, Ohio), Maguire Morris 鈥21 (Dover, Ohio), Troy Pontius 鈥21 (Salesville, Ohio) and John Powers 鈥22 (Somerville, Ohio) organized and marketed a golf fundraiser for the O鈥橬eill Senior Center. They also generated $800 to help with the purchase of a new vehicle to help with transporting area senior citizens.
Cheyenne Barker 鈥21 (Belpre, Ohio), Bailee Brooks 鈥21 (Akron, Ohio), Jason Ellis 鈥21 (Marion, Ohio), Gage Giovengo 鈥21 (Benwood, West Virginia) and Tay Pryor 鈥22 (Canton, Ohio) helped the Boys and Girls Club of Washington County by preparing a marketing plan that included social media, posters, brochures and a video to help the organization gain greater exposure to local youth.
The local Red Cross has worked to incorporate college students as members of the organization鈥檚 internal committees. The consulting team of Audrey Albright 鈥21 (Moraine, Ohio), Dylan Albright 鈥21 (Florence, South Carolina), Nick Brown 鈥21 (Kenton, Ohio), Stephen Harris 鈥21 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), Embrey Roberts 鈥21 (Marietta, Ohio) and Logan Vietmeier 鈥22 (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) prepared a detailed marketing plan incorporating point-of-contacts, recruiting materials and recommendations for the most effective means of recruiting college students.
鈥淥ur end goal is to have one to two student volunteers from each college that falls into the Ohio River-Valley Red Cross Region they cover,鈥 said Audrey Albright. 鈥淭he student volunteers would be a 鈥榮ilent member鈥 on one of their six committees to give advice on tasks, bring a new point of view to the board, and gain leadership experience.鈥
The final group helped the Ohio-West Virginia Youth Leadership Association develop a social media marketing plan, as well as organize a 5K race. The student team included Jacey Barth 鈥21 (Lowell, Ohio), Kaitlyn Carpenter 鈥21 (Pickerington, Ohio), Eli Egyed 鈥21 (Gibsonia, Pennsylvania), Will Rafferty 鈥21 (Moorestown, New Jersey), Sam Rojas 鈥21 (Bronx, New York) and Manning Shaw 鈥21 (Hollywood, South Carolina).
鈥淚t was a fantastic opportunity to help the youth of our communities,鈥 Barth said.