Learning and volunteering are two interests that capture the hearts of many students. Now, through a collaborative effort by the University College of Citizenship and Public Service (UCCPS) and the American Studies Program, students can combine these activities in a new program called Building Bridges.
Building Bridges allows students to combine classroom learning with real-world experience in Boston's Chinatown through a course titled "Active Citizenship in Urban Communities: Race, Culture, Power and Politics."
The 15 students currently enrolled in the class are required to do citizenship work in Boston in addition to attending class. They work in places as the public school system, urban development programs, and affordable housing and welfare solution projects.
Professor Jean Wu, who teaches the course, says the combination of learning and service is important because it allows students to discuss the real-world experience they gain through site visits in an academic setting.
"In order to make sense of their experiences, students need information and knowledge," Wu said. "The classroom is a great place to do it."
Students chose to participate in the Building Bridges Program for a variety of reasons. Senior Kathleen Leanza was introduced to the program through the Americorp program Jumpstart. She was also interested in learning about the Chinatown neighborhood.
"With the Tufts Medical School and Tufts New England Medical Center there in Chinatown, I was curious as to the different aspects that affect Chinatown," Leanza said.
Sophomore Leslie Wang took the class because of her interest in the Chinatown community. She wanted to both learn more about the community and its history and to be more actively involved in volunteering.
For Wang, working at her site has been frustrating at times, but ultimately, the experience has been rewarding.
"This class has been a great combination of 'real life' experiences," Wang said. "Professor [Jean] Wu has pushed us to think outside of the box and take the most from what we are experiencing."
The choice of Chinatown as the site for the citizenship aspect of the program stems from the University's strong ties to the area. Both the Tufts Medical School and Tufts New England Medical Center are located in Chinatown. According to Wu, many students don't know about or understand the community because it is very different from the places where they grew up.
The six sites where students work are the Josiah Quincy Upper School, the Asian American Resource Workshop, Jumpstart, the Campaign to Protect Chinatown, the Asian Community Development Center and the Welfare Solidarity Project.
The UCCPS and American Studies personnel behind the creation of the program hope to promote knowledge of Chinatown's history and encourage students to learn about other communities. "Active Citizenship in Urban Communities: Race, Culture, Power and Politics" is one of the few courses at Tufts that combines learning with citizenship, but its creators hope it will be a model for similar programs, both at Tufts and other schools.
"The students are looking deeper and learning more about urban communities as a whole," said Wu, who believes that the program is important in helping students to become active citizens.
"People don't always see the resources and talent college students have to give," she said. Wu hopes the course will inspire the students to consider careers that will give back to communities that need their skills.
As unique as the service portion of the course may be, even the classroom aspect of the program is not completely traditional. Wu attempts to bring in as many community speakers as possible, who are often the heads of the various organizations where the students work. The class also takes field trips to various sites in Boston to further connect with the community.
The program has generated positive feedback thus far. "Students now have the opportunity to learn interactively about the history and contemporary issues of Boston's Chinatown through an Active Citizenship course and a 'real-time' practicum," said David Hendrickson, the coordinator of the Tufts Chinatown Partnership.
