ABSTRACT
Incorporating service-learning and political engagement into a computer science course has been challenging but well worth it. Students are expected as the service-learning requirement to work every week with a local organization such as a drop-in computer lab or an after-school program to try to help bridge the digital divide. The project gave students experience working in groups, using modern tools to share code, developing databases and Web-based applications, and assisting a real client on a project with changing, sometimes underspecified, outcomes. Students came to understand how staff in a large governmental office work to address social equity dilemmas and the complexity and difficulty of even understanding the parameters of the problem much less articulating a solution. Most important, they developed an increased sense of agency and belief that they could influence the world around them utilizing their academic and career skills.
