L-A College Service-Learning Benefits
Ware Street Inn
July 2003
Two students at USM’s Lewiston-Auburn College recently
completed a valuable service-learning project for a Lewiston
business.
The students, Nora Brennan of Topsham and Susan Beane of Denmark,
are majoring in the baccalaureate program in Leadership and
Organizational Studies. They were both enrolled last semester
in Integrated Software Packages, a course that focuses on
computer-based report, document presentation, and information
development functions. A requirement of the course was the
completion of a service-learning project, and when instructor
Nancy Whitehouse mentioned the Ware Street Inn project, Nora
and Susan jumped right on it.
The Inn, which had recently joined USM Corporate Partners/L-A,
had a need to examine data as part of a long-range planning
process. Owner/operator Jan Barrett said that the two students
took on a project that consisted at first of merely data and
a concept. “The end result, however, laid a very concrete
foundation for the future growth of our business. Nora and
Sue took the raw data of two years worth of turned away reservations
and produced a spreadsheet, graphs, charts, time-lines, financials,
and even a power point presentation demonstrating the need
for the fulfillment of our goals,” said Barrett. “They
did for us what we had the vision for but neither the skills
nor the time to do.”
“This project afforded us a wonderful service-learning
opportunity and enabled us to apply, in a business setting,
the knowledge we had gained in the course,” noted Susan
Beane. It was also great to work with a dynamic and energetic
woman like Jan. It was a great partnership - we were able
to learn and help her business at the same time.”
Anyone interested in more information about service-learning
or Corporate Partners at USM’s L-A College is encouraged
to call Assistant Dean Roger Philippon at 753-6560.
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