HONORS EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PROJECT PROPOSAL FORM

Complete this proposal prior to your projects start date and upload it in the UHP Database
(https://webapps.uc.edu/uchonorsstudent). Create a project (Add a new record) in the Tracking Project tab and then
upload your proposal document as an attachment. The deadline for submitting proposals is on the 5th of each month.
While the quality of the proposal is most important, strong proposals are typically 3-4 pages in length (single-spaced).
Please maintain the proposal format.
Basic Information
Full name: Jacqueline Nordmeyer
Email: nordmeja@mail.uc.edu
College: College of Nursing
Major: Nursing
Title of Project: Service with Nazareth Farm
Thematic Area: Community Engagement
Expected Project Start Date: June 1, 2015
Expected Project End Date: June 7, 2015
Project Information
1. Abstract:
In this project, I would be going down to the Appalachian area of West Virginia with a group of college-aged
students. We would be staying at Nazareth Farm, a non-profit farm that is self-sufficient and promotes the ideals
of community, simplicity, faith, and service. While I am there, groups of us will go out into the community and
perform various services for the residents of that area. This would entail fixing roofs, replacing siding, repairing
porches, re-doing flooring, and/or painting various aspects of the house. These services are very important to the
residents because the poverty level in this area is incredibly high, and without Nazareth Farm, they would not be
able to afford these services. Before departure, I will educate my team about the area and use my previous
experience with Nazareth Farm, as well as additional research, to explain the importance of community and the
impoverished area. During this week-long project, I intend to build community among the people in my team and
the homeowners, learn more about the area and residents through immersion and communication, and provide my
skills to help repair homes and increase the quality of life for the homeowners. Upon my return, I will prepare a
presentation with a scrapbook to inform the high school age members of my church about this experience. The
pre-departure research and education of my group members will be roughly five hours and the entire week of
culture immersion and service will be about ninety hours. The service portion of those ninety hours will be about
thirty hours. Total, I will spend ninety five hours preparing for and completing this project.
2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within an Honors Thematic Area:
Within Community Engagement, there are several learning outcomes that connect with my project.
Possesses awareness of purpose of service, including need for reciprocity, understanding of social issues,
and ability to see those issues from multiple perspectives: By going on a service trip to Nazareth Farm, I
will learn more about the immense need for service in the impoverished community. Also, by going to
rural Appalachia, I will develop a different perspective of service. I will not just fixing houses, I will be
working to build a sense of community through compassion and service.
Relates, communicates, and works effectively with others towards sustainable social change: Working on
a small team to complete a large project requires large amounts of communication and participation from
each member. By completing these projects, we will have an improved sense of community with each
other, the homeowners, and the neighbors.
Participates in community and understands own role as citizen of community: In a community, it takes
everyones help in order to accomplish a task. While I am a part of a group that is repairing the house, the
homeowner is assisting as well. This way, it is not just us doing work for that person, but it is us
providing that person with the assistance and materials that they need.
3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories
a. As a future nurse, I need to have excellent communication and teamwork skills, the ability to take
instruction from others and apply it to actions, and the humility that comes from helping others. Through
this project, I will improve my communication and teamwork skills by being a part of the team and

working together to reach a common goal. By being told instructions on how to do something (such as
roofing or siding), I will also improve my ability to follow directions accurately and efficiently. Also, by
reaching out to others in this community, I will have increased levels of humility and compassion.
b. In order to be fully aware of where I am and what problems arise in the Appalachian area, I will read
several articles about the area.
Appalachia: Where Place Matters in Health by Bruce Behringer and Gilbert H. Friedell
Teaching Culturally Competent Care: Nursing Students Experience Rural Appalachia
by Suzanne Macavoy and Doris Troth Lippman
(http://tcn.sagepub.com/content/12/3/221.short#cited-by)
Environmental Justice, Hydraulic Fracturing and Appalachia by Michele Moronne
Natural Gas: Not All Its Fracked Up To Be by Jesse Wood
Why Poverty Persists in Appalachia by Cynthia M. Duncan
The first two articles are directly related to my field of study, and the next two articles are important to
read so that I am familiar with the social and environmental issues in the area. The last article is the most
important to read because it details why poverty still exists in Appalachia and why service trips frequently
visit there.
4. Initiative, Independence, and/or Creativity:
In years past, the youth group that goes down to Appalachia has not educated the participants well about the area.
I believe it is important for all participants to be aware of why the area is impoverished and why we are taking a
service trip down there in the first place. So, for my unique contribution to this project, I will prepare a
presentation for the rest of the participants explaining different characteristics of the area. I will detail aspects
about why the area is so impoverished, the social issues involved in fracking, and the healthcare problems they
face. In addition to the preparation for this trip, I have been to Nazareth Farm previously. Thus, I can use the skills
I gained from the last trip to contribute even more and take more of a leadership role in the projects. For example,
I will be able to teach others how to put siding on a house accurately and replace the support system in a roof.
5. Reflection:
As I am partaking in the service project at Nazareth Farm, I am going to keep a journal. Before I even go on the
trip, I am going to write a journal entry about my expectations and assumptions I have about the area, and I will
predict how it will be different from the previous trip I took. I will write in this journal several times a day, but
particularly at the end of every day to explain what I accomplished and how I felt about it. Throughout my
reflection process, I will keep these questions in mind:
How was todays project similar/different from the rest of the projects throughout the week and last years
projects?
How is the culture here different from back in Ohio?
Do the articles accurately describe the area?
How have my expectations changed from before the trip to now?
How has my perspective changed about the area and the culture?
6. Dissemination:
After the project is completed, I will compile pictures and write a bit about each location and the experiences I
had there into a scrapbook. I will also present this scrapbook to the high school members of the community who
did not choose to go on this trip. Hopefully by sharing my experiences, I can stress the importance of service in
other communities and teach them about the culture of the Appalachian area. The scrapbook will be donated to
the youth group at the church to show future members this great experience.
7. Project Advisor:
Maggie Atkinson: Director of religious education at the Queen of Apostles Community
Contact information: (937)-573-2909. 1211 Shakertown Rd. Beavercreek, OH 45430
I chose Maggie Atkinson to be my advisor because she is in charge of coordinating the youth group and the trip to
Nazareth Farm. She has attended the trip several times and she is very experienced with the area.
8. Budget:
The total cost for this project is $630. $600 is the cost predetermined by Nazareth Farm for lodging ($300),
volunteer supplies ($200), and the organic food provided by the farm ($100). Even though the farm emphasizes
simplicity, utilities and lodging still cost money, about $300 based on the cost of living in that area of West

Virginia, to keep the farm running. The volunteer supplies, such as the tools and the materials used to fix the
homes would break down to $200 per person if there are thirty people in the volunteer group. This is based on the
cost of siding, roofing, and painting materials in West Virginia. The $100 for food reflects the quality of the
organic food there, and they estimate that it is $100 because that would be the cost for a week at a local grocery
store. The $30 remaining is how much the scrapbook materials would cost for the reflection part of this project,
which include the scrapbook itself, paper, markers, and other supplies.