UNIV 190 was a service learning course I took at Loyola University Chicago this semester. Because it fulfill a “civic engagement” core, it goes hand in hand with 25 hours of mandatory community service that are related to what we see in class. In my personal experience, I did a range of different activities. Mainly I worked with a Congolese family as a cultural broker. I also helped plan, prepare, and advertise a fundraising event for a Darfur refugee camp in Chad. I have yet to help with the logistics of a dinner event for World Relief, but will do so soon. I think this made a difference because refugees are one of the most marginalized groups of people in America today, and they truly need all the help they can get.
For future service learning I would like to go deeper into the service I am performing. I feel like more time and more engagement would have given me this opportunity. One of the things that I feel is most powerful about service is that it creates modes of propaganda. The more people know about social issues, they more they want to help, and in turn communicate the problems with other people. Knowledge is power, the power to change the world.