Sincere Engagement: My Time at the Lexington City Office on Youth

Abstract

Pairing community engagement with reflective practice enables students to develop a thorough and passionate understanding of their communities. Theorists specialized in service-learning find that students’ educational attainment is greatly enhanced when individuals invest emotionally into their studies (Eyler and Giles, 1999). Thoughtful community engagement creates an outlet to make genuine connections and formulate real-world applications to complex issues. The following is a thoughtful exploration of the benefits of reflective practice in community-based learning through one student’s experience of service in Lexington, Virginia.