What is Service Learning?

Entry 1: Selection of the Service Learning Project 

In the Service Learning Project, the project chosen is volunteering in the “Habitat for Humanity” program. The organization works to bring together families, resources and volunteers to enhance the provision of affordable housing that is simple and decent, especially in areas inhabited by low-income populations. Additionally, the organization plays a critical role in the promotion of self-sufficiency, promotion of health, and nurturing of young volunteers ( Lough, 2013) . As such, the project is geared towards creating communities inhabited by the economically empowered population living in safe homes. 

Life, as well as professional experiences, influenced the choice of the project. First, during my early childhood, I resided in a neighborhood where the majority of the population was low-income earners. As such, I witnessed their struggles living in poor neighborhoods. In these houses, water and basic sanitation were significant challenges in addition to overcrowding, where nearly half of the population slept at night while the rest went to work in bakeries. Having held various leadership positions in clubs and societies in college and high school, I developed skills that are critical in finding solutions, especially for problems affecting my immediate communities. Therefore, I find this experience useful in contributing to the realization of affordable and decent housing for all. 

Professionally, I have worked with the city council, which has the provision of affordable housing as a primary responsibility. The local authorities develop strategies aimed at providing incentives for building safe and habitable houses affordable by low-income earners. Consequently, I found it vital to work towards the realization of these strategies hence the choice of volunteering in the program. Further, as a professional, it is always critical to productively use time out of work. Engaging in this project is an important way of improving my productivity primarily through contributing to the well-being of society. Additionally, organizations are making it a priority to have a workable corporate social responsibility ( Tsuruda, 2018) . As part of work ethics, volunteering with the “Habitat for Humanity” forms an individual responsibility similar to organizations’ corporate social responsibility. 

The project is important in building self-confidence while creating an identity for self. Doing good to others provides a natural sense of accomplishment and pride, making one feel better about self ( Laquian, 1978) . Further, the project is important, noting that it will increase my social and relationship skills as well as creating networks. Also, volunteering provides a platform to learn new job skills such as communication, public speaking, and marketing skills, which are crucial in improving professional expertise. In the community, the project will improve their welfare as well as productivity at workplaces noting that without stable, decent shelter everything else falls apart. 

Entry 2: The Project and Course Objectives 

The project is significantly linked to defining the rights as well as the duties and necessities of American citizens. The American constitution strongly supports the equality of its citizens, thus guaranteeing the provision of equal services to the population. Further, it can be argued that all men are created equal with the earth being a mother to all people making them have equal rights ( Samples & Samples, 2002) . Subsequently, engaging in the "Habitat for Humanity" programs acts as an integral step in allowing all individuals to enjoy the fundamental right of being treated equally through the provision of basic needs of clean water and decent housing, which is an integral responsibility of the government. As such, there should be no reason that income disparities ought to deny the low-income earners the right to decent housing. Further, the project works to speak for the less fortunate in the society who often do not have a voice. 

One of the notable duties of American citizens is to participate in their communities where volunteering is a fulfillment of the responsibility. Therefore, engaging in uplifting the standards of the communities within the United States is an adherence to the constitution. The realization of this basic responsibility of a citizen further identifies with the norms that define what is an acceptable society within the United States ( Katz & Bellah, 1993) . The founding fathers of the American nation set the standard of what they deemed an acceptable society where they fought for the liberation of the people regardless of economic status. Consequently, selfless acts such as setting aside several hours for community work can be viewed as working towards the creation of a better society in which all human beings are able to live decently. 

Jefferson, in the “Declaration of Independence” rightly argues that the citizens have a duty of pursuing a better society ( Labunski, 2006) . Thus, since one may not be in a position to create change through changing laws or creating employment, voluntary actions such as in “Habitat for Humanity” can be viewed in the mirror of Jefferson’s vision of the citizenry’s participation in creating a better society. Even though America ranks as among the top economies in the world, it is not devoid of areas that need improvement to cement its status as a top world economy. The work of the “Habitat for Humanity” may be seen as working in one of the areas within the economy that needs improvement, assisting the low-income earners to gain access to decent and affordable housing. 

Entry 3: The significance of a positive attitude 

Working as a volunteer has a myriad of experiences that are both positive and negative, with every experience aimed at bringing out the best in the volunteers in subsequent activities. My voluntary work has not been exceptional and has had numerous encounters that have shaped my view of the world and life in particular. Thomas Jefferson, who is among the most notable founding fathers, posited that a man with the right attitude cannot be stopped from achieving his goals while no help can be given to one with a wrong mental attitude (“ The Declaration of Independence”, 2009) . While focusing on these words, the volunteer experience has become a necessary learning process, especially when coupled with the right attitude. Volunteering with “Habitat for Humanity” has worked as an eye opener regarding how far a community brought together by a common goal can go. Even though it may be regarded as the duty of the government to provide affordable and decent housing to its citizenry, always being critical when it does not adhere to such a duty in totality does not create any change. Castigating these authorities for such failures can be likened with Jefferson’s individual with the wrong mental attitude whose help may never be found. 

Further, a positive attitude may be viewed as the tenet upon which a society is transformed. It is worth noting that as a volunteer, it is paramount to be positive about the volunteer activities engaged in. Instilling such positivity makes it possible to find solutions in the midst of every difficulty. Positivity creates confidence that one will achieve their goals regardless of how dire the situation could be and provides a worthy learning environment. Such an argument would be founded on the resilience that the individuals living in the low income earning societies have continuously pushed on despite the hurdles that they face in their communities. It is such resilience and positivity that should continue to drive the human race and act as a push in harnessing their energies towards achieving common goals whose aim is to lift the societal well-being. It should be noted that societal well-being has immeasurable impacts on individual well-being thus creating the need to foster a community that is adequately catered for ( Horton, 2010) . It should not be ignored that the moral fabric of the American society has been strongly cemented on the value of resilience and the desire to achieve positive results since the war of independence, and thus taking part in the project is vital in maintaining that fabric. 

Entry 4: Community and Inequality 

Volunteering with the “Habitat for Humanity” has drawn my attention to the extent of inequality within the community. While Bellah argues that there has been an observation that gaining equality among community members is neither desirable nor possible, the thought of having a society plagued by inequality is a recipe to dividing such a society into haves and have nots ( Katz & Bellah, 1993). As a result, having such variation builds a community where the societal bonds are undermined. The experience made it more apparent that the have nots often suffer from bitterness that is directed towards the government and the haves noting that having economic power is significantly correlated to political power. In this view, these individuals being helped by the "Habitat for Humanity" may often neglect their democratic responsibilities such as voting, given that they associate political powers with their relatively poor living conditions. 

While working with the project, I felt that Jefferson's view that "all men are created equal" may only apply to a section of the American population. The beneficiaries of the voluntary work provided by the "Habitat for Humanity" are often living in dire conditions despite being citizens contributing to the economic growth through paying taxes. It should be noted that taxes paid to the government are important in providing services to the citizenry. Therefore, the local authorities ought to have a moral dialogue regarding their obligations to their communities. 

Given Bellah's argument that gaining equality in a community may be undesirable or impossible, it should be an obligation of the government to bridge the gap between the haves and have nots in such a way to reduce inequality. It also caught my attention that there is a significant number of outsiders who have knowledge of the existence of "Habitat for Humanity" and its objectives but are skeptical about its operations. In their view, it is the duty of the government to conduct the activities that this organization is working on; thus, they feel it does not serve a purpose. Taking such a point of view has made it considerably challenging to rally support from this section of the community to alleviate the suffering borne by the low-income earners without decent housing. Relying on law or government often underscores the vision of working towards changing the direction of the society and affirming the moral values held by members of these societies. Therefore, I would opine that these individuals in the knowledge of the organization but do not take part in the voluntary work ought to learn from Thomas Paine's view that all people should be our brethren with our religion being doing good to others ( Bailyn, 2018) . 

Entry 5: The benefits of the society 

Another important experience learned during volunteering is the immense benefits that different communities gain from the activities of “Habitat for Humanity”. While the provision of affordable housing is the benefit that the organization is largely known for, there are other notable benefits. One of these benefits is realized through micro-financing, which is integral in promoting self-sufficiency. Working families are supported with funds that enable these families to build durable and safe houses that are congruent with the financial capacity of such families ( Laquian, 1978) . During the project, I participated in assisting families in improving the interior as well as exteriors of their houses with the home renovation model of the project. In such houses, physical necessities that include running water are provided, which alleviate housing instability that often brings depression, stress, and homelessness, which have a chain effect in affecting the readiness of children to learn. Therefore, with the house financing, working families are accorded an opportunity to support the development of their families. 

John Locke’s view on equality is the chief motivator for the employees as well as volunteers within the organization. According to Locke, all men are equal naturally, which has been made the foundation of the obligation that man has amongst each other of mutual love and upon which the ideas of charity are derived (Locke, n.d.) . Understanding Locke’s view impacted on my efforts in volunteer work while learning from other volunteers and employees in the organization. While some of the volunteers are motivated by Locke's opinion, it is worth noting that there is a significant percentage that has been mentored into volunteering by the organization. "Habitat for Humanity" has developed a K-12 curriculum that is used in educating young learners and cultivating a desire to volunteer at a young age. Participating in teaching these learners proved useful in boosting my communication skills while getting the further motivation to volunteer from the enthusiasm exhibited by the young learners. 

In addition to teaching and building houses, “Habitat for Human” also engages in promoting healthcare within different communities. An important lesson during the healthcare campaigns and camps that I participated in was the fact that volunteering has been widely viewed as a "poor man's affair", which is not accurate. The measure of a "poor man" in volunteering may not necessarily be founded on economic power but instead on the immediate needs that such an individual has. A sickly person is poor in health and requires the services that are offered by volunteer organizations in nearly equal measure as a low-income earner living in an overcrowded house that poses safety hazards. 

Entry 6: Conclusion 

The volunteer project has created notable lessons that are critical in shaping self as well as influencing the society. According to McConnell, when governments commit to doing everything, there is no space that is left for individuals and organizations such as churches to engage with the society. As such, even though citizens pay taxes, which ought to trickle down to them in service provision, other players in the society have a responsibility in ensuring a prosperous society. An important lesson is that human beings have a duty towards each other, and as Thomas Paine opines, every individual ought to be our brother with our religion being doing others right ( Bailyn, 2018) . The failure of man to fulfill his obligation to his fellow humankind creates a collapse in social, civic, and associational life, which has negative impacts on the society as postulated by David Putnam. In Putnam’s social capital perspective, modern societies are characterized by social organizations that enhance cooperation and action by members of these societies for mutual benefit. 

Within the social capital view, individual actors create a network and strategic alliances that are critical in achieving common goals. The primary aim of building social capital is reintegrating members of the community who have been marginalized by the economic systems back into the society ( Elkin, 2013) . Putnam's ideas are congruent with the views of Thomas Jefferson that the citizens have an obligation to create a better community. The “Habitat for Humanity” organization is a notable example of the impact that social capital can have on the society. Having the ability to mobilize human capital by the organization geared towards creating a better society is an exhibition of the importance that social capital plays in the betterment of societies. 

The theme of radical individualism is seen at play in this project with emphasis on individual rights as an essential of a free society (“ Why has Radical Individualism been Promoted”, 2017). However, in a moral society, individual rights are insufficient since a moral society may be unable to sustain itself without a sense of shared goodness, caring, and virtue. Thus, it is important to identify and coordinate the values articulating how individuals should act or live. Therefore, the flourishing of society through the involvement of volunteer organizations requires that radical individualism be downplayed in efforts to set up a code of what is morally acceptable. 

References 

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Willensky-Lanford, B. (n.d.). Habitat for Humanity.  Encyclopedia of Activism and Social Justice . doi:10.4135/9781412956215.n393