State Farm gives $10,000 grant

State Farm Insurance has awarded $10,000 to City Academy to expand its service learning program to help the school in its goal of placing 200 students in service learning projects by the end of the 2006-07 school year.

The funds will help the school to broaden community ties with nonprofit and for-profit organizations and increase student placements.

Under the academy's newly named Compassionate Citizen Program, students are placed in a number of agencies where they both help and benefit the agency or business in which they work.

Students have a sustained and interactive relationship at their placement site where they go one afternoon a week for the duration of a nine-week term — transported via public transportation, the school's bio-diesel bus and faculty and volunteer drivers.

So far they have formed partnerships with HEAL Utah, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, Crossroads Urban Center, Head Start Program, Domestic Violence Program, The Children's Center, Utah AIDS Foundation, International Rescue Committee, and Spyhop.

"Hundreds of individuals served by various social service agencies will directly benefit from student's service learning activities," said Monica Daly, the school's spokesperson.

Careful consideration is given to placing students in contexts where activities connect to specific coursework. The objective is to enhance classroom learning by connecting subject matter to real-life contexts.

City Academy is a public charter school that serves grades 7-12 and has an emphasis on civic education and service learning

For more information about City Academy's program call Deanna Taylor at 801 596-8489 or visit the school's web site at cityacademyslc.org.

---

E-mail: terickson@desnews.com