2004 National Gathering of Educators for Community Engagement

Posted by on September 19, 2003

Mark Your Calendars Now for the 10th Anniversary National Gathering!

The Educators for Community Engagement National Gathering (NG) will be held June 17-19, 2004, at Berea College, in Berea, Kentucky, on the edge of the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Pre-conference workshops will be held in the morning and afternoon on June 17. The NG will officially open with an evening reception and dinner, Thursday, June 17th and close Saturday evening, June 19th.

Unlike traditional conferences, the National Gathering is structured around facilitated learning circles that begin meeting Friday morning and end on Saturday. Participants will select a topic important to service-learning and social justice, and join that learning circle for the duration of the gathering. In the learning circle, we share our knowledge and stories about the topic through extended deep dialogue that is individually and collectively empowering and transforming.

Berea College offers a unique setting for celebrating our past and looking forward. Service learning at Berea reflects the College’s distinctive commitments. The College was founded in 1855 to serve the Appalachian region and to provide interracial education, especially to African Americans and whites, men and women. Berea is a federal work college, and is unique in that it offers full-tuition scholarships to all students, who must come from low-income backgrounds. The rich cultural, service, and social justice traditions of Appalachian communities will provide an exciting context for our Gathering.

As Host Coordinator for the 2004 NG, I encourage you to start thinking about attending the NG at Berea, and to consider bringing a team (faculty/ service-learning coordinator, service-learning student and community partner). Additional information and registration materials will be available soon. We hope you’ll join us as we gather in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains!

Sincerely,
Meta Mendel-Reyes