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Service Learning/Social Responsibility Project Each student is to do a Service Learning/Social Responsibility Project (SL/SRP). The SL/SRP has two components: (1) social responsibilities audit (SRA); and (2) a community service experience (CSE). During the course of the SRA and CSE, students are required to maintain a journal. A 12-15 page written report will follow completion of the project. The SRA and CSE CANNOT be completed with the same organization. Social Responsibility Audit (SRA): According to Investopedia.com: Definition of 'Social Audit' A formal review of a company's endeavors in social responsibility. A social audit looks at factors such as a company's record of charitable giving, volunteer activity, energy use, transparency, work environment and worker pay and benefits to evaluate what kind of social and environmental impact a company is having in the locations where it operates. Social audits are optional--companies can choose whether to perform them and whether to release the results publicly or only use them internally. Investopedia explains 'Social Audit' In the era of corporate social responsibility, where corporations are often expected not just to deliver value to consumers and shareholders but also to meet environmental and social standards deemed desirable by some vocal members of the general public, social audits can help companies create, improve and maintain a positive public relations image. Good public relations is key because the way a company is perceived will usually have an impact on its bottom line. Source: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/social-audit.asp I would include in the audit, looking at the company’s overall operations and its impact on the community and environment. Those impacts may be positive or negative. Ideally the SRA will be done with regard to the for-profit business for which you are currently working or your family owns. If that is not feasible, you may choose to audit any other local forprofit business that will allow you access or a department/division of the university. (If you want to use a national company, then the SRA would have to concern its local establishment, not the entire company.) Only one student will be approved to perform this SRA for any particular business. Approval will be first-come-first served. Therefore, students should email the professor as soon as possible with their requested organization for the SRA. Instructor approval of the company/firm should be sought by email and must be obtained before the end of the fourth week of the semester. Failure to timely receive approval will result in the student’s grade being reduced by 10 points per week, or part thereof, that approval is late. A student who has not gained approval by the end of the eighth week of the semester will fail the class. 2 You are minimally required to personally interact with senior staff/owners of the firm as part of the SRA; although you are also free to interact with others in the business (with management approval). Therefore, it MUST be a locally-based company/firm. If you want to use a national company, then the SRA would concern its local establishment, not the entire company. This IS NOT an assignment that can be accomplished simply by researching over the Internet. Begin by informing yourself of what the firm does to make the world a better place, other than to sell its goods and services. For example, what social policies does it follow regarding employee issues, community development, environmental waste, giving back to the community, etc.? Does the firm have any defined mission, goals, objectives or policies regarding social responsibility? During the audit, you should think about ways that the firm might more effectively meet social goals. If you find the firm does not have any social responsibility goals, develop appropriate suggested goals/objectives/policies for the firm. Once you have identified the various social responsibility policies and practices of the company/firm, then you should develop recommendations for the company’s/firm’s future regarding social responsibility. You need to present and discuss your findings and recommendations with senior management/owners of the company/firm. Community Service Experience (CSE): Volunteer at least eight hours of your time working for a nonprofit organization or governmental agency that provides social services to the community of your choice. The agency/organization should be one for which you have not previously volunteered. This agency or organization preferably is one with which the SRA firm already has or potentially could have meaningful relationship. You cannot use a community service project that you have already completed, one which you regularly perform, one which is being done to meet some disciplinary penalty (i.e. crime or violation of school policy) or one which you are doing in association with another class or a group of which you are a member (i.e. fraternity, sorority, athletic team, etc.). While working for the agency or organization, think about ways you personally and the SRA firm could help the CSE organization achieve its goals more effectively. Journal: Each student is required to maintain a journal documenting the SRA and CSE experiences. The journal is to be kept contemporaneously with the activities. In the journal for each activity in the SRA and CSE, the student should note the date, start time and end time, people involved, description of activities/discussions/etc. (this should give the reader a clear indication of what happened). The typed journal is to be attached to the paper when submitted. Written Report: The written report should: (1) introduce the projects, including your expectations going into the project; (2) provide your understanding of the meaning/nature of corporate social responsibility and ethical responsibilities of business; (3) present your SRA in detail to include: (a) a brief introduction of the company (b) with whom did you meet, how often and long were the meetings and an overview of the content of the discussions (c) a detailed explanation of other actions you took in regard to conducting the SRA 3 (d) a detailed explanation of your findings (strengths and opportunities for improvement in social responsibility) (e) detailed explanation of the recommendations, costs associated and desired benefits; (4) explain who in the firm you presented the results of the SRA and summarize the discussion between you and the representative(s) of the firm; (5) describe your CSE, including: (a) a brief overview of what the CSE organization does (b) specifically (an in detail) what you did during the 8 hours of community service work (c) how your efforts furthered the mission of the CSE organization and benefited society (d) how your efforts benefited you (6) suggest a plan for how the firm might cooperate with and help your chosen organization or agency meet its goals (If you do not think this cooperation would be possible, explain why not); (7) specifically describe what you learned in the SRA and/or CSE that addressed course objectives/desired learning outcomes 1-8 (see pages 2-3 of syllabus); and (8) tell what you personally gained from the overall experience (SRA and CSE). (9) in an appendix include verification of CSE hours. It would seem that the first and second components combined should take about 8% of your written report; the third component about 45%; the fourth element about 5%; the fifth element about 20%; the sixth component 7%, the seventh component 10% and the eighth component 5% (although there may be good reasons as to why the space allocation would be otherwise). The report should be detailed, not simply a summary. It is to be in-depth and demonstrate the analysis that you undertook to complete the SLP. The report must follow requirements of the Style Guide posted on Blackboard. The written report is to be submitted through turnitin.com no later than 10:55 p.m. on April 12, 2015. Be sure to attach your journal and the CSE verification to the end of the paper. In the introductory section you should identify the project and state what goals/objectives you had for the project. You might want to share your initial thoughts (before you actually became engaged in the project) about the project. The SRA portion of the report should give a brief introduction to and an overview of what the company/firm does. Included in the introduction should be an explanation of your connection, if any, to the entity and why you chose this company/firm. This should be followed by a detailed description of what efforts you undertook in performing the SRA. Then discuss, in detail, your findings regarding the company’s/firm’s present social responsibility efforts. The next portion should be your recommendations as to the future social responsibility efforts of the company/firm. Finally explain the follow-up efforts with the business you did regarding the findings and recommendations of the SRA (with whom did you discuss your findings and recommendations; their reactions; etc.). In covering the CSE, again begin the section by identifying the agency/organization and briefly explaining what it does. Also include the details of any relationship between the agency/organization and the company/firm that you performed the SRA upon. Then explain why you chose this particular agency/organization for the CSE. This should be followed by a detailed explanation of what you did during the volunteer hours you performed. Finally, again in detail, explain how your efforts furthered the mission and goals of the agency/organization. 4 Share your recommendations for strengthening an existing relationship between the two entities, if such a relationship already exists. If no relationship has been established, then you want to make recommendations for how such a relationship could benefit both entities. In regarding to your learning, through the service learning project as reflected in the written report, the student should address each of the following: 1) the evolving meaning and nature of corporate social responsibility; 2) the ethical responsibilities of business; 3) the power of corporations and industries, past and present, to shape our world; 4) how forces in and outside of business firms are changing the management task, altering business operations, and modifying stakeholder expectations; 5) an understanding of how influential ideas in the business environment shape the businessgovernment-society relationship; 6) the importance of law and government regulation as a force guiding business behavior; 7) an ethical and philosophical basis for making business decisions; 8) incorporating the knowledge of many fields through an interdisciplinary approach; 9) Analyzing appropriate issues in the business-government-society relationship; and 10) Evaluating ethical and/or social responsibility aspects of a controversy in business. In the final section of the paper, you should reflect on the entire project (SRA and CSE). What did you personally gain, if anything, from both the SRA and CSE experience? How has or will this project change you? Again this should show in-depth reflection on your part. Verification of CSE: The CSE hours must be verified by the organization for which the service was rendered. This should be done on the organizations letterhead or by email to you using the organizations official email address. The verification must include the total number of hours volunteered. This verification must be included as an appendix to your service learning report. Failure to include it in your report will result in a ten point deduction in the overall

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