Coordination Office for Service Learning and Civic Engagement

In autumn of 2011, the Coordination Office for Service Learning and Civic Engagement was established as part of UniKasselTransfer. The coordination office supports members of the University of Kassel in linking their teaching, learning and research in a meaningful way with practical engagement for the common good. The focus is on promoting Service Learning. However, other forms of engagement are also supported, such as student initiatives or initiatives by scientists such as Scientists For Future Kassel.

Successful in Service Learning

At the University of Kassel, around 30 subject-integrated courses with Service Learning take place every semester - more than at any other university in Germany. All departments are involved.

About half of the courses benefit from the advisory, financial or organizational support of the coordination office. Each semester, more than 100 civil society organizations are involved as partners.

Strategic partnerships

The coordination office works closely with intermediary organizations from the not-for-profit and public sectors:

Funding

Initially, the coordination office was funded by the Stifterverband (competition win in the program "More than research and teaching! Universities in Society," 2011 to 2013), then by the state of Hesse (study structure program, 2013 to 2015).

Most recently, most of the funding came from the federal-state program "Qualitätspakt Lehre" (2015 to 2020). At the beginning of 2021, the University of Kassel decided to transfer the area of Service Learning to permanent funding.

All funding also includes (or included) funds for the financial support of individual courses with Service Learning, which can be applied for by the departments.

This project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research under the funding code 01PL12036 (first funding phase) and 01PL17036 (second funding phase). The author is responsible for the content of this publication.

Since 2012, the University of Kassel has been a member of the university network Bildung durch Verantwortung e.V. (Education through Responsibility), a nationwide association of more than 40 universities that are committed to social responsibility. From 2013 to 2018, the University of Kassel was a member of the network board as well as taking on the positions of head office and speaker, thus being instrumental in shaping its foundation and profile.

Mitgliedschaft im Hochschulnetzwerk: Read More

Contact Persons

Dr. Imke-Marie Badur
UniKasselTransfer | Service Learning und gesellschaftliches Engagement
Universitätsplatz 12 | 34109 Kassel
badur@uni-kassel.de
+49 561 804-7469

Katharina Leinius
UniKasselTransfer
katharina.leinius@uni-kassel.de
+49 561 804-2818

Publications

Nationwide Activities and Awards

Consulting, Lectures and Workshops on Service Learning

Nationwide, the coordination office assists other colleges and universities in developing Service Learning.

Focus areas:
- Theoretical background (e.g., history, lines of reasoning, state of research).
- Initiation, strategic implementation and coordination (e.g. third mission, development of cooperations)
- University didactics (e.g. planning, role of the teacher as coach, reflection, ethics)

Inquiries to be directed to badur@uni-kassel.de

University Network Bildung durch Verantwortung e.V.

2013-2018 Member of the board and head office

    Programm "Campus & Gemeinwesen" of the Stifterverband

    2014-2016 Participation as a consultant

      Lehre hoch N - The Alliance for University Teaching

      The Toepfer Foundation connects university teachers who are doing an outstanding job of teaching sustainability topics. The Coordination Office for Service Learning and the Department of Ecological Agricultural Sciences were selected to participate in 2020 with their seminar on the common good economy (Gemeinwohlökonomie).