Some of the most valuables lessons in health and human services happen outside the classroom. Through service-learning opportunities, YSU students have the chance to apply their knowledge and skills, gain hands on experience, and connect with communities while learning from different cultures and perspectives.
A great example of this is YSU’s Rwanda service-learning experience, a program that has provided social work and nursing students with opportunities to learn and serve abroad. In May 2026, another group of students prepared to continue that tradition.
The group included students, faculty, alumni, and community partners from the YSU Nursing and Social Work programs. Long before the trip started, participants spent months preparing for the experience and collecting donations that would support the communities in Rwanda.
In total, the group collected 14 suitcases filled with therapy supplies, braces, first aid materials, school supplies, clothing, shoes, and other essential items.
While the service-learning experience was designed to provide students with hands-on learning opportunities in Rwanda, it also became a lesson in adaptability and leadership.
The day the group left on their journey to Rwanda, news of an Ebola outbreak in the region led to an important health and safety review. After careful consideration and guidance from international health organizations, students and faculty made the decision to cancel their portion of the trip.
However, the group chose to make the most of an unexpected situation. Before returning home, they spent time in Brussels and took a day trip to Paris. Although it was not the experience they had planned, it provided an opportunity to reflect, support one another, and process the events together.
Dr. Sherri Harper Woods, Associate Professor of Social Work, noted that students demonstrated resilience throughout the experience. Nursing students offered comfort and support to their peers, while Social Work students helped others manage stress and emotions. The experience became a real-world lesson in compassion, adaptability, and interdisciplinary teamwork.
Although the experience did not unfold exactly as planned, students gained valuable insight into public health decision making, risk assessment, and leadership. They witnessed how health and human services professionals prioritize safety while remaining committed to serving communities around the world.
Even with the unexpected changes, the mission itself continued through YSU alumni and community partners who where part of the group. The 14 suitcases filled with therapy supplies, braces, first aid materials, school supplies, clothing, shoes, and other donated items still reached the communities they were intended to support.
The impact extended beyond donations. In 2023, Danyell York Logan and Jen Smaltz participated in the Rwanda service-learning experience as students, providing school-based social and emotional support and workshops.
This year, the social work alumni returned as independent practitioners and presented their master class, “Tools for Resilience: Managing Stress and Emotional Impact in Trauma Work,” three times to clinical psychologists, social workers, counselors, University of Rwanda faculty, and other health practitioners in Huye.
While the journey looked different than expected for our current students, it reinforced an important lesson about service and community engagement.
Through service-learning experiences like this, students gain exposure to different cultures, apply the skills they learn in the classroom, and develop a deeper understanding of global health and community engagement.
These experiences help prepare future health and human services professionals to lead, adapt, and serve diverse communities throughout their careers.
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