DukeEngage is furthering its efforts to improve students’ post-immersion experiences as part of a long-term goal.
In March, DukeEngage will offer a new event for program alumni: a study tour to Washington, D.C. where students can engage with domestic offices that overlap with some of their past DukeEngage experiences. A major component to improving student experience is through programming events after students have completed their DukeEngage programs, DukeEngage Executive Director Eric Mlyn said. This is a notable addition given the program’s recent commitment to improving and continuing students’ experiences once they return from their various summer programs.
“This trip to Washington, D.C. is one of the new things we are working on to help students connect their experiences,” Mlyn said. “We will be meeting with the State Department, USAID and various NGOs—it may help students decide what types of careers they want to pursue.”
The trip to the nation’s capital will accommodate 15 program alumni and is part of a larger trend of implementing post-program retreats, Mlyn said, where DukeEngage participants can reflect upon their immersion experiences and potentially transfer or apply what they learned in another setting.
Other directors of DukeEngage programs may also apply to form their own post-program retreats, Mlyn noted. Although there are no other retreats currently available, all DukeEngage participants are eligible to apply for the Washington, D.C. program. This strategy is one of many recent boosts meant to improve the program.
Late last May, the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations presented DukeEngage with a two-year $190,000 grant. The grant was targeted toward improving the student experience throughout the program, such as reforming the DukeEngage Academy and planning events after students have completed their summer experiences. The Charlotte-based Duke Endowment also presented the University with a $20,000 grant to support long-term evaluation of DukeEngage. The grant helped fund the salary of a DukeEngage staff member to oversee the assessment process, Mlyn said.
“We conduct surveys of our students, faculty and community partners before and after our program,” he said. “From our 2010 numbers, 98 percent of our students indicated that their DukeEngage experience had a ‘great impact’ on them.”
Six months after their DukeEngage program concluded, more than 50 percent of participants responded that they want to increase their involvement in community service, Mlyn added. About 21 percent of students remarked that DukeEngage also affected their choice of majors and courses.
Aside from the primary eight-week summer program, senior Jonathan Lee said DukeEngage is indeed active in following up with its students after the program is over. Lee participated in the Zhuhai program last summer.
“After the summer, DukeEngage students attended an event called ‘Back at Duke,’” Lee said. “There were tables that featured materials from the various programs, and we were able to talk about our experiences with other program participants.”
The Duke Center of Civic Engagement has also partnered with DukeEngage to enhance the student experience. One program that is currently in place is the Civic Thursdays series, which brings together civic-minded individuals to talk about their experiences, DCCE Faculty Director Leela Prasad said.
“We were fortunate enough to have Dr. Mlyn serve as moderator of our November event, Technology and Civic Engagement,” Prasad wrote in an email Monday. “We hope that undergraduates with civic engagement experiences continue to attend and reflect on their experiences.”
In the future, DukeEngage hopes to provide more opportunities for its students, Mlyn said.
“We want to give more chances to students since there are many applicants who do not get accepted into their first choice program,” Mlyn said. “The goal is to continue to connect the student experience when the participants are back at Duke.”
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