BY Mary Ann Albright
Gazette-Times reporter | Posted: Friday, March 9, 2007 12:00 am
Project includes auction, play area design work for the nonprofit
Oregon State University business students are putting the play back in playground, planning an auction and designing a new play area for the Old Mill Center for Children and Families.
As part of business management instructor Sandy Neubaum's organizational behavior class, about 85 students are getting experience planning an event for a nonprofit organization, putting textbook theories on everything from teamwork to goal-setting to leadership into practice.
"I believe that service learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection that enriches the learning experience, teaches students civic responsibility and helps strengthen our communities," Neubaum said.
One section of her class tackled playground design, while the other worked with Old Mill children and local artists to create pieces for the Art From the Heart auction, part of a March 17 benefit for the center. The event will raise money for the center and its scholarship program, as well as drum up pledges for the new playground.
The current play structure was built about 15 years ago. Because the wood was treated with harmful chemicals such as arsenic, it has to be resealed every summer. Also, splinters are a problem, the grass surrounding it gets very muddy on rainy days, and it does not meet standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
OSU students designed a new playground that's accessible for people of all ages and abilities. It will cost between $50,000 and $60,000, including a rubberized ground covering.
To encourage people to contribute to the playground fund, students worked with a Portland-based animation company to create a short video showing what the completed structure would look like.
The video will be shot from a child's perspective, zooming down the slide and swinging on the monkey bars. The soundtrack will be children's laughter.
If finances allow, construction of the playground would begin in the summer of 2008, after the Old Mill Center's current expansion efforts are completed.
Starting this spring the center will add three wings to its Country Club Drive facility.
The benefit, now in its 27th year, typically raises about $150,000 for the center, according to Rebecca Sario, Old Mill development coordinator.
Both sections of Neubaum's class divided into teams of six or seven students and tackled specific elements of the event.
The Old Mill Center for Children and Families is a nonprofit organization serving children from birth to age 18, as well as families in need. The center addresses issues such as mental health, special education, occupational therapy, domestic violence and abuse prevention.
Last year Old Mill served more than 1,500 children and families, according to Executive Director Bev Larson. The goal is to never turn any child away based on the family's ability to pay for services.
To coordinate the auction, students put the organizational skills they learned in class to the test.
"It shows massive collaboration," said Ashley Hopson, a senior from West Linn majoring in nutrition and food management.
"It was a life-changing experience. This is the first project I've worked on that's actually real and will help people," she said.
"This isn't hypothetical, and there are real jobs doing things like this at nonprofits," added Gavin Johnson of Roseburg, a senior computer science major.
Mary Ann Albright can be reached at maryann.albright@lee.net or 758-9518.