During this workshop, participants will learn about the development of the K – 12 Purpose in Community service program at The Spence School. They will learn how the Spence service team used a backwards design approach to build a shared understanding among faculty of what it means to have a public purpose. Participants will see the eleven essential understandings, as well as counterpoint misunderstandings, that guide service curriculum development at Spence. They will also learn how to use Critical Friends Group protocols to produce buy-in among faculty and how to translate this shared understanding to students. The workshop will challenge commonly held beliefs about service and provide a new way of envisioning service learning in a school. Participants will leave with a new understanding of what is means to have a public purpose as well as a framework for use in their own schools.
