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"Beyond a change of scenery, I wanted to have a real-world context in order to put college in perspective. I knew that I would not be satisfied if I didn’t feel like I was interacting with real people and giving back to the community."
- Bronwyn, Stanford University
In addition to IPSL's core programs in Ecuador, Mexico, Jamaica, Italy, India, Thailand, and with the Lakota Nation, IPSL is pleased to offer the option of customized programs, which may be arranged to meet the specific needs of college and university groups, as well as other groups desiring a specially designed service-learning experience.
PLEASE NOTE: Customized programs are arranged for groups only, and are coordinated with college and university faculty and administrators and other group leaders, not with individual students.
IPSL programs integrate academic studies with volunteer service to provide a deeper, more meaningful study abroad experience. In keeping with the IPSL philosophy of multilateral reciprocity, all customized programs will involve both service and learning, in partnership with local agencies and host universities, so that participants have sufficient cultural and societal knowledge to provide effective service to their host communities as well as an academic context for their experiential learning.
While the learning and service placements may be specially arranged, IPSL does not create service projects. We place program participants in agencies that have grown out of the communities and have stood the test of time in their usefulness to local people. Programs must be long enough so that the host agencies and clients receive real benefit from the participants' service; therefore, customized programs must be a minimum of 4 weeks, and may be as long as a semester or year.
Unlike the coursework in IPSL’s core programs, the learning in customized programs need not be for academic credit, although credit for demonstrated learning may be arranged, if desired.
In addition to programs for college and university students and other groups, IPSL can design customized programs for groups of gap-year students, provided they are 18 years of age or older.
Customized programs may be arranged in England, Scotland, Russia, the Philippines, and with the Lakota Nation in South Dakota, USA. IPSL can also contract with groups wishing to go on our core programs; call to discuss.
Different content area emphases are available in different locations. A few possibilities are described below; please call to discuss other options for customized service-learning programs in these locations.
England (London)
Partner institution: Roehampton University
Roehampton University is home to the Crucible Center, which focuses on human rights, social justice and citizenship. Participants could concentrate on these issues while serving in related agencies in the London area. Fall programs only.
Scotland (Glasgow)
Partner institution: University of Glasgow
IPSL's primary contact is with the Department of Urban Studies, giving participants the opportunity to study a range of contemporary issues that affect many cities around the world, while serving in related agencies in Glasgow. Fall programs only.
Russia (Moscow)
Partner institution: GRINT Centre for Education and Culture
Participants could serve and learn in Moscow, the center of a nation in transition, where there is a growing division between the very rich and the very poor, and many have concerns about how civil society can thrive when the middle class is very small. IPSL also has strong connections with a university and with service agencies in the Kyrgyz Republic in Central Asia, and we can design programs that combine service-learning in Moscow with service-learning in Bishkek, a four-hour flight away, thus giving participants an opportunity to understand both contemporary Russia and Kyrgyzstan, and to have a sense of the diversity and heritage of two nations that were once part of the Soviet Union.
Philippines (Manila)
Partner institution: Trinity University of Asia
Trinity University of Asia has a long history of involving its own students—especially nursing and education students—in service to the urban poor of Metro Manila. For several years, Trinity hosted an IPSL program that brought students from across Asia and the U.S. to learn about the service traditions of major Asian religions and serve in the community surrounding the university. A similar program could be arranged.
Lakota Nation (South Dakota, USA)
Partner institution: South Dakota State University
Participants could live and serve on the Rosebud, Pine Ridge or other reservations, becoming immersed in the cultural heritage and the contemporary social problems affecting the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota peoples. On-campus classroom sessions, before and after the experience on the reservation, coupled with distance contact during the service period, provide the background for understanding the experiential component. (IPSL also offers core semester and summer programs with the Lakota Nation. Details on Lakota Nation Core Program >> )
To discuss these and other possibilities for customized service-learning programs, please contact Chris Cartwright, IPSL Dean of Academic Programs, at least six months and preferably an academic year before you would like the program to begin. Working with local partners to design a program that offers both significant learning and substantive, needed service takes time. We welcome your inquiries.
