The educational benefits of operating a service-learning course as a corporate structure: lessons learned through CEDC

Clemson Engineers for Developing Communities (CEDC) is an engaged service-learning program open to students of all majors. The course is modeled around a corporate business structure with students holding roles as program directors, project directors, functional directors, project managers and group members. The organization is currently working on fifteen projects involving global stakeholders including the United States, Haiti, Colombia, and Ecuador. This study focuses on the educational outcomes for students who held leadership positions in the program. Rooted in Professional Socialization Theory, ten interviews were conducted with CEDC student leaders. Interviews surrounded the central research question of: What are the educational outcomes for CEDC students that are unique to the program? Interview results suggest that CEDC is a supportive atmosphere where students can gain real-world experience in corporate-type roles in ways that no other current course at the institution allows. Additionally, nine out of the ten interviewed students stated that participation in CEDC had created an altruistic shift in their career goals. Future work for the organization includes continued growth of the program both by reaching new students at Clemson and expanding the mission to other institutions, while continuing to address complex community resilience and sustainability challenges.