Request for Papers: The Sixth Biennial Faith-Based Service-Learning Conference

The Sixth Biennial Faith-Based Service-Learning conference for teaching faculty, co-curricular faculty, administrators, students and community partners interested in the interactions between spirituality and faith perspectives and service-learning will be held at Messiah College, June 10-12, 2010. Previous conferences have brought together a diverse group of persons for rich conversations and mutual learning.

The conference is of particular interest to persons at faith-based institutions, but is by no means limited. Conference participants are invited to submit papers and facilitate roundtables that discuss theoretical assumptions, community based research, model service-learning programs and pedagogical strategies that build on the strengths of faith traditions and community assets. A distinctive of the conference is the special emphasis given to the ways that particular faith traditions impact service learning and community-based research. This year's theme lends itself to an exploration in how faith traditions contribute to and sustain a vocation to service and learning.

Paper proposals are due March 12, 2010.

Conference participants are invited to submit proposals for papers, workshops roundtables or presentations. These may be conceptual, empirical or descriptions of innovative programs. Roundtable proposal submissions for breakout sessions that actively include dicussion and participants are encouraged. Papers that highlight the distinctive contributions of faith traditions to nurturing a commitment to student and institutional engagement through service-learning are encouraged. Workshops that examine the realtionship of service-learning and disciplinary expertise, as an innovative pedagogy, contributing to original scholarship and/ or the vocational mentoring of students is encouraged. Proposals should be sent via the online web form on the conference website to Chad Frey no later than March 12, 2010 . Persons whose proposals are accepted will be notified as soon as possible and the abstracts will be printed in the conference brochure. Selected papers may also be published in national service-learning journals. Listed below are some possible topics. Other suggestions are welcome.

• Creative programs working at spirituality, social justice, social policy, advocacy, and social change;
• Exploration of the strengths of faith traditions to sustain an call to service for the common good;
• Issues related to building effective asset based community partnerships with both faith-based and other organizations;
• Particular issues encountered in service-learning and/or community-based research at faith-based colleges;
• Integrating evangelism and justice in service-learning;
• Descriptions of model programs and best practices;
• International service-learning;
• Institutionalizing service-learning at faith based colleges;
• Service-learning project planning, design and assesssment