Notre Dame's Center for Social Concerns supports a breadth of experiential and service-learning
opportunities for students. Some of the more visible include:
Urban Plunge -- A 48-hour winter seminar that introduces students to problems faced by
American cities and their residents. The center currently lists 32 plunge sites in 26 cities from
Boston to San Diego.
Immersion seminars -- One-credit immersion seminars that take place during University
breaks. Students prepare for the week-long programs with readings and discussions. In 2007,
students may spend fall break in Appalachia, Chicago, Cincinnati or Washington, D.C., working
and visiting organizations that address issues ranging from rural poverty, racism and energy
policy to life issues and youth violence. Seminars in the spring have taken students to domestic
sites and to Mexico and Chile. The center also supports six-day winter seminars on community
organizing in Chicago, Holy Cross parish outreach in Phoenix and immigration in El Paso,
Texas, and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
Summer Service Learning Program -- An eight-week course linking students with people in
need through agencies across the United States. Students earn a scholarship and three credits in
theology through their participation, which begins with orientation in the spring, continues with
their service, reading and writing in the summer, and concludes with wrap-up sessions in the fall.
International Summer Service Learning Program -- Open to students as a way of extending
domestic service-learning experiences. Students travel abroad to serve and to learn about the
causes of poverty and injustice in other countries. Students receive a modest living stipend and
may earn as many as five credits for their course work.
(July 2007)
