Community Service for Suspended and Expelled
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November 2005 Creating Community Service Opportunities for Suspended and Expelled Youth: A Final Report on Virginia’s Experience Creating Community Service Opportunities for Suspended and Expelled Touching Lives For additional copies contact: One at a Time Virginia Department of Education Division of Special Education and Student Services Office of Student Services Attention: Arlene Cundiff P. O. Box 2120 Richmond, VA 23218-2120 804-225-2871 [email protected] Funding provided by the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (SDFSCA) Community Service for Expelled or Suspended Students CFDA #84.184C Y outh: A Final Report on Virginia’s Experience Final Report on Virginia’s A outh: © 2005, Commonwealth of Virginia The Virginia Department of Education does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability Virginia Department of Education in employment or provisions of service. CREATING COMMUNITY SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES FOR SUSPENDED AND EXPELLED YOUTH A FINAL REPORT ON VIRGINIA’S EXPERIENCE Virginia Department of Education 2005 Publication Information Creating Community Service Opportunities for Suspended and Expelled Youth: A Final Report on Virginia’s Experience was developed by the Office of Student Services, Virginia Department of Education. © 2005 by the Virginia Department of Education All rights reserved. Development and printing of this publication was supported in part by Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act funding, authorized under Title IV, Part A of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Copies of this publication may be downloaded from the Virginia Department of Education Web site at: http://www.doe.virginia.gov Publication development and editorial services provided by: PolicyWorks, Ltd., Richmond, VA Anne J. Atkinson, Ph.D. The valuable assistance of Sandi Yetman, Graduate Intern, is gratefully acknowledged. Thanks to Misty Kiser, Virginia Department of Education, for the cover design. November 2005 The Virginia Community Service Program for Suspended and Expelled Students was administered by the Virginia Department of Education. Program coordination and technical assistance services were provided by the Center for School-Community Collaboration, School of Education, Virginia Commonwealth University. Contacts for the program are: Arlene Cundiff, Coordinator Sara Jo Williams, Director Safe and Drug-Free Schools Programs Center for School-Community Collaboration Office of Student Services School of Education Virginia Department of Education Virginia Commonwealth University P.O. Box 2120 P.O. Box 842020 Richmond, VA 23218-2120 Richmond, VA 23284-2020 (804) 225-2871 (804) 828-1482 [email protected] [email protected] Table of Contents Page Creating Community Service Opportunities for Suspended and Expelled Youth: Overview ............................................................................................................................ 1 Purpose............................................................................................................................ 1 Overview of Content....................................................................................................... 1 Chapter One: The Community Service Program for Suspended and Expelled Students: Background ..................................................................................................... 3 U.S. Department of Education Community Service Grant Program.............................. 3 Purpose and Goal ........................................................................................................ 3 Characteristics of Effective Community Service Programs for Suspended and Expelled Students........................................................................................................ 3 Virginia’s Community Service Grant Program .......................................................... 5 Program Logic Model and Evaluation Questions....................................................... 6 Community Service Program Simple Logic Model............................................................ 6 Virginia Community Service Program for Suspended and Expelled Students: Local Programs ......................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter Two: Community Service: What It Is, What It Isn’t, and What It Might Be .............................................................................................................. 9 Definitions: Both Positive and Negative......................................................................... 9 Approaches to Community Service .............................................................................. 11 Community Service as an Approach to Improving Values and Behaviors ...................... 11 Community Service as a Tool to Improve Educational Outcomes................................... 11 Community Service as a Strategy for Productive Use of Out-of-School Time................ 12 The Risk and Protective Factors Framework.................................................................... 12 The Youth Development Framework ............................................................................... 13 Many Perspectives Supporting a Community’s Program................................................. 13 Community Service and Service Learning: What’s the Difference?............................ 15 Youth Service America Definitions.................................................................................. 15 National Center for Education Statistics Definitions........................................................ 16 Youth Courts and “Community Service Learning”...................................................... 17 Other Key Terms........................................................................................................... 18 Youth Service.................................................................................................................... 18 Volunteerism..................................................................................................................... 19 Civic Engagement............................................................................................................. 19 Civic Education................................................................................................................. 19 Character Education.......................................................................................................... 20 Growth of Community Service Opportunities for Youth ............................................. 20 i Chapter Three: Why Involve Suspended and Expelled Youth in Community Service? ............................................................................................................................ 23 Benefits of Community Service.................................................................................... 23 What the Research Says............................................................................................ 23 National Commission on Service-Learning Findings............................................... 24 Community Service and At-risk Populations ............................................................... 28 Benefits for Suspended and Expelled Students ............................................................ 29 What Virginia Community Service Participants Said .............................................. 29 What Virginia Community Service Partners Said .................................................... 30 Community Service and Positive Youth Development ................................................ 31 Chapter Four: Community Approaches to Suspension and Expulsion..................... 33 Suspension and Expulsion: A Community Issue.......................................................... 33 “First Steps” in Program Planning................................................................................ 33 Worksheet for “First Steps” in Program Planning........................................................ 36 Virginia Program Descriptions ..................................................................................... 38 Examples of Community Service Partnerships............................................................. 46 Successful Collaboration: Virginia’s Experience ......................................................... 55 Chapter Five: Implementing Quality Community Service Opportunities................ 61 Elements of a High Quality Program............................................................................ 61 U.S. Department of Education Program Principles .......................................................... 61 Corporation for National Service Quality Factors............................................................ 61 White House Program Quality Hallmarks ........................................................................ 62 Factors Influencing the Nature and Organization of Service Opportunities in Virginia ..................................................................................................................... 63 Duration of Suspension or Expulsion ....................................................................... 63 Coordinating or Integration with Alternative Programs and Services...................... 65 Ages of Participants .................................................................................................