SALT LAKE CITY — Navajo residents in the “four corners” region, at-risk Salt Lake area junior high and high school students and local communities will all benefit, along with University of Utah and Westminster College students, from three grants recently awarded by the PacifiCorp Foundation for Learning, the charitable arm of Utah Power.

The University of Utah received $10,000 for the College of Nursing’s Student Outreach Program; the University of Utah and Utah Museum of Natural History jointly received $10,000 for the Youth Teaching Youth program; and Westminster College received $5,000 to help enhance the school’s service-learning efforts. The grants are part of more than $300,000 awarded by the PacifiCorp Foundation in June 2005, for learning initiatives across the electric utility’s six-state service area.

“The exciting part about these grants is that they all support programs where students are reaching out to members of a larger community,” said Gina Crezee, Utah Power’s regional community manager. “Service-learning helps students to become more aware of the needs and opportunities to serve all around them, while at the same time providing needed assistance for individuals and communities.”

The University of Utah - College of Nursing’s Student Outreach Program allows 10 undergraduate nursing students to take part in a ten-day community health clinical experience on a Navajo reservation. The “Navajo Cultural Immersion Experience” provides students with critical knowledge and experience in the areas of cultural competence, community engagement, the need for consumer advocacy and the types of barriers faced by vulnerable populations. In turn, the Navajo community benefits by receiving physical examinations and health promotion information.

The Youth Teaching Youth program involves University of Utah mentors working with at-risk youth in grades seven through twelve to study a variety of natural history and science topics.  Students are part of the program for up to six years, and receive intensive mentoring and are exposed to new role models in the form of scientists and researchers. Students who progress through the program and meet requirements receive a paid internship to assist with their matriculation from high school to college.

Although faculty at Westminster College already offer several courses with service-learning components and many students are engaged in volunteer service, PacifiCorp Foundation funding will help the College to enhance its current programs and establish additional service-learning opportunities. Both students and members of local communities will benefit from an increase in the number of classes including service-learning curriculum.