Quotes from Past Participants
- “Lives of Commitment contextualizes the academic and puts a focus on the more profound and meaningful endeavors and opportunities available in college and in life.”
- “The students and staff are absolutely the core of the program. I am so impressed by and grateful for the integrity, wisdom, generosity and compassion of the faculty leaders, and the passion, intelligence, and friendliness of the students. Just being in a room with everyone in LOC makes the program worthwhile.”
- “Getting to know real, local, accessible people and learning what they’re able to do IN SPITE OF life’s realities and limitations creates a space that I think is helpful for people trying to discern their own vocation and determine their own level of capacity for agency in the world.”
- “LOC has been a great program to be in my first year at Macalester. It was so nice to be able to come to school early and already have a group that I felt connected to. It provided an aspect of stability throughout the year and helped to make sure I didn’t get so wrapped up in specific parts of the college experience that I didn’t forget what my goals are and why I am at Macalester.”
- “I think that LOC has been a perfect companion experience to my academic work. Classes by and large are very theoretical, and getting hands-on significant experiences working around the socioeconomic, cultural differences we talk so much about in classes was a very important part of my year. It is one thing to talk about it; it is another to actually do somethig to try to help others in our community. LOC has been very rewarding, and it’s made me more focused on what I can do to make a difference.”
- “I learned so much and gained so much valuable experience and perspective through teaching English. I believe this experience has really helped shape what my goals are related to vocation.”
- “I used to be a very closed off person, but LOC has helped me realize that sharing things with people who will be active listeners and not judge is a good way for me to understand my own thoughts. Having a space where nobody will interrupt or try to change my mind is very comforting because then I know I can work through my own thoughts out loud.”
- “At Macalester we talk a lot about social justice and the need to improve the lives of the underprivileged members of our society, but often people seem to forget about it after you leave the classroom. With LOC, you are engaged in constructive activity that makes a difference in the lives of others. There are some very sad stories, and you cannot fix everything, but even a few hours a week can make a difference, whether it is keeping a kid on track at school or helping someone learn English.”
- “At Jane Addams, I’ve had the chance to hear real stories from real, hard-working people. It is laughing and joking with these folks — particularly Leonor, a sassy, creative, energetic octogenarian Afro-Cuban woman – that has helped me to better understand how to avow and disavow difference and similarity. I feel my sense of citizenship itself has, in a sense, been enriched by this experience.”
- “LOC has been one of the primary lenses through which I’ve processed this year. I am grateful for the opportunity to build regular community service and to get to know the community through the faces and lives of its people, of the immigrant peoples who come here.”
- “My most memorable experience was the field trip Jane Addam’s School took to city hall. What a cool way to see democracy in action, with citizens and non-citizens alike getting a close look at local government. All of us from the Spanish circle were given the opportunity to ask our City Council representative questions – we asked about the availability of civic materials in Spanish, library cards for those without documentation, and ways to get involved in the community.”
- “LOC has been an extremely important part of my experience at Mac. The friendships and connections that I have made through LOC are ones that I will treasure for a long time. The opportunity to really examine my gifts, interests and passions in the context of service-related vocation has been exciting and empowering.”
- “I met wonderful people who do wonderful things, while at the same time doing something for the community and getting free food and self-reflection discussion time.”
- “LOC has been a weekly relief from school, really something I look forward to.”
