What is Case-DRIVE ?
Case-DRIVE is a collaboration of students, faculty, and staff from Case Western Reserve University established in 2004 and representing the College of Arts and Sciences; the Schools of Dentistry, Engineering, Management, Medicine, Nursing, and Social Work; and the Office of Student Community Service.
Background
The origins of Case-DRIVE date back to 1997, when Professor Douglas Van Auken (School of Medicine) visited the Dominican Republic and was introduced to opportunities for providing public health services in the Guaricano neighborhood of the capital city, Santo Domingo, by a grass-roots organization called FEDOPO (the Dominican Federation of People's Organizations). This contact led to two initial venues in the Dominican Republic for service learning by Case students:
• In 2000, this initial contact led to a student-organized dental care initiative under the leadership of Jeffrey Luffey (graduate of the School of Dentistry , 2002), who, along with 9 other dental students, offered a week-long dental clinic at FEDOPO's headquarters. Since then, teams of dentists and a total of over 150 students have continued this project on a semi-annual basis. Professor James Lalumandier ( School of Dentistry ) serves as the principal faculty contact for this program.
• Under the sponsorship of Professor Van Auken, up to 20 medical students and residents have visited the Dominican Republic both to improve their command of Spanish as well as to gain valuable experience in medical practice in a developing country.
Gradually, these two initiatives helped build the capacity of FEDOPO for a more ambitious project. In addition, relationships with other non-profit organizations cultivated by the Case students involved in the above-mentioned activities laid the groundwork for collaboration with other non-profit organizations.
In April of 2004, Professor Jacqueline Nanfito (Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, College of Arts and Sciences) and Glenn Odenbrett (Director of the Office of Student Community Service, Student Affairs) visited the Dominican Republic to assess possibilities for involving Spanish-proficient undergraduates in linguistic “immersion” experiences that were service-learning based. As a result of that trip, they agreed to:
• plan such an experience for the 2004-2005 “winter break” (December/January)
• attempt to convene a larger group of potential Case stakeholders who might have interest in forming an interdisciplinary, multi-faceted service learning project.
After a series of meetings in the spring and summer of 2004, the stakeholders agreed to establish Case DRIVE as an umbrella for Case service learning activities focused on the Dominican Republic .
Vision
Through Case-DRIVE , Case students will become empowered to address global issues while engaging in service learning activities benefiting non-profit organizations in the Dominican Republic .
Mission
Case-DRIVE provides Case students with rich international service learning experiences in the Dominican Republic , thereby enabling them to develop skills in global citizenship while addressing community-identified needs.
Coordination and Contact Information
Case-DRIVE is currently being coordinated by the Office of Student Community Service (OSCS) at Case Western Reserve University . The contact person is OSCS Director Glenn Odenbrett (216-368-6960; glenn.odenbrett@case.edu ). |
