Portland Community College
AC-4: Applied Learning
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Stephania
Fregosi Sustainability Analyst Academic Affairs |
4.1 Applied learning for sustainability program
List or sample of currently active/available applied learning or living laboratory experiences for students that address sustainability challenges:
Applied learning takes place across PCC in a variety of ways including: community based learning and cooperative work experience.
Community-Based Learning (CBL) at PCC is an academic program that provides support across all disciplines through assisting faculty with community-based learning course implementation, professional development, and resources. The Sustainability Department routinely supports CBL with hands-on solutions based experiences using the campus as a living laboratory.
Many courses in the PCC catalog from the Sustainability Focus Award have community based learning components and they are tracked through our volunteer and community engagement platform, Give Pulse. Some arrangements take place more informally between the instructors, although we encourage instructors to register officially through the community based learning program.
Here is the list for the current academic year.
- ESR 141 - Individual Sustainability - Spring 2025
- ESR 140 - Intro to Sustainability - Winter 2025
- ESR 141 Individual Sustainability - Winter 2025
- ESR 171 - Environ Science Bio Perspective - Winter 2025
- PHL 195 - Science & the Unknown - Winter 2025 Carbon Offsets at PCC (CBL Project)
- ESR 150 - Environmental Studies Orientation - Fall 2024
- ESR 173 - Geology Persec - Fall 2024
- GEO 267 - Geospatial Applications - Spring 2025 - Sustainability Office Serves as a frequent client.
Students may also pursue a cooperative education work experience.
Cooperative education courses at PCC are designed to allow students the opportunity to acquire college credit for current on-the-job learning. During the term the co-op credit is taken, the student must be training in a supervisory capacity or leading a project in which new management skills are being practiced.
The current courses that are part of the sustainability focus award that offer cooperative are part of the cooperative education program are: SOC 280A - Cooperative Education: and BA 280A - & BA 280B, Cooperative Education: Business Experience and Cooperative Education: Business Experience - Seminar
BA 280A. Cooperative Education: Business Experience. 1-12 Credit.
Introduces relevant field experience in business environments in one of the following areas: accounting, bookkeeping, marketing, management, international business, advertising, banking, purchasing, investment, finance and customer services (sales or credit services). Explores career options.
BA 280 B. Cooperative Education: Business Experience - Seminar. 1 Credit.
Supplements on-the-job experience through feedback sessions, instruction in job-related areas, and linkages to the student's on-campus program. Co-requisite: BA 280A
Are three or more institutional departments or units currently supporting solutions-focused applied learning or living laboratory experiences for students?:
Are there processes or tools in place to assess the success of the applied learning projects?:
Description of the processes or tools used to assess the success of the applied learning projects:
https://www.pcc.edu/community-based-learning/
Community based learning includes critical reflection that has the student answering questions about the connections between themselves, course content and larger systemic issues. This reflection process allows the student to consider their role in their community and to see themselves as change agents, able to create positive social change.
This can take the form of a survey presentation, paper, or other methods.
Assessment is customized to the community based learning experience; however, the office maintains a set of best practices for teaching including assessment for community based learning: https://www.pcc.edu/community-based-learning/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2017/04/CBLBestPractices_lettersize.pdf. This list showcases several examples for assessment based on different types of community based learning experiences.
Is there an online portal or equivalent vehicle that documents completed, current, and/or prospective applied learning projects?:
Description of and/or website URL for the online portal or equivalent vehicle that documents completed, current, and/or prospective applied learning projects:
PCC uses Give Pulse, a volunteer management platform, although the most common platform is the faculty-owned online course management platform D2L. In addition, our faculty sustainability curriculum council, Sustainability Practices and Resources for Curriculum (SPARC) recently created an online learning platform specific for sustainability learning, which documents completed applied learning projects for sustainability. The Sustainability Office has also served as a client for many geospatial analytics projects. These ArcGIS and Story Maps ArcGIS are stored at https://www.pcc.edu/sustainability/map/#place:sy-outside and focus on resiliency at the college.
The Reporting Tool will automatically calculate the following figure:
Optional documentation
Additional documentation for this credit:
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