BATON ROUGE – Dana Hollie, the KPMG Peat Marwick Developing Scholar in the Department of Accounting at LSU’s E. J. Ourso College of Business, was one of 12 LSU faculty members who participated in the Service-Learning Faculty Scholars Program in spring 2010.

The scholars attended weekly, 90-minute seminars to discuss how to best practice service-learning, how to develop new courses that will include service-learning and how to incorporate service-learning into existing courses.

According to Hollie, students in her spring 2010 Intermediate Accounting II course partnered with Junior Achievement of Baton Rouge for their service-learning project. Students presented lectures and discussed topics such as expenses and revenue with fourth-graders at the Baton Rouge Center for Visual & Performing Arts and other local elementary schools.

“Initially many of the students were not excited about the required service-learning component, but once they had an opportunity to participate in the project almost all of them found that the experience was beneficial to them,” Hollie said. “From my Faculty Scholar Program experience, I plan to enhance student learning as well as benefit the students participating in the Junior Achievement Programs.”

Each of the scholars received a $2,000 stipend to use toward experiential education and hands-on learning that will benefit the community. The stipends were funded in part by LSU Student Government as part its student-led initiative to expand service-learning into every department.

As a result of the Faculty Scholars Program, the departments of geology, geophysics, renewable natural resources, philosophy and religious studies will offer service-learning courses in 2010-2010.

The Center for Community Engagement, Learning, and Leadership facilitates the Faculty Scholars Program annually to promote the institutionalization of service-learning courses in every department, encourage interdisciplinary dialogue, and to advance the objectives of the LSU Flagship Agenda. Scholars are selected by a committee of the Service-Learning Advisory Council. For more information about the Faculty Scholars Program or service-learning at LSU, visit the Center for Community Engagement, Learning, and Leadership’s website at www.ccell.lsu.edu or contact CCELL Assistant Director Christy Arrazattee at 225.578.4245.

The Department of Accounting at LSU’s E. J. Ourso College of Business strives for excellence in teaching, research and service to the accounting profession. With a mission of producing graduates at all levels who excel in their pursuits, the department offers undergraduate and graduate programs that prepare students for careers in various fields, including industry, auditing, finance, government and academia.