Mary Laver is absolutely glowing, ready to burst at the seams with information about her newest community project, entitled Leadership with Heart.
Laver’s Leadership with Heart classes are all about self-sacrifice and justice; serving the less fortunate of local communities has become the center focus for these inspirational courses. The courses are split into two one-credit classes: Love in Action and Justice in Community. Course one, according to Laver, “explores the dynamics of how compassion can motivate and heal the world.” Course two focuses on ways to address social problems through community organizations.
But, what exactly do these courses provide?
Well, in order to capture the overall mission of the Leadership class, it is necessary to incorporate Outreach Saturdays. Five Saturdays a semester, students volunteer time and effort in places such as soup kitchens to help out with the needy. Other programs include Hunger and Homeless Awareness Campaign, Project Appalachia and Bonner Leaders, in which students commit 300 hours of service in one year and receive an Americorps education grant for participating.
So how does this tie into the Leadership class?
Each student is required to participate in mandatory community service projects. Laver sees this requirement as a spiritual way to touch the community. The community service aspect of the class gives students opportunities to learn in an interactive way about how social change occurs. The class also brings current community leaders in for discussions, as a way to give insight into their jobs. Laver hopes that the Leadership with Heart class expands people’s minds and instills a curiosity that can only by sated by active participation.
Posted to the web by Marisa Gallelli
