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Community Impact Certificate

The Community Impact Certificate is designed to provide students with a transformative complement to their chosen academic education at Walla Walla University, impacting them personally and professionally by:

  • Exposing them to new ideas about culture and society, and their place in it;
  • Engaging them in real-world projects and experiences that demand skillful leadership, hard work, and diplomacy;
  • Challenging them to think critically about responsible development and community impact practices;
  • Connecting them with resources that help them build industry connections and experience;
  • Developing their cross-cultural communications skills.
  • Help them develop the skills to assess communities’ needs and develop strategies to respond to those needs. 

This program aims to engage all of its students deeply, fostering a focused community that actively learns, grows and serves together. When the requirements for the emphasis are met, they will receive a certificate on their transcript and diploma that can be seen as representing a degree of expertise in preparing them for humanitarian careers.

Admission to this program is currently unavailable.

Core Class Requirements (4 credits)

SERV 291Preparation for Community Engagement Experience

2
SERV 392Community Engagement Experience

0
SERV 493Reflection on Community Engagement Experience

2
Community Engagement Experience: See description below.

Keystone Core Class Requirement

Must select at least one (credits may also count for the requirement in one of the following sections)
COMM 325Multicultural Communication

3
ECON 220Principles of Global Development

4
ENGR 390/GBUS 390Engineering in a Global Context

4
RELH 303World Religions

4
TECH 321Technology and Society

4

Ethics and Religion (3-4 credits)

HONR 348Topics in World Religious Thought

4
MGMT 463Business Ethics

4
PHIL 305Moral Philosophy

4
RELH 303World Religions

4
RELM 233Introduction to Cross-Cultural Ministry

3
RELT 348Christian Ethics

4

Culture and Sociology (7-8)

ANTH 225Cultural Anthropology

4
COMM 325Multicultural Communication

3
ENGR 390/GBUS 390Engineering in a Global Context

4
LANG 406Language and Culture

3
SOCI 204General Sociology

4
SOCI 234Current Social Problems

4
SOCI 236Privilege and Oppression

4
SOCI 420Immigration and Identity

4
TECH 321Technology and Society

4

Business (4 credits)

ECON 220Principles of Global Development

4
MGMT 470/MKTG 470Principles of Project Management

4
MGMT 488/MKTG 488Global Management and Marketing

4
Total Credit Hours:18-20

Community Engagement Experience

The Community Engagement Experience is designed to immerse students in cultural experiences as they receive experiential learning in community impact. The criteria for successful assignments are that students participate in a minimum of 80 hours of immersion in a different culture while participating in community impact. Acceptable assignments include: 

  • A study experience in a cultural context (ACA, Study Abroad, internship etc.) involving a community impact project. Templates are provided for students wishing to conduct a community needs assessment, develop a business or marketing plan for a local humanitarian service organization, or students may identify their own project given approval by the CICP Committee.
  • A work or service experience in a cultural context (EWB, SM, Maranatha, Peace Corps., Non-Governmental Organization, ADRA, ACS etc.)
  • A short to long-term service social impact project through the CHE working with community with a focus on exposing students to new cultures and populations. (Blue Zones Project, ACS Advocate Program, Millennium Fellowship Program, etc.)