4 Pillars of Mindful Service

When a student understands, synthesizes and articulates a brilliant way of framing service learning and community engagement, we all better pay attention.

And this is exactly what has transpired at the International School of Kigali (ISK) in Rwanda. Grade 9 student Aya D. has created a framework called the “4 Pillars of Mindful Service” and she hopes it will guide students and teachers alike at ISK and beyond.

Aya enrolled in the ISK Service Learning Club this year because she wanted to be part of something meaningful. Sara Gregson and Nathan Haines, teachers and service learning leaders at ISK, have founded the club on principles of critical service learning. They want to support students in thinking about service and community engagement in deep, open-minded, reciprocal and inclusive ways.

As a result, as Aya learned about how to think about service learning, she made connections to mindfulness. The idea of four pillars grew in her mind: inclusion, presence, intention, and impact. These pillars, says Aya, are all necessary to engage with others in truly reciprocal ways.

Please watch the interview with Aya and Sara, and please feel free to use the four pillars in service learning and community engagement initiatives at your school. Please give Aya credit and a shout-out if you use her excellent framework!

I am SO grateful to Sara and Nathan for being intentional about engaging students in thoughtwork about service learning, and I am grateful to Aya for being reflective and intentional about sharing her ideas and framework with others.