Service-Learning teaching assistants

The Service-Learning Teaching Assistant Program offers faculty critical support for coordinating student service experiences and ensuring quality service and reflection. It gives students a unique opportunity to develop professionally, engage more deeply with the community and collaborate closely with a faculty member. Service-learning teaching assistants work an average of five hours each week throughout an academic semester.

Service-Learning teaching assistants fill a number of critical support roles, including:

• Leading class discussions
• Monitoring student service hours and participation
• Liaising with community partners
• Providing feedback on written reflections
• Planning projects or events related to the course
• Mentoring students about community engagement skills and best practices

Get a teaching assistant

If you are teaching a designated service-learning course in an upcoming semester, consider how an SLTA/SLGTA might help in your service-learning class. Then, talk to an outstanding student about serving as your teaching assistant during the upcoming semester, preferably a student you know and have taught previously.

Once the invited student agrees to work as your SLTA, nominate the prospective service-learning teaching assistant by filling out the online SLTA nomination form. Nominated students must then submit an online SLTA/SLGTA Application.

Working with your SLTA or SLGTA

A teaching assistant can help you manage your teaching load in many different ways, and how you choose to incorporate them into your class is up to you. However your SLTA/SLGTA fits into your class, we ask that all instructors consider the following guidelines for cultivating a constructive relationship with your teaching assistant(s):

• Establish clear job responsibilities for your teaching assistant before the beginning of the semester. This includes expectations for class attendance, grading journals, site visits, regular contact with service sites, monitoring student service hours and facilitating reflection activities.
• Hold weekly meetings with your teaching assistant.
• Introduce your teaching assistant to the class and explain the TA’s role at the first class meeting.
• Act as a mentor to your teaching assistant.
• Empower the position of teaching assistant.

Evaluating your SLTA or SLGTA

Instructors working with a SLTA will be asked to complete a written evaluation of their teaching assistant twice a semester and to share these evaluations with them in constructive, face-to-face meetings. These evaluations function both as grades for your SLTA/SLGTA and as important opportunities to develop professionally.

Become a Service-Learning teaching assistant

SLTAs have opportunities to work closely with faculty mentors and to learn alongside other highly engaged students. SLTAs will:

• Gain real-world experience working as an educator and community liaison.

• Enhance leadership skills and professional identities. 

• Gain self-knowledge such as awareness of personal strengths and leadership styles.

• Develop interpersonal skills such as resourcefulness, giving and receiving feedback, working with diverse populations and listening without judgment.

• Improve problem-solving and critical-thinking skills.

• Deepen understanding of civic and social structures and their impact on everyday life.  

• Collaborate with a faculty member and mentor. 

• Gain networking opportunities and build résumé credentials for future education or employment.


Application process

Students who are interested in becoming SLTAs must be nominated by a VCU service-learning instructor. All STLAs take academic courses and receive academic credit for their coursework as service-learning teaching assistants.

To become an SLTA:

• Service-learning instructors must nominate the prospective service-learning teaching assistant by filling out the online SLTA nomination form.

• The nominated student then completes and submits the online SLTA/SLGTA Application.

• Specific information and courses: