Student Summit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 27, 2008

Celebrating Learning that Matters: Students and Educators Convene at Regional Summit at USM, Gorham Campus

Gorham, ME—On March 27-28, 2008, hundreds of K-12 students from around New England will gather at the University of Southern Maine, Gorham Campus, for the 8th annual KIDS Consortium Student Summit on Service-Learning. They will celebrate their work to solve real problems faced by their communities through service-learning - a teaching method that links community projects with academic studies. For example, elementary students established a school-community recycling program through their math and science studies, and high school art students designed and led art classes for senior citizens. Through these activities, youth learn to be communicators, problem-solvers and active members of their community. This year, Downeast Energy, based in Brunswick, Maine, is the major corporate sponsor of the Summit; Learn and Serve America at the Corporation for National and Community Service is the major public sponsor.

High School students at the Windham REAL School have been planning the Summit since December as their own service-learning project, with KIDS Consortium as their community partner. “We are all excited to see both the presentations by students from all around New England, and to admire the creativity and hard work of the REAL School students who demonstrate that young people are not just our future---they are our present,” says KIDS Consortium Founder Marvin Rosenblum. Attendees will come from Bangor, Belfast, Calais, Houlton, Jackman, Madawaska, Madison (SAD 59), Maine Educational Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing/Governor Baxter School for the Deaf, Mount Desert Island, Old Town, Oxford Hills, Portland, Topsham (SAD 75), Westbrook, Winthrop, and York as well as from all other New England States.

The event’s theme, Got Green? Who Can Make a Difference? We Can!, encourages participants to work together to make their communities more environmentally friendly. Using this theme, students and educators at the Summit will have fun showcasing their work, reflecting on their experiences, and learning new skills. A number of organizations including Department of Environmental Protection, Maine Energy Education Program, Cultivating Communities, LOTS to Gardens, Cool Communities, Portland Trails and Heifer International will lead workshops on topics ranging from composting to global warming to world hunger.

KIDS Consortium, based in Auburn, is a nationally recognized leader in the rapidly expanding service-learning movement. KIDS works with teachers, administrators and students to involve students in addressing real challenges faced by their communities. Together they identify, research, and work to address local community needs. With guidance from KIDS, teachers match those projects to school curricula, providing a powerful "hands on" learning experience that improves the community and brings academics to life.

In addition to Downeast Energy, grants from Gorham Savings Bank, Androscoggin Savings Bank, United Way of York County, Maine Department of Education, Maine Office of Substance Abuse Prevention, R. H. Reny, Inc., Windham Walmart, and the Learn and Serve America Program at the Corporation for National and Community Service make the Summit possible. ###