Group Dynamics and Team Interaction is a class that is sweeping campus with “Do Good” projects that prompt students to plan something good for their community–and follow through with it. Megan Wood, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies, designed the course to help students focus on working as a team to navigate tasks, and this project was assigned as a way for students to implement the skills they learned into the real world.
Wood talked to me some about how she sees this project, and why she sees the importance of it.
“The Do Good Project is a semester-long group assignment in CAMS 2321 designed to help students apply what they learn in class about group communication and teamwork to a real-world, locally-oriented, and socially impactful project,” wrote Wood. “It’s a hands-on opportunity for students to collaborate, manage group dynamics (e.g. group roles, norms, participation styles, leadership structure, diversity), navigate challenges, and, importantly, make a positive contribution to their community (e.g., ONU, the village of Ada). Through this project, students move beyond theory to directly practice skills in deliberation, logistics, conflict resolution, leadership, resource management, and effective group decision-making. While I guide the students in their endeavor, the Do Good Project is entirely student-led: the class decides everything from the process through which class members split into groups (and why) through to how “success” is measured for their specific project. While the outcomes of their projects are often wonderfully and demonstrably valuable beyond the classroom, the real “assignment” is that each group completes and presents a comprehensive portfolio at the end of the semester that details and analyzes their group’s experience using what they learned in the course.”
Wood also talked with me about why she started this project, and what she hopes students will get out of this experience.
“I’m a great believer in the idea that we get more out of our educational experiences when we feel a sense of responsibility to something other than getting a good grade,” continued Wood. “Inspired by various colleagues who have incorporated service learning opportunities into the curriculum with great success, I envisioned the Do Good Project an opportunity for students to apply what they’re learning in ways that feel meaningful, rather than just hypothetical. Students in this course over the last few years have really risen to the occasion, devising some amazingly worthwhile and ambitious projects that are both challenging and rewarding for them to accomplish with their peers.” Groups are working all across the community to accomplish just this.
One group of students is hosting a feminine hygiene donation drive for their Do Good project. They took this initiative because of a passion they had for helping women have access to feminine hygiene products. These students have decided to partner with the Open Arms facility in Findlay, OH, which provides shelter and services to women experiencing violence, abuse and other situations.
I spoke with Evelyn Megery, a student within the group hosting this drive. She shared with me how this course has impacted her. She also shared why she feels her group’s project holds importance within the community.
Evelyn says that the Do Good assignment “has given my classmates and I the time and resources to perform acts of service in our local communities. This project helps us not only develop as leaders and critical thinkers, but also grow as individuals. I feel that our project is unique because it brings us the opportunity to support local women in times of need. Feminine hygiene care is a necessity, and I believe that our group is putting in the effort to ensure that the women at Open Arms get the resources they need.”
As this drive continues on they are in need of your help as a campus community. If you feel called to help women in need of basic hygiene products you can be a part of this change. The drive has already started, but there is still time to make a difference!
Right outside of the dinning hall, there will be tables set up to collect donations. These tables will be out during dinner from 5-7pm through November 15th. The group is asking for items that include soap, menstrual products (tampons, pads, menstrual cups, etc.), undergarments, washcloths/loofahs, deodorant, toothbrushes/toothpaste, and more. For any questions regarding the drive you can email me at Anna Kate Jackson. The Do Good project will not stop after this semester though. I asked if Wood plans on keeping up with the project for future classes to come and make some difference within the community. She responded, “Absolutely! Since I’ve been at ONU teaching this class, I have seen several projects extend beyond the classroom, I’ve seen new cross-campus friendships and community relationships forged, I’ve seen students use their leadership on these projects to assist them in landing internships or applying to jobs… When I have students leave the course tell me they feel as if they TRULY learned something and have identified a skillset they can build upon, I can’t ask for much more!”
This project is something GOOD, and it is something that you can be a part of now or in the future. So, if you want and can donate to the feminine hygiene drive do some good, take that initiative, and donate! If you are not able to, I encourage you to keep an eye out for future Do Good Projects around our campus community to maybe find yourself able to do some good too.
