The louvers in the Sun Yat Sen School gym are open, but the 20 students sitting at the rusted desks still cannot help but fan themselves with sheets of paper. One of the teachers pinches the neckline of his UH-logo shirt, pulling the fabric away from his sticky skin as he raps out questions, the answers to which his student has already committed to memory. O'ahu participants include UHM, Kapi'olani Community College and Chaminade University. The Manoa campus is entering its third and final year as part of this program. At Manoa and KCC, students who fulfill the required amount of service time can write a reaction paper in place of a research paper in participating social science classes.
Some classes also offer additional credits.
Many professors integrate specific service learning projects into their class curricula. The program was established by the Chinese Community Action Coalition about four years ago. Ethnic studies professor Gregory Mark, who was president of the organization at the time, cofounded the effort. The program is the brainchild of a previous initiative by the coalition to encourage Chinese-American citizens in Hawai'i to register to vote, Mark said. The effort was successful, but Mark, whose father was an immigrant, said he realized what the Chinese community needed most was more American citizens who in turn would be eligible to vote.