The Student Experience, Sustaining Hoosier Communities

Students are engaged

Engaging with Indiana’s rural communities provides students with opportunities to apply their knowledge and skills, advance their professional and career interests, communicate with diverse audiences, and problem-solve with people outside their immediate field of study.

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"Engaging with the community enhanced my learning by allowing me to use my skills and knowledge gained in school in the real world."

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Student writing in a notebook.

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"It helped me realize the importance of using my abilities to improve the lives of others and the rewards that come along with that."

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Hands plugging wires into a circuit board.

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Image one: Two students identifying leaves in the woods.
Image two: A person receiving a blood pressure exam.
Image three: A group of students measuring a window.

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"It opened my eyes to the importance of recycling and will make me live a more sustainable life moving forward."

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The Orange County Recycling co-op with bundles of cardboard.

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"I gained a better understanding of the importance in developing sustainable practices in rural communities."

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An egg carton being reused to start vegetable seeds.

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"This project further encouraged me to pursue an entrepreneurial career."

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Paoli Tomato Products Company building.

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 "This project has influenced me to think about volunteering to help out local communities after graduation."

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Students surrounding a sign for the Blue Jacket Trail in Lawrence County, Indiana.

[Photo collage]
Image one: Nursing students sitting and talking.
Image two: Students standing in a circle and talking.
Image three: Students sitting at a table eating food.

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 "It enhanced my learning because I had to put myself in the shoes of a county extremely different than the county I grew up in."

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Old building in Paoli, Indiana.

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 "It opened my eyes to what it’s like to be a community leader in small town America."

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IU faculty sitting at a table with a police sheriff.