iServe

Students must apply to the program before the deadline and complete a self-guided community engagement training prior to the Matching Fair. They are required to attend the Matching Fair to be considered for a project. Not all students will be matched, but all attempts are made to do so.  

If matched, students must meet program expectations to remain in the program, as well as be considered for future semesters.   

Students will be prompted in the iServe application to agree to meet program expectations and to act responsibly when working with community partners. After application submission, students will receive an invitation to complete a self-guided virtual training (30 minutes) to better understand community engaged work prior to the Matching Fair.  

Students will meet weekly to bi-weekly to discuss the project and ensure their community partner is updated on a regular basis. They will most likely need to delegate project tasks based on ability and preferences after they have their initial meeting with the community partner.  

Students must also meet as a team with their community partner within a week of the project start date. They will establish project outcomes, an estimated timeframe, and preferred method and frequency of future partner communications and/or meetings. The Office of PittServes will also be meeting with the partners on a semi-regular basis.  

Each student will be required to submit bi-weekly check-ins via the SCI Experiential Learning Hub in Canvas to track progress being made, challenges encountered, and assistance needed. Each team will be required to meet with SCI’s Manager of Experiential Learning via Zoom at the midpoint of the program to gauge progress and to address any team/partner concerns.  

Students are required to submit peer-based feedback for their project teammates at the end of the program via the SCI Experiential Learning Hub in Canvas. This feedback can assist students in reflecting upon their strengths and challenges, while also learning how they can grow from the experience. Both students and community partners will also receive a final project survey to better understand the level of satisfaction with the experience, skills utilized, project outcomes, etc.  

At the end of the program, student teams and community partners are invited to attend a final report out event, celebrating the work that has been accomplished that semester. A member of each team is required to attend and attendees receive lunch and refreshments.