\u202fThe Office of Community-Based Learning (CBL) announces\u00a0the\u00a0third\u00a0cohort of\u202fthe CBL Student Fellows Program. CBL is an\u202facademic\u202fexperience that involves students working with community partners \u2014 individuals, groups and local organizations \u2014 in ways that meet community-defined needs.\u202fThe Student Fellowship Program aims to foster the professional and personal growth of students who are pursuing a CBL project alongside a faculty mentor.\u202f<\/p>\n
Projects\u202ffocus on a plethora of areas and interests\u00a0such as exploring the benefits\u00a0and limitations\u00a0of AI\u00a0use in English Language instruction,\u00a0understanding the lived experiences of women and their healthcare needs,\u00a0coordinating a career exploration workshop\u00a0for youth in Scranton, assessing food insecurity in\u00a0Scranton\u00a0through program assessment and client experience,\u00a0early language and literacy development for preschool children and\u00a0identifying gaps in access to pet healthcare services and providing educational resources to pet owners in Scranton.\u00a0<\/p>\n
All projects are in collaboration with community partners and aim to improve or expand\u202fthe services\u202fthey provide.\u00a0The fellowship program will run throughout the\u00a0spring\u00a0semester.\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Spring 2026 CBL Student Fellows are listed below, including\u202ftheir involvement and a description of each intended project.\u202f\u202f\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lauren DeSantis\u00a0\u201926\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lauren DeSantis\u00a0\u201826\u202fis a senior\u202ffrom\u00a0Copiague, New York, in the\u202fCollege of\u202fArts and\u202fSciences studying \u202fEnglish and philosophy.\u00a0Her project\u00a0focuses on understanding how free,\u00a0accessible\u00a0AI tools can support English Language Learning (ELL) instructors. The project centers on educator\u00a0perspectives on the benefits and limitations of AI use in real classrooms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
By grounding her research in the lived realities of local instructors, the project aims to\u00a0identify\u00a0tools that are\u00a0 innovative and culturally responsive, and practical while considering the community\u2019s existing resources.\u00a0DeSantis seeks\u00a0to offer a free training workshop to give instructors hands-on exposure to AI tools they choose to incorporate\u00a0into\u00a0their teaching.\u00a0This project moves to inform broader conversations among educators, community organizations and institutions in the local\u00a0Scranton community about how emerging technologies can be\u00a0utilized\u00a0responsibly to support language learning.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Jessica Ely ’26\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jessica Ely \u201826\u00a0is a\u202fsenior\u202ffrom\u00a0Dimock in the\u00a0College of\u00a0Arts and\u00a0Sciences. She has a major in\u00a0biology, a minor in\u00a0psychology and a health humanities concentration.\u00a0Her project aims to use graphic medicine to center\u00a0the\u00a0lived experiences of women\u00a0and other marginalized patients navigating healthcare in the Scranton community. The project highlights healthcare as a\u00a0deeply\u00a0human journey shaped by access, cost, policy and emotional well-being.\u00a0Project partners include Maternal\u00a0and\u00a0Family\u00a0Health\u00a0Services\u00a0and the Edward R. Leahy\u00a0Jr.\u00a0Clinic for the Uninsured.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ely aims to hear from students and community members connected to organizations in the area through\u00a0anonymous surveys\u00a0to gather firsthand perspectives on women\u2019s health concerns.\u00a0These local\u00a0perspectives\u00a0will inform a public-facing educational comic that reflects the realities and challenges faced by people in the region, making complex topics more approachable and visible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
By distributing the comic at partner organizations and online, Ely aims to increase awareness and empower individuals to make better-informed decisions about their health. Grounded in The University of Scranton\u2019s Jesuit values of\u00a0cura\u00a0personalis\u00a0and social justice, this project blends art, public health and advocacy to\u00a0foster a more informed and connected community.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gianna\u00a0Familetti ’28\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gianna\u00a0Familetti\u00a0\u201828,\u202fis a\u202fsophomore\u202ffrom\u00a0Dalton, in\u202fthe\u202fLeahy College of Health Sciences. She has a major in\u202fcommunication sciences and disorders as well as a minor in Psychology.\u202fGianna will be teaming up with\u00a0Marywood University\u2019s after-school\u00a0program,\u00a0Students Together Achieving Remarkable Success (STARS),\u00a0to expand post-secondary education and career awareness through interactive, panel-style workshops.<\/p>\n
The youth\u00a0participating\u00a0in the STARS program\u00a0will\u00a0have the opportunity to engage directly with students, faculty, and staff from The University of Scranton about college life, academic majors and diverse career pathways.\u00a0By pairing peer-to-peer conversations with faculty insight and interactive campus activities, the workshops aim to make higher education feel more accessible and achievable for local students.\u00a0Drawing on her own experience as a\u00a0first-generation\u00a0college student, Familetti brings empathy and mentorship to students facing uncertainty in their academic paths.\u00a0This project supports the local community by empowering youth to envision meaningful futures.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Fiona Killeen ’26\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fiona Killeen\u00a0\u201826\u202f, is a\u202fsenior\u202ffrom\u202fSparkill,\u00a0New York, in\u00a0the\u202fCollege of\u202fArts and\u202fSciences.\u202fShe\u202fhas a major in psychology, along with a minor in political science.\u00a0Her project,\u00a0Navigating Nourishment,\u00a0addresses food insecurity in the Scranton community by\u00a0focusing on\u00a0program assessment and client experience at Friends of the Poor.\u00a0The project centers on the experiences of community members navigating shifting eligibility requirements and access barriers.\u00a0Through the development and administration of a client survey, Killeen is\u00a0examining\u00a0how effectively the pantry meets the needs of the community it serves.\u00a0By analyzing client feedback and overall program effectiveness,\u00a0this project aims to understand how local food\u00a0assistance\u00a0organizations can respond to community needs with greater accessibility and dignity.\u00a0Grounded in the Jesuit value of being men and women for others, this work promotes dignity, equity and care for the whole person.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Tia Varghese\u00a0\u201827\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tia Varghese\u00a0\u201827,\u202fis a\u202fjunior\u00a0from\u00a0Catonsville,\u00a0Maryland \u202fin\u00a0the\u202fLeahy College of Health Sciences.\u202fShe is majoring in communication sciences\u00a0and disorders.\u00a0Her project,\u00a0Little Voices, Big Futures,\u00a0supports early language and literacy development for preschool children from multicultural families in the Scranton community. She is teaming up with\u00a0The\u00a0University\u00a0of Scranton\u00a0Early Learning Center to provide weekly interactive language sessions focused\u00a0on\u00a0storytelling, music and play, alongside\u00a0take-home kits in English, Spanish, and Hindi to extend learning into the home.\u00a0The program draws on evidence-based practices in early language intervention to ensure activities are engaging and\u00a0accessible\u00a0for children of varied language backgrounds and abilities.\u00a0This project responds directly to a community-identified need for\u00a0equitable\u00a0early childhood support\u00a0by addressing early language gaps, which can hold long-term academic and social consequences. Varghese aims to empower families\u00a0with\u00a0tools and strategies to support language growth at home,\u00a0while preschool staff gain a sustainable model for inclusive language enrichment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Olivia\u00a0Zrebiec ’28\u00a0
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Olivia\u00a0Zrebiec\u00a0\u201928 is a\u202fsophomore from\u00a0Belford,\u00a0New Jersey \u202fin the\u202fCollege of Arts and Sciences.\u202fShe is majoring in\u00a0biology with minors in biochemistry and\u00a0history;\u00a0as well as being on the\u00a0Pre-Veterinary\u00a0track.\u00a0Through her project,\u00a0Care for Every Paw,\u00a0she\u00a0aims to partner with\u00a0the Scranton Area Community Foundation\u2019s NEPA Animal Welfare Collaborative\u00a0to\u00a0identify\u00a0and\u00a0address gaps in access to preventative pet healthcare and veterinary education in underserved Scranton communities.\u00a0By working with\u00a0the\u00a0NEPA Animal Welfare Collective,\u00a0Olivia aims to\u00a0identify\u00a0common preventable medical issues, seasonal trends, and patterns linked to environmental factors. This data-driven approach\u00a0would\u00a0allow shelters to better\u00a0anticipate\u00a0medical needs and use limited resources more efficiently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Zrebiec hopes to develop accessible materials, such as pamphlets and social media content\u00a0as well as\u00a0engaging with the public through workshops or information tables at adoption events.\u00a0This project extends care to the full ecosystem of families, communities and animals that provide much-needed companionship and emotional support.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n