UW Law School students kick off first year with community service

The 260 students starting at the University of Wisconsin Law School this fall arrive on campus expecting to be immersed in lectures or hefty reading assignments.

But one of the first items on the syllabus for them will be a community outreach day. On Thursday, Aug. 26, they’ll head to a dozen sites around the Madison area to meet with senior citizens to do a variety of intergenerational activities, including discussions about current events, garden tours and talking about their life experiences.

In the past, incoming classes of law students have done a community service project, such as picking up trash or pulling weeds. But this year, school administrators thought it would be more beneficial to engage the students in the community from the beginning of their law school careers and promote intergenerational learning, says Kimberly Frank, student services coordinator at the law school, who organized the day of service.

“Our students should be volunteering and helping the community, because it helps with their professional development,” Frank says. “What better way than to hear from those people who have such great life stories and likely have had some sort of interaction with a lawyer in the past?”

Students will participate in different activities at each site. At Oak Park Place on Madison’s east side, 50 students will participate in a variety of activities. About a dozen students will go on an outing to Olbrich Gardens with the assisted living community’s residents. Another group of students will be at the facility participating with residents in such activities as playing trivia, bingo and video games, listening to music and helping with such household tasks as changing smoke detector batteries.

“We have so many wonderful programs that happen every day at Oak Park Place. From the rain garden with native prairie plants to discussion groups and Wii tournaments, there is something for everyone,” says Jasmine Rogness, regional director of marketing for Oak Park Place. “The residents and staff at Oak Park Place are excited to share a day of service with incoming University of Wisconsin law students.”

More than two dozen students will visit the Middleton Senior Center for lunch and a lecture on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico with Dan Cornelius, a recent graduate of the UW Law School who is working on a master’s degree in environment and resources at UW–Madison. Students will discuss the issue with seniors following the lecture, says Laura Langer, program coordinator for the Middleton Senior Center.

“When you bring in a topic like this one, it’s a great situation and the seniors can interact with law students and teach each other more about where they’re coming and how they view the same current event,” Langer says.

Langer says she’s encouraged that UW Law School is working to get its students involved in the community and is hopeful some students might return to volunteer at the center.

“Middleton and the UW aren’t that close (in proximity), but they feel the connection to the life outside the university in Madison,” Langer says of the students’ involvement.

For a full list of sites and activities, please contact Kim Frank at the UW Law School at (608) 890-0140 or kafrank2@wisc.edu.