Service Learning Course Designation Form
Use this form to request a Service Learning Course Designation for a new or existing course.
Proposed course title should end with the following designation: /Service Learning
I. Service Learning Course
Ecosystem and
Dept/Program
Course Number
Conservation Science,
(e.g. SW UG 423)
Subject
College of Forestry and
Conservation/Wildland
Restoration
Course Title (e.g.
Ecological Restoration Practicum
Addiction
Studies/SvcLrn)
Short Title (max. 26
Ecol. Rest. Practicum
characters incl. spaces)
5
Number of credits
Cara Nelson
Instructor name
NRSM 495
X6066; cara.nelson@umontana.edu
Instructor phone
and e-mail
II. Endorsement/Approvals
Complete this form and obtain signatures before submitting to Faculty Senate Office.
Requestor
Requestor phone
and e-mail
Program
Chair/Director
Other affected
programs
Dean
Please Type/Print Name
Cara Nelson
Signature
Date
9/20/11
X6066; cara.nelson@umontana.edu
Cara Nelson
9/20/11
None
Jim Burchfield
9/20/11
III. UM Service Learning Definition: Service Learning is a method of teaching and learning
in which students, faculty and community partners work together to enhance student
learning by applying academic knowledge in a community-based setting. Student work
addresses the needs of the community, as identified through collaboration with community
or tribal partners, while meeting instructional objectives through faculty-structured service
work and critical reflection meant to prepare students to be civically responsible members
of the community. At its best, service learning enhances and deepens students’
understanding of an academic discipline by facilitating the integration of theory and
practice, while providing them with experience that develops life skills and engages them
in critical reflection about individual, institutional, and social ethics.
NRSM 495_Service Learning Application_Page 2
IV.Service Learning Course Criteria The University of Montana-Missoula has established the
following criteria for Service Learning courses. In order to receive the Service Learning course
designation, a course must clearly exemplify all of the following criteria:
 Students in the course will provide a needed service to individuals, organizations, schools, or other
not-for-profit or tax-exempt entities in the community.
 The service experience is directly related to the subject matter of the course.
 Knowledge from the discipline informs the service experiences with which the students are to be
involved.
 Activities in the classroom will provide opportunities for students to actively reflect upon what they
have learned through the service experience and how these experiences relate to the subject matter of
the course. Reflection should be imbedded as course assignments and in-class time should be
scheduled to do reflection – both should be clear on the syllabus. Reflection should incorporate
discussion/assignments that help students understand the importance of meeting community needs
through service and civic engagement in a democratic society.
 The course offers a method to assess the learning derived from the service. Credit will be given for
the learning and its relation to the course, not for the service alone.
 Service interactions in the community will recognize the needs of service recipients and represent
reciprocal partnerships between the campus(class) and community partner organization(s).
Community partner(s) should have the opportunity to provide advice and feedback in class on the
nature and value of the service performed by the students.
 Training (by the service agency) and preparation (by the course instructor) ensure that students
perform service activities in a professional manner and that vulnerable populations are not harmed.
 Service options ensure that no student is required to participate in a service placement that creates a
religious, political, or moral conflict for the student.
 In a 3-credit service learning course, students should be required to perform a minimum of 15 hours
of community service per semester (i.e. 5 hours of service per academic credit.) Service hours may
include hours spent in training, preparation, and direct contact with clients.
V. Confirmation of Service Learning Course Criteria: Explain how this course meets each of
the following criteria.
NRSM 495_Service Learning Application_Page 3
Need for service: Describe the community-
identified need and the nature of the service
experience students will be involved in.
Students will work with locally community
partners to implement aspects of the
restoration and monitoring plan developed
through NRSM444 (also proposed for service
learning designation) and engage citizens in
a volunteer restoration work day.
The public invests a substantially amount of
money in ecological restoration; however,
projects often fail because of lack of
adequate planning and monitoring. In order
for the outcomes of ecological restoration to
improve, it is critical that the next cadre of
restoration professionals 1) know the
essentials of best practices for restoration
and monitoring, 2) understand the need for
civic engagement, and 3) are prepared to
engage volunteers in restoration and
monitoring efforts.
In this practicum, students will have the
opportunity to implement a restoration or
monitoring plan, but also will be performing
service by assisting agencies, NGOs, and
other organizations by directly assessing the
efficacy and ecological impacts of treatments
that might have gone un-monitored.
Examples of previous projects include:
 Developing and implementing a
monitoring plan for Trout Unlimited in
western Montana.
 Assisting the Confederated Salish
and Kootenai Tribes with a wetland
restoration plan.
 Assisting the Lolo National Forest
with a restoration plan for Rattlesnake
Wilderness Area.
Relation to course content: Describe how the
service experience is related to the subject matter of
the course. How do students apply their classroom
learning in the service experience?
The service experience provides hands-on
learning directly in the field of ecological
restoration – the subject of this practicum.
The practicum project is developed during
NRSM444, also proposed for service
learning designation.
During the practicum, students spend 100%
of their time working with a community
partner to implement a project. This requires
drawing on concepts learned during NRSM
444, as well as the entire set of concepts
learned in the restoration curriculum.
NRSM 495_Service Learning Application_Page 4
Reflection: What opportunities are provided in the
There is no classroom time associated with
this practicum. However, the practicum
project is developed within NRSM444, which
does include reflection time. In addition,
students reflect upon their experience in a
self assessment submitted at the end of the
practicum. Finally, after completing the
practicum, students must enroll in NRSM494,
during which they give a reflective
presentation on their service learning
experience, and learn about other students’
experiences.
Assessment: What method(s) are used to assess
Student learning is assessed based on: 1)
the learning derived from the service experience?
regular meetings with the student, instructor,
and community mentor, 2) the quality of the
work done and final report, 3) the survey
submitted by participants at the volunteer
restoration event, 4) the students’ self
assessment, and 5) final letter of evaluation
submitted by the community partner.
Reciprocity: How do community partner(s)
The community partners serve as mentors
provide advice and feedback on the nature and
during the entire service project, providing
value of the service performed?
advice and feedback regularly. The partner
formally evaluates the students’ proposal and
volunteer event.
Training: What training and preparation will be
This course is the culmination of the
provided to assure that that students perform their
restoration curriculum at UM. Training is
service activities in a professional manner and that
provided during NRSM444, also proposed for
vulnerable populations are not harmed?
service learning designation. Students first
meet their community partners and start
working with them during this course.
Service options: What service options exist to
Students select among 3-4 different service
ensure that no student is required to participate in a projects. There is also the potential for
service placement that creates a religious, political, students to develop their own project; in the
or moral conflict?
3 years the practicum has run, this has
occurred twice. No student is ever required
to participate with an organization that
creates religious, political, or moral conflict
for the individual.
Number of service hours required: How many
Students spend 45 hrs per credit (minimum
hours of service per semester are students required
of 135 and max of 270 hrs) on their service
to perform? Provide detailed description of the
project. The service activities include
service activities to be performed.
implementing a restoration or monitoring plan
(again, designed during NRSM 444) and
planning and conducting an event for
community members to directly participate in
restoration work..
VI. Community Partner Information: Provide information on the organization(s) that will
provide service placements for students in this course.
classroom for students to reflect upon what they
have learned through their service experience? How
is service placed within the broader context of civic
engagement and service to others?
NRSM 495_Service Learning Application_Page 5
Name of Agency/Organization(s)
Contact person name(s)
Past organizations have included the US
Forest Service, Kootenai Springs Ranch, the
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes,
Clark Fork Coalition, among others.
For Spring 2012, community partners will be
the US Forest Service and Trout Unlimited (2
projects) and potentially one other group
(relationship still being developed).
Susan Rinehart
Native Plant Program Manager
U.S. Forest Service, Region 1
Renewable Resource Management Staff
Heather Whiteley
Project Manager
Trout Unlimited
Contact person(s) phone and e-mail
Susan Rinehart
(406) 329-3669
srinehart@fs.fed.us
Heather Whiteley
(406) 541-8614
hwhiteley@tu.org
VII. Syllabus: Paste syllabus below or attach and send digital copy with form. The syllabus should
clearly indicate that this is a service learning course and it should include the UM Service Learning
Definition as text within the syllabus. The syllabus should also demonstrate how the above criteria are
satisfied. For assistance in preparing a service learning course syllabus, see
http://www.compact.org/syllabi/ or contact Andrea Vernon, Director of the Office for Civic
Engagement: andrea.vernon@umontana.edu.
Attached at the end of this document
VIII. Copies and Electronic Submission: Submit approved original, a copy, and electronic
file to the Faculty Senate Office, UH 221, camie.foos@mso.umt.edu.
Revised 6/10
NRSM 495_Syllabus _Page 1
SYLLABUS: NRSM 495 ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION PRACTICUM
Introduction: The goal of this practicum is for students to gain real-world experience in the
practice of ecological restoration and/or the science of restoration ecology. Students will design
and implement aspects of a restoration, monitoring, or research plan as a service learning project
for a community partner (private entity, nonprofit group, management agency or other sponsor).
The scope of work for the practicum must be developed in collaboration with a potential sponsor
(ideally this will be done as the final project for NRSM444 Integrative Ecological Restoration or
NRSM365 Foundations of Ecological Restoration) and can include any aspect of restoration
work or restoration-relevant research. The faculty mentor will provide advice on potential
practicum projects, but final responsibility for collaborating with the community partner, and for
establishing meeting times and locations, rests with the student. Students will only be able to
register after faculty approval of the proposal. The practicum can be done in any semester and
can continue for more than one semester. Students must include a volunteer workday as part of
their practicum. After completing all practicum credits, students are expected to enroll in
NRSM494 Seminar in Ecological Restoration in which they will reflect on their practicum
experience and findings.
Instructor: To be individually arranged (see Wildland Restoration Program Faculty;
http://www.cfc.umt.edu/wildland/Faculty.aspx).
Credits: Variable; minimum of 3 and maximum of 6.
Prerequisites for enrollment: Enrollment in this course requires senior standing in the
Wildland Restoration major and formal consent of instructor. Prior to enrollment, students
MUST 1) have completed NRSM265 Elements of Ecological Restoration, NRSM365
Foundations of Ecological Restoration and NRSM444 Integrative Ecological Restoration and 2)
have a faculty-approved practicum proposal, a faculty mentor who has agreed to serve as the
course instructor, and a community partner (see above). In addition, the student must submit to
the instructor a draft description of the scope of work to be completed during the practicum.
Once these requirements have been met, the student will receive an override form from the
instructor to allow registration.
Definition of Service Learning: This course has the “Service Learning” designation. Service
Learning is a method of teaching and learning in which students, faculty and community partners
work together to enhance student learning by applying academic knowledge in a communitybased setting. Student work addresses the needs of the community, as identified through
collaboration with community or tribal partners, while meeting instructional objectives through
faculty-structured service work and critical reflection meant to prepare students to be civically
responsible members of the community. At its best, service learning enhances and deepens
students’ understanding of an academic discipline by facilitating the integration of theory and
practice, while providing them with experience that develops life skills and engages them in
critical reflection about individual, institutional, and social ethics.
Learning outcomes: By completing this course students should be able to:
1) Work effectively with local professionals and community partners and organizations;
2) Conduct key aspects of restoration projects, including site assessment and monitoring;
NRSM 495_Syllabus _Page 2
3) Engage citizens in assisting with volunteer restoration work; and
4) Communicate effectively with restoration professionals and community partners.
Requirements: All of the following must be completed before credit can be assigned.
a) At least three meetings with the instructor and sponsor to develop the practicum work and to
reflect on the practicum experience: an initial meeting during the first two weeks of the
semester to finalize the contract (see below), a midway check-in during which the student
provides a status report, and an exit interview. [It is the student’s responsibility to initiate
these meetings and to come to the instructor with any concerns or questions during the
practicum.]
b) A practicum contract, to be signed by the student, instructor, and sponsor after the first
meeting. This contract must list: 1) expectations for specific work to be done, 2)
requirements for the final paper (see below), and 3) process of evaluation. [The practicum
requires a minimum of 135 hours of work for 3 credits, with a maximum of 270 hrs for 6
credits (45 hours per credit).
c) A final report of activities performed and hours worked based on the scope of work set forth
in the contract.
d) A student-led volunteer work day, with a minimum of six participants.
e) A final paper summarizing practicum findings and/or projects; this paper must include a
significant amount of literature research. Its length and format should be determined by the
instructor and sponsor upon at the start of the practicum. A first draft of the paper must be
submitted to the instructor and sponsor at least three weeks before the end of classes for
review and required revision.
f) A self assessment by the student, reflecting on the practicum experience and his/her selfevaluation of performance.
g) A letter from the sponsor evaluating the student’s performance.
All final materials must be turned in no later than the last week of classes.
Evaluation: Student performance will be evaluated by the level of initiated exhibited and the
quality of work completed during the practicum (including the final paper). The final grade will
be assigned by the instructor in consultation with the sponsoring organization. The rubric for
evaluation will be included in the practicum contract (see above).