In some cases, the multiple lessons that grow out of a single community problem can bring together various campus disciplines, service-learning projects, and community organizations. In Unity, Maine, a campus-wide partnership between Unity College and a neighborhood association was recently formed to address issues associated with the local lake. A grant from the National Science Foundation provided faculty members with release time while they developed related service-learning courses. The result was the development of fourteen different service-learning classes engaging in studies related to the water quality of Lake Winnecook. Classes conducted water testing, studied pollution, algae growth, and related policy issues, working with the neighborhood association to ensure the safety and quality of the lake and its habitat.

From Service Matters 1998: Engaging Higher Education In the Renewal of America s Communities and American Democracy

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