Evelyn Pham, Soleyana Getachew, Jhalak Batta 

CSL 200, Winter 2025, Dr. Jay Friesen

Evelyn: BA Psychology 4th year

Jhalak (Jay): BA Psychology and Sociology, 4th year

Soleyana: Criminology, 2nd year  

Who was your community partner, and can you describe the project objectives?

We worked with Alberta Envirothon, and we helped prepare materials for the upcoming Envirothon competitions. As event support, we created tutorial videos and slides on technology use, organized testing materials and developed test questions. 

What was the biggest takeaway from your CSL placement?

The biggest takeaways from our CSL placement at Alberta Envirothon was gaining a deeper understanding of how important behind the scenes work is in community settings. A lot of tasks didn't feel particularly exciting or noticeable, but over time we realized how necessary they were. It let us see that community engagement isn’t always about being visible, it’s about consistency, and showing up even when the work goes unnoticed. We learned that the success of a project often depends on the people who are working quietly in the background, making sure everything stays on track. This experience shifted how we think about contribution. It reminded us that meaningful impact can happen in small steady ways, and that the strength of a community often comes from the people who support it without needing recognition.

How can you apply any newly gained knowledge/skills to your future endeavours (courses/employment/volunteering)? 

We can apply what we learned from our CSL placement by approaching future work, whether academic or community-based with a better understanding of how to contribute in meaningful and consistent ways. Instead of waiting to be told what to do, we feel more confident taking initiative and figuring things out independently. We’ve also become more aware of how our communication affects others, so we will carry that into group work by checking in regularly and being clear about what we can commit to. Even in courses, we will be more mindful of how group dynamics work and make sure we are not only doing our assigned part, but also supporting the process as a whole. This experience taught us to think beyond the surface of a project and focus on what helps things run well from start to finish.

Why should students consider being involved with CSL, and how does it enhance their academic learning?

Taking a course with a CSL placement allows students to apply the knowledge they learn from class. Rather than basing our information on the textbook, we can witness the dynamics and directly apply our learning in the community. By actively applying our learning, we found that it is retained and often is applied outside of the course. CSL placements gives us an alternative opportunity to enhance academic learning and sustain the knowledge in the long term.