University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Service-learning and character development: an analysis of Up with People resulting in a model of global citizens for servant leadership

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Service-learning and character development: an analysis of Up with People resulting in a model of global citizens for servant leadership

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Content Running head: SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 1
SERVICE-LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: AN ANALYSIS OF UP
WITH PEOPLE RESULTING IN A MODEL OF GLOBAL CITIZENS FOR SERVANT
LEADERSHIP

by

Angela M. Broeckel

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

August 2017

Copyright 2017 Angela M. Broeckel

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 2

Acknowledgments
I have been very blessed and fortunate to have a wonderful supportive group of friends
and family who has encouraged me, inspired me, and applauded my efforts while in the Global
Executive Doctor of Education program. First and foremost, a thank you to my partner, Walter
Jenkins, who uplifted my efforts during this process. A thank you goes to my mother and father,
Randal and Pat Broeckel, who also supported me each step of the way.
At the Rossier School of Education, I feel blessed to have had the mentorship from
various professors, specifically my dissertation chair, Dr. Shafiqa Ahmadi, and dissertation
committee members, Dr. Rob Filback and Dr. Helena Seli. Their feedback was crucial to my
learning. Along with my professors, I would also like to thank my fellow cohort 4 members for
embarking on this journey and together encouraging one another over the past two years.
I would like to thank the Up with People organization for allowing me to do this
evaluative study. As a past participant in the Up with People program, and an active alumni, I
am convinced they had a hand in why I chose to pursue servant leadership, service-learning, and
international education as a career.
Lastly, I also thank the Heavenly Father who has given me the strength and gifts to
achieve this goal.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 3

Table of Contents
Acknowledgments 2

List of Tables 5

List of Figures 6

Abstract 7

Chapter One: Introduction 8

Background of the Problem 8

Problem Statement 10

Purpose of the Study 11

Research Questions 12

Significance of the Study 12

Organizational Context and Mission 13

Organizational Performance Status 15

Description of Stakeholder Groups 16

Stakeholder Group for the Study 17

Conceptual and Methodological Framework 17

Definitions 17

Organization of the Dissertation 18

Chapter Two: Related Literature 20

The Benefits of Service-learning 23

The Need for Service-learning in Building Servant Leaders 26

Servant Leadership links to Service Learning and in Practice 28

Leadership Styles 28

Transactional Leadership 30

Situational Leadership 30

Transformational Leadership 31

Personal Leadership 31

Twenty-First Century Leaders 32

Difference between a Servant Leader and a Traditional Leader 35

The History of Servant Leadership 36

Perceptions of Servant Leadership 36

Mismatch of Motivation and Team Cohesiveness 37

The Need for Examining Servant Leadership 38

Characteristics of a Servant Leader 38

Role-Models of Servant Leaders 40

History of Up with People 41

Chapter Three: Methodology 43

Purpose of the Project and Questions 43

Introduction 43

Methodological Framework 44

Assumed Performance-Based Influences 46

Preliminary Scanning Data 46

Participating Stakeholders 48

Data Collection 49

Interview 49

Validation of the Performance Needs 50

Knowledge 50

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 4

Trustworthiness of Data 51

Role of the Researcher 52

Data Analysis 52

Limitations and Delimitations 53

Chapter Four: Results and Findings 55

Results and Findings for Knowledge, Motivation, and Organization Causes 55

Addressing the Research Questions 63

Summary of Chapter Four 74

Chapter Five: Summary, Discussion, Implications, and Recommendations 76

Summary 76

Discussion 77

Implications 92

Recommendations 95

Conclusion 97

References 99

Appendix A: Figure 5.1 (Wong – Measuring Servant Leaders) – HEART TABLE 108

Appendix B: Wong: Measuring Servant Leaders 109

Appendix C: Diamond Pyramid (Wong – Measuring Servant Leaders) 111

Appendix D: Assumed needs of Up with People executive management team 112

Appendix E: Interview Questions 115

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 5

List of Tables
Table 1: Assumed Needs 51

Table 2: Summary of Validated Assumed Knowledge, Motivation, and Organization Needs
& New Needs 57

Table 3: World Dance Class Purpose Error! Bookmark not defined.

Table 4: Take A Stand Purpose Error! Bookmark not defined.

Table 5: Personal Flags Purpose Error! Bookmark not defined.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 6

List of Figures
Figure 1: The gap analysis process (Clark & Estes, 2008). 45

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 7

Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate and examine the effectiveness the stakeholders of
the Up with People program have in preparing students to become servant leaders. The purpose
of this study also was to examine service-learning concepts that educators practice to evaluate
conditions that promote values and ethics as an impetus for introducing servant leadership as a
viable means of transformation across international educational facilities. The study was
qualitative, emphasizing an evaluation of the Up with People organization. A purposeful
sampling of eleven leaders were interviewed from the Up with People organization to answer the
following research questions: What is the current status of Up with People’s leaders’
knowledge, motivation, and organization influences needed to produce servant leaders? What
solutions and recommendations in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and organizational
resources may be appropriate for Up with People’s leadership and service program? and, What
components of the Up with People program are participants receiving in terms of leadership and
service that cannot be found in a traditional education program? The outcome of the study
resulted in the leaders’ knowledge, motivation, and organization being effective in producing
servant leaders for twenty-three validated needs. One of the validated needs was that the leaders
in the program know how to develop servant leaders as evidenced in their curriculum. The
reinforcement of the service-learning component contributes to becoming a servant leader. An
example of a non-validated need was that the leaders did not know how to develop the next
generation of leaders for the organization. A solution to addressing the non-validated need is
that a junior member of the Up with People program would become an integral member of the
executive management team. The junior membership will result in an expansion of social media
to advertise Up with People and how their mission will encourage the development of young
people as servant leaders.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 8

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
The study is an interview with the executive management team and leaders of Up with
People, because one of the problems in the organization is the marketing recruitment materials
that link service-learning and servant leadership. There does not seem to be a connection
between the students’ service-learning experiences and the relationship of those experiences to
becoming servant leaders. Since the executive team does not know how to develop the next
generation of leaders for the organization, they face a problem of sustainability and modern ways
of marketing. It is important to have Up with People sustainable because at some point the
executive team will retire and they need to prepare the future executive team with the
background knowledge, motivation, and organizational context needed to effectively create
servant leaders. They need people that are aware of sustaining their mission and vision, and
practice the values and ethics that are an integral part of service-learning for preparation to
become servant leaders. Their preparation is important because without sustainability the
organization will fold. The future training of students by the new leaders to practice service-
learning for becoming servant leaders is essential to continue to be goodwill ambassadors to heal
the planet. The objective of evaluating the organization was to acknowledge the positive
attributes of the leaders while advising the executive team with some solutions as to the
knowledge needed to create a sustainable organization.
Background of the Problem
Service-learning began in the 1980s when Frank Newman, a leader and innovator in
higher education, reported that “the most critical is to restore to higher education its original
purpose of preparing graduates for a life of involved and committed citizenship…The
advancement of civic learning, therefore, must become higher education’s most central goal”
(Saltmarsh, 2005, p. 50). However, Billig and Furco (2002) explained difficulties that had risen
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 9

in separating civic responsibility and academic learning. In the 1990s, civic responsibility and
academic learning were integrated. During the 1990s, the importance of community service was
highly popular with many academic institutions incorporating community service programs.
However, the relationship between academic learning and association with service resulted in
only a few civic learning outcomes (Saltmarsh, 2005).
As service programs began to increase in popularity, terms were introduced to assist
educators in understanding the concept of service-learning outcomes, but students and teachers
did not see the difference in the different types of programs offered (Billig & Furco, 2002).
Three types of service programs that existed were community service, service-learning, and a
service-based internship (Billig & Furco, 2002). Each type of service program had its benefits,
but it is the service-learning program that primarily focuses on learning and service, is integrated
into the academic curriculum, and yields benefits to both the giver and receiver of the service
(Billig & Furco, 2002).
Billig (2000) suggested that service learning came from a basis of two needs that were
not being met: improvement of an educational system and reform of youth in the United States.
Youth had become more and more alienated from their communities and society. In their high-
school age group, they were the ones least likely to volunteer or vote and only cared about being
financially secure (Billig, 2000). Test scores were decreasing in schools, and the United States
education system was less internationally competitive during that time (Furco, 1996). To
increase their understanding of their communities, while relating community needs to their
course curriculum (Billig, 2000), a pedagogical substitute was the practice of service learning,
which gave students the opportunity to practice theory. However, problems are still evident
today as to the definition of service–learning and its application (Billig, 2000).
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 10

There is consensus (Nanden, 2010; Spears, 2004) on service-learning’s primary purpose,
which is to have “active participation, thoughtfully organized experiences, focus on community
needs and school/community coordination, academic curriculum integration, structure time for
reflection, opportunities for application for skills and knowledge, extended learning
opportunities, and development of a sense of caring for others” (Billig, 2000, p. 659).
Disagreement arises among educators who compare service-learning to experiential education
approaches as a part of community service and/or internships (Billig, 2000). Service-learning
gives equal weight to both the service and the learning, and Furco (1996) noted that the
intentional design of service-learning is to offer participants, students, and anyone who could
benefit from learning the aspects of what it means to serve one’s fellow man and to put others
before oneself, which is a foundational concept for the practice of service-learning. However,
there is a problem of how service-learning is perceived among the educators who do not agree on
a generative definition and practice service-learning differently. Based on the differentiation
among the educational community, conceptually service–learning may take on a different
meaning and not contribute effectively to the notion of establishing a group of servant leaders.
Problem Statement
Many of the Up with People leaders have been serving the organization for years, holding
a variety of different roles, which have resulted in a broad base of knowledge needed to become
effective role-models and servant leaders. However, the problem existed in that the leaders did
not have the knowledge needed to create the next generation of leaders, lacked the knowledge
needed for creative and inclusive marketing, and did not know their competition of other like-
minded organizations. The evaluation focused on their interview of explaining their problem as
leaders not being able to sustain the experience of the next generation of leaders. Their
unfamiliarity of the new social media format was difficult to identify like-minded organizations
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 11

to share their experience and become collaborative thinkers, which has hindered their scope of
the competitive field.
Service-learning is the impetus for servant leaders. There are several problems that need
to be identified, resulting in a misalignment between service-learning and servant leadership.
First and foremost, definitions of service-learning and its outcomes are not clear to educators.
For example, Stanton (1987) reported that a service-learning curriculum has the tenets of
experiential outcomes. Chisholm (1987) defined it within a theoretical pedagogy, and Rocheleau
(2004) specifically defined it as “service-learning met with objections and challenges, hands-on
project learning was criticized as impure insufficiently rigorous, ethically and politically biased,
and detracting from objective study and the broader goal of a liberal education” (p. 9). People
applied the practice of theory by doing service.
A second problem also lies in teachers not being adequately trained on how to run, or
plan, a structured service-learning program, which results in students not having meaningful
experiences (Billig & Furco, 2002). Though the United States is shown as an example in the
research, these problems are growing on a global scale (Rocheleau, 2004). If there are problems
in service-learning, there will be a gap in servant leadership, as service-learning is the impetus
for servant leadership. In servant leadership, the problem of ego and the notion of being served,
rather than serving others, must be altered in order to become a servant leader (McMahone,
2012). Another problem is that servant leadership is seen as soft and weak by leaders who do not
demonstrate its qualities (McMahone, 2012).
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study was to investigate and examine the effectiveness the
stakeholders of the Up with People program have in preparing students to become servant
leaders. The purpose of this study also was to examine service-learning concepts that educators
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 12

practice to evaluate conditions that promote values and ethics as an impetus for introducing
servant leadership as a viable means of transformation across international educational facilities.
The stakeholders, who are members of the executive management team of Up with
People, were the participants in this study. Interviewing them and evaluating the curricula the
organization uses helps to explain how the organization prepares students to be servant leaders
and why service-learning is the impetus in preparing a servant leader. The analysis focused on
the leaders in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and organizational resources. The study was
an analysis of the underlying philosophy of Up with People’s service-learning curriculum and
how the leaders model servant leadership in relation to the effectiveness of service-learning in
preparing students to become servant leaders.
Research Questions
1. What is the current status of Up with People’s leaders’ knowledge, motivation, and
organization influences needed to produce servant leaders?
2. What solutions and recommendations in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and
organizational resources may be appropriate for Up with People’s leadership and service
program?
3. What components of the Up with People program are participants receiving in terms of
leadership and service that cannot be found in a traditional education program?
Significance of the Study
It is critical to examine the importance and characteristics of servant leaders because
global education requires leaders embrace individuality, learn how collaboration contributes to
working together, and understand how cultural differences enhance the process of becoming a
servant leader. World values, especially in the area of education, need a shift in the paradigm in
order to accept, work with, and collaborate with others with different backgrounds, ethnicities,
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 13

and values. As a result of internationalization, more people must be trained as servant leaders in
order to model resilience and strength of character to welcome and embrace people from other
cultures. For example, organizations such as Semester at Sea, an experiential education program
that provides students with university studies at sea, and The School of Humanity in rural
Switzerland that embraces experiential learning, provide curricula rich in service-learning and
emphasize moral education and character building (Pless & Borecka, 2014; Pless, Maak, &
Stahl, 2011).
The organization Up with People is the focus of the dissertation. Up with People has a
service-learning and leadership component. The study is significant because evaluating the
program’s components reinforces how the organization teaches young people to experience
personal growth through helping others, setting an example for enriching others through service-
learning projects, and entertainment. Evaluation of the program also reinforces the strength of
the organization while making recommendations for enhancing what is already practiced. The
study is significant because it provides an opportunity for stakeholders to reaffirm and validate
how the curriculum supports the mission and vision of the organization while preparing them to
make needed changes as they model and provide opportunities for students to become servant
leaders. The senior executive members provided insight, systems, and their perceptions of how
teachers deliver the concepts, values, and ethics. The senior executive members shared their
perceptions of their experiences as servant leaders.
Organizational Context and Mission
Up with People is an experiential education program focused on providing young people
between the ages of 18 and 28 a unique experience to travel for one or two semesters to learn
about service, leadership, the performing arts, and different cultures, but, mostly, how to grow in
their role as servant leader within the framework of building global citizenship. Students learn
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 14

about Up with People through school programs, watching a show in their community, or from
their parents or friends. An admissions team emphasized that participants are chosen only by
interview and their desire to actively participate and demonstrate their ability to stand up for
social justice issues and work in a collaborative effort to bring healing and service to
communities. The program is funded by the students, costing approximately $17,000 for one
semester or $23,000 for one year. However, there are a few scholarships available to those in
need.
There is currently one cast of nearly 80 members traveling, which includes eight staff
members responsible for logistics, performance, and education. The staff is responsible for
public relations, marketing, admissions, the education platform, and Up with People
merchandise. In the past, more than 22,000 students from 131 countries have participated, and
the experience has had an impact on the lives of these members of the International Alumni
Association, a network of individuals who have been a part of this program and are more hopeful
the world will become a better place (K. Leist, personal communication, October 4, 2016).
It is the goal and mission of Up with People to accept individuals between the ages of 18
and 28, equip them with first-hand experiences of the world, and provide educational workshops
that teach what it means to be a leader. It is the belief of the stakeholders that the organization
will have an impact on the students who will then take what they learned at the culmination of
their experience and takes action to help others become aware of poverty, hunger, homelessness,
and other issues happening in the world. By taking action, the students have agreed to spread
awareness in their own communities of pressing social issues. The mission of Up with People is
to provide global education and the arts to bridge cultural barriers and create global
understanding through service and music.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 15

Up with People helps bring people together through performance involving dance and
vocal talents based on social issues affecting the world. A two-and-a-half-hour show,
choreographed by Up with People musicians and staff members, focuses on issues affecting
people all over the world. Students perform in both urban and rural communities, a decision of
the private and corporate sponsors. Students have performed on six continents. Although the
performance is a significant part of the program, the leadership skills, service-learning, and
international travel is an aspect of the program that students remember most.
The mission of Up with People is also to make a difference, and transform, one
community at a time. The Up with People program allows students to experience service-
learning and increase cultural awareness and understanding domestically and abroad. Students
stay with host families from 4 to 7 days while they volunteer with non-profit and civic
organizations in their communities. Students who participate in Up with People learn what it
means to have an appreciation for culture and diversity and learn what the word volunteer truly
means, while developing into global citizens and preparing to become servant leaders. Up with
People’s motto is “Travel with a Purpose. Perform for Thousands. Impact Communities.” Its
mission is focused on leadership, global awareness, communication, and personal development,
and it strives to have young people who join the program emerge as servant leaders (Up with
People, 2014).
Organizational Performance Status
The organization strives to involve more people from various parts of the world to
become students in their organization so they can influence a greater number of individuals to
practice their servant leader philosophy and help contribute to others. Currently, Up with People
promotes their organization to increase the number of students from various parts of the world
who engage in their program to influence and continue to change the lives of others. Interviews
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 16

are held after performances for anyone who is interested in the program. The performances are
an important aspect of the program because they are a method of entertainment to present social
justice issues and a way of recruiting potential students. Recruitment efforts are limited to
countries into which the organization is invited and sponsored; hence, diversity amongst
participants is not always reflective of Up with People’s global ideal.
Description of Stakeholder Groups
As an evaluation study, the executive management team and four individuals from the
education department were the stakeholders who effectively demonstrated and showed what
knowledge, motivation, and organizational skills are needed to be effective servant leaders. The
evaluation data generated from the stakeholders also allowed examination of aspects of a
leadership and service program designed by the Up with People organization. The executive
management team was the focus of the study as they made the day-to-day operational decisions.
The data involved information related to the research questions as the impetus for the evaluation
component of the study.
Up with People employees are based in Denver, Colorado, and operate from the location
of the corporate office (World Headquarters). Although there is staff in parts of Europe and
Asia, logistics are planned from Brussels, Belgium (European Headquarters), and Tokyo, Japan
(Asian Headquarters). Decisions pertaining to the organization are made from the United States.
Hence, the detailed operations and training for the performances are operated from the world
headquarters in Denver, Colorado.
The students are invested in their learning to enhance their lives with the Up with People
program. Most students choose to spend time abroad in this program to learn more about the
world and about themselves. Along with their parents, they invested their time and financial
resources to experience a program that has a unique curriculum. Alumni from the past 51 years
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 17

are important stakeholders in the program because they help keep it financially viable as a result
of their positive experiences shared on the road. The alumni continue to make donations
honoring the organization as a result of their rewarding experience.
Stakeholder Group for the Study
Although a complete analysis would involve all stakeholder groups, for practical
purposes, the Up with People executive management team was the focus of the dissertation. By
selecting this stakeholder group, it is possible to look more in depth at the program’s outcomes
and the knowledge, motivation, and organizational skills needed to be effective servant leaders.
The emphasis underlying leadership and service education curriculum was used to assess how
the team meets the goal of building servant leaders.
Conceptual and Methodological Framework
Clark and Estes’ (2008) gap analysis is an analytical method used to understand the basis
of organizational goals and ways in which development of the goals occurs. Clark and Estes’ gap
analysis was adapted and implemented as a framework in this qualitative evaluation. Assumed
knowledge, motivation and organizational needs were examined based on in-depth interviews of
the executive members regarding their knowledge about the program’s success. These needs
were evaluated through interviews. Recommendations were offered once the research was
completed.
Definitions
Community Service: This term is used to describe service being done for the sake of the
recipient who is getting the service (Furco, 1996).
Global Competence: This term refers to people who have a deep knowledge of global affairs,
can comprehend international issues, and know how to work with others from diverse
backgrounds and nations.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 18

Servant Leader: A servant leader is one who is a servant first (Greenleaf & Spears, 1998, p. 8).
Service-Based Internship: This term emphasizes the learning of the student rather than the
serving being done in a career industry, and generated over a short period of time (Billig &
Furco, 2002).
Service-learning: Sigmon and Pelletier (1996) defined it as “service combined with learning
adds value to each and transforms both” (Sigmon & Pelletier, p. 3).
Up with People (UWP): “Up with People is a global education organization which aims to bring
the world together through service and music. The unique combination of international travel,
service-learning, leadership development and performing arts offers students an unparalleled
experience and a pathway to make a difference in the world, one community at a time” (Up with
People, 2014).
Organization of the Dissertation
Five chapters were used to organize this dissertation. Chapter One presented a
background of the problem, the problem statement, the purpose of this study, research questions,
and significance of the study. Theoretical framework, definition of terms, and assumptions and
limitations completed Chapter One. Chapter Two provided a review of current literature
regarding the scope of the study. The topics of service-learning, servant leadership, and the
specific organization, Up with People, are included in the literature review. More in-depth
knowledge about theories and research underlying service-learning and servant leaders are
incorporated as additional knowledge. Chapter Three, the methodology, described the population
of the study, how the participants were chosen, the setting, and how data were collected, coded,
and analyzed. Also included in Chapter Three is a detailed description of the Up with People
organization, including the stakeholder’s group, ethical considerations of protecting participants’
anonymity explaining the minimal risk of participation and informed consent for participation. In
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 19

Chapter Four, the data and results were evaluated and analyzed. Chapter Five provided a
summary and a discussion that relates the findings with the literature, identifying gaps in the
literature. Recommendation for practice, based on the data and how the data fills the gap in the
literature after addressing the research questions were presented.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 20

CHAPTER TWO: RELATED LITERATURE
This literature review includes a historical perspective that begins to understand how
educational philosophical theory is the impetus for practice. The literature also introduces
theoretical framework of service-learning as the impetus for understanding the theoretical
background of servant leadership through Greenleaf and Spears (1998) and the relationship to
the practical application of developing people as servant leaders. Lastly, this literature review
presents how people develop their ability to be servant leaders as they interact with different
cultures and different ethnicities, teaching and learning from a global perspective to honor people
from various nationalities.
Historically, service-learning was built on Dewey’s philosophical perspectives which
originated from Plato and Aristotle (Dewey, 1938). The four propositions more related to
philosophy of education were proposed by Dewey to counter the original premise of education
from Aristotle’s aristocratic perspective. These propositions were discussed by Harkavy and
Benson (1998) and Nicholls and Hazzard (1995) focusing on the reflective process, students as
active learners (Poplin, 1988), students who have personal knowledge to share, and students who
have a purpose to share their knowledge to improve the human condition. These four principles
helped to expand the theory and concept of service-learning.
Stanton et al., (1999) explained how changes in the educational paradigm (Kuhn, 1970)
were necessary based on the uprisings in the 1960s and 70s which resulted in the war on poverty.
Because of the war on poverty, changes occurred in post-secondary education courses that
needed to be restructured to provide a more service-oriented humanistic approach to education
(Stanton, 1999). The relationship between diversity and increased poverty presented evidence
that changed the education landscape in 2008 (Hughes, Beckrest, Steinhorn, Boyd, & Davis,
2012). For example, “44 million (14%) Americans and 19% U.S. children under the age of 18
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 21

were living in poverty” (U.S. Census Bureau, 2009). Historically, there is a relationship between
poverty level and projected high school graduation rates (Zieren & Stoddard, 2004). Therefore,
educators needed to close the gap in the academic educational levels and incorporate the
concepts and theory of service-learning.
Service-learning has grown immensely in K–12 schools from 1984 to 1997. The number
of students participating in service programs increased from 900,000 to 12,605,740 in the United
States, and high school students’ participation rose from 2% to 25% in those years. In 2009,
Richards et al., (2013) reported that 56,000 public schools in the K–12 system offered service
programs of some kind, and approximately 23,000 public schools have a standard service-
learning program and projects that are continuous each year. Although Billig (2000) did not
report statistics, she emphasized that many elementary schools have school-wide programs in
service-learning, whereas students in the middle and high schools may take these courses as
electives or individual classes. However, many schools mandate a community service or
service-learning program in their curricula, focusing on civic education and positive youth
development (Billig, 2000). More teachers and administrators are incorporating experiential
education at the core of their curriculum, seeking further organizational partnerships and
allowing for reflection as a means of self-evaluation and personal development (Furco, 2002).
However, a problem still exists in the training of faculty, as it appears that many teachers do not
understand service-learning and how it should be structured, therefore making the service-
learning experience for students more dull and meaningless (Furco, 2002).
Sigmon and Pelletier’s (1996) definition of service-learning is “service combined with
learning adds value to each and transforms both” (p. 3). Community service workers provide
authentic service to others whereas both parties, the beneficiary and the benefactor, are rewarded
in a personal way and attribute that learning to an academic curriculum, reflecting with a
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 22

mindfulness to service-learning (Richards et al., 2013). Service-learning is also referred to as
experiential education, as a whole, that supports the notion that education goes beyond the
classroom walls and youth’s academic development (Furco, 2002). Therefore, several service
programs have been created and are delivered in a variety of ways to meet different needs. Billig
and Furco (2002) specified how service-learning programs are structured to benefit the students
who participate, but share their knowledge and expertise in order for individuals in their
community to have full benefits and learning experiences to become self-sufficient.
Many service-learning programs are focused on social issues and as after-school
programs, having no relevance to academic curriculum (Furco, 2002). Since the programs are
focused on human condition and social reform, they project aspects of transformation for both
the service-learning volunteers and the community (Danpridge & Frankle, 1996). Service-
learning combines what is taught in the classroom with community service. Many of these
service-learning activities allow the student to take the curricular concepts taught in class and
apply what they know to address an authentic need in the community. The most important
purpose of service-learning as a prerequisite to becoming a servant leader is to further a student’s
academic progress and develop civic responsibility (Conrad & Hedin, 1989). Compared with
community service and service-learning, in service-based internship programs, emphasis is on
building a career and preparing students to be profitable in the workplace. The focus is directed
to learning rather than serving (Furco, 2002). Elaborating on the concepts of service-learning,
community service, and service based internship programs, the research specified a
differentiation that acknowledged a variety of outcomes.
Goodlad (1984) recommended that a determined set of goals for K–12 schools be put into
practice. Many of these educational disciplines were intended to provide meaningful outcomes
based on personal, career, social, ethical, and civic development (Furco, 2002). In 1981 and
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 23

1989, Hedin’s six educational fields matched those that Goodlad defined as being the primary
purpose of service-learning outcomes. The framework, specified by Billig and Furco (2002) for
examining these outcomes of this kind of service programs included six domains:
1. Academic domain: progressing students’ understanding of the content of the course;
using knowledge of interpretation, and one’s outlook towards learning and school in
general.
2. Vocational (Career) domain: helping students’ capacity to select a meaningful
occupation, understanding of options in choices of careers, realistic ideas about careers,
and gaining a positive attitude about work.
3. Personal domain: expanding the students’ capacity to persevere and traits of tenacity,
self-empowerment, self-reflection and management.
4. Civic and cultural domain: assisting in the students’ knowledge of how government
works, the eagerness to participate in the community and awareness of cultural identity
and traditions from a collaborative perspective.
5. Ethical domain: developing students’ understanding of ethical behavior for the benefit of
social justice, emphasizing personal values of respectability, virtue, character, charity,
and hope.
6. Social domain: advancing students’ understanding of interpersonal and intrapersonal
relationships, working as a team member, acknowledging opposition, welcoming cultural
attitudes different from one’s own, and caring for others. (p. 28)
The Benefits of Service-learning
The benefits of service-learning are numerous. Though most research has been
conducted at the high school level, the objective is to provide opportunities for service-learning
all through the elementary and middle school grades. Richards et al. (2013) conducted a survey
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 24

with adults who had prior experience in service-learning as children and found that 44% of
adults in their teenage years began giving service to others and that adolescents who became
involved in community service programs in their teenage years were twice as likely to continue
giving service in their adult years. The introduction of service-learning can have lasting effects
on one’s personal character, having a dramatic effect on future career choices, engaging one’s
own interest in their local community, and instilling altruism (Richards et al., 2013).
In their younger years, adolescents seek to identify who they are as individuals and what
values and goals they hold. Youth are interested in their social structures, and, at times, testing
those structures to sense how deep family, academic, and peer relationships strengthen their
moral foundation. The youth population has a tendency for experimentation and discovery of
experiences that represent the relationships they hold at the stage of adolescence. Kohlberg
(1981) explained how the age development of individuals experienced different moral
development patterns at different stages. Therefore, at this key stage in life, the aspect of
service-learning and civic responsibility is most important in the development of youth (Richards
et al., 2013).
Civic identity is strengthened by the youth’s critical thinking skills applied from their
global perspective (Richards et al., 2013). By engaging in critical thinking skills, adolescents are
better able to fully understand the meaning of service-learning and the impact that they can have
on transforming the community. To help in this increased awareness of meaning, adolescents
seek where they belong in the world and to create and collaborate in solid relationships
(Kohlberg, 1981). Adolescents seek out goals such as volunteering to help their nation,
community, and others in need (Richards et al., 2013). The benefits of volunteering relate to the
potential leadership skills that youth develop as a key factor in providing service opportunities
for their community, emphasizing collaborative efforts particularly for youth who do not prefer
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 25

sports or academics. Many after-school or extra-curricular clubs are filled with like-minded
individuals who share an interest; however, service programs are more diverse, exposing
adolescents to a wide variety of situations, people, and issues affecting a community in which
they can also teach (Richards et al., 2013). It has been noted that youth who are engaged in
service-learning opportunities have a stronger sense and acceptance of diversity than those who
are not involved in service activities (Richards et al., 2013).
Peer relationships are paramount in anyone’s life, especially that of an adolescent. The
idea of cooperation and teamwork, acknowledging moral judgment, represents two of the most
important benefits of youth activities (Kohlberg, 1981). By doing service projects, an atmosphere
of equality is taken with everyone playing a central role. Theoretically, by being involved with
service projects, differences can be more easily resolved, often without adult intervention
(Petersen, Harrison, & Wohlers, 2015). Because everyone plays an integral role in the service
project, students feel a stronger sense of accountability (Richards et al., 2013).
In summary, adolescents mature at a critical time and service-learning is an opportunity
for furthering their growth and maturity in that they will see their learning curve as an indication
of their growth. In addition, to their personal growth, service-learning opportunities offer young
people a chance to teach, contributing to their self-esteem (Sigmon & Pelletier, 1996). This
contribution for self-awareness is the impetus for preparation as a servant leader (Russell &
Stone, 2002).
There is a strong correlation between service-learning and servant leadership (Dennis &
Winston, 2003). Building youth’s moral fiber so that they care about one another, and are
engaged with their community, while exploring global issues provides the foundation for the
youth to be servant leaders (Cherkowski, 2012). By teaching students the importance of learning
by giving and receiving service, educators teach them to become servant leaders, a term coined
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 26

by Robert K. Greenleaf (Greenleaf & Spears, 1998). Sendjaya and Saros (2002) reported that
Greenleaf defined a servant leader as someone who puts the needs of others before their own.
The concept of others before oneself is introduced within the framework of service-learning.
The Need for Service-learning in Building Servant Leaders
Service-learning is fundamental to experiential education and is considered fundamental
to students’ growth in civics and character development, helping them see what it means to have
a voice in society and what it means to be a democratic citizen (Seamann & Gass, 2004).
Consequently, many successful schools modified their programs and curricula to build time for
service learning. Astin, Vogelgesang, Ikeda, and Yee (2000) conducted a study in which
students who engaged in service-learning did better on final exams and had more highly
developed writing skills than non-service learners. That same study demonstrated that students
involved in service-learning gained more knowledge about themselves and their community as
well as their multicultural and intercultural competencies (Astin et al., 2000).
Cushman (1999) reported how service-learning influences teachers to become more
innovative because they combine pedagogy and service skills and focus on interaction with
community, rather than isolation from the community, enabling students to become more civic-
minded. When students engage in academic study against a background of political and social
issues, they can better understand the cultural values of others and the needs of their own
communities (Madhlangobe & Gordon, 2012). This real-world teaching allows students to serve
while thinking about their actions and how they have an impact on the community.
Consequently, teachers contribute to the development of service leaders, and service-learning
becomes essential to classroom instruction. Although academic achievement remains an
important focus of schools in the United States in the twenty-first century, school reform has
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 27

embraced Dewey’s (1938) theory of education to incorporate student responsibility of being
civic–minded and positively contributing to their communities.
Theories created after Dewey’s (1938) foundation of service-learning specified
application of experiential learning as a practice is used in schools. Kolb and Kolb (2005) are
often considered the experts on experiential education and theory; however, their ideas are
grounded in the works of Dewey, Piaget, and other theorists. The literature identifies service-
learning and experiential learning from many perspectives but incorporates a holistic
constructivist (Jappinen, 2014) application as a practice of both moral-centered programs.
Burns (1998) proposed that there are four steps for making service-learning successful:
preparation, action, reflection, and demonstration. Identifying the needs of a community is
crucial for authentic service to occur (Desmond, Stahl, & Graham, 2011). Asking questions that
generate thinking regarding the interaction between community needs and learner outcomes is
essential (Tate, 2003). Clear goals that identify social knowledge and skills in a unit lend
themselves to understanding the problem at hand (Furco, 1996). Students as well as teachers can
then initiate the action needed in service-learning based on their goals. Teachers should ask
students to participate in achieving the goals and assess ongoing progress. This continuous cycle
of learning helps students take ownership of their roles. Reflection is critical to student’s
understanding of a service-learning unit. Pre-reflection, post-reflection, and reflection during the
process help orchestrate the critical thinking needed in service-learning (Furco, 1996). Reporting
to others about the impact of their experience is not only necessary to increase awareness of
global issues, but is essential to the students who engaged in the service-learning, as it
consolidates their experience (Burns, 1998).
It is important that schools focus on the development of a moral compass and a socially
responsible character in each of their students (Kohlberg, 1981). Lickona (2009) contended that
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 28

knowing, affect, and action are the three components of moral agency. He noted that Aristotle
believed that having good morals and acting upon them is due to having a steady state of
character, and that character grows through interaction with the community. This interaction is
bi-directional. The community benefits from the actions of the children and the children grow
from their interaction with the community (Simons & Cleary, 2006). Therefore, service-
learning can be considered essential to the moral development of children (Simons & Cleary,
2006).
Servant Leadership links to Service Learning and in Practice
As experiential education programs have become more and more popular, so has service-
learning become more accepted into schools and universities. Over half of the K-12 schools now
have a service-learning program that is mandated to students. In the 1980s, many educators
began to see the connection between servant leadership and service-learning, and, soon, the
National Society for Experiential Education (NSEE) adopted service-learning as a main program
that they develop.
Due to notable links in service-learning and increased interest in learning about servant
leadership, many formal and informal education programs, as well as management and corporate
programs, incorporate servant leadership courses in their curricula. These programs are also
used in transformation and personal growth classes, and can be found in counseling groups of all
kinds and gender self-awareness classes. They are intended to raise one’s own thinking of using
their human potential to their highest (Spears, 1998).
Leadership Styles
There are various leadership styles. Leadership styles are not only focused on the
individual, but also relate to the cultural background of the individual. Listed below are the
various leadership styles and ways in which they might be used. By examining different
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 29

leadership styles and the effectiveness of how employees relate to those leadership styles, leaders
can make a decision about the type of style that promotes beliefs and values that fits their
organization. As leaders learn which leadership style is more collaborative, they can make an
informed decision on choosing that type of style. Therefore, several leadership styles were
discussed to identify what would be most effective in the leader’s organization. Transactional
leadership, situational leadership, transformative leadership, and personal leadership are styles
that different organizational leaders embrace (Bass & Avolio, 1994; Behling & McFillen, 1996;
Bolman & Deal, 2003; Schaetti, Ramsey, & Watanabe, 2008). These styles are described
through a hierarchy of characteristics that leaders need; however, the leaders usually put
themselves first as they execute their leadership style. In addition, servant leadership (Greenleaf,
1998; Spears, 2004) is a leadership style that has a foundation of a paradigm shift whereby the
leader puts employees first and stresses the importance of serving their employees instead of
serving themselves. Since the servant leadership style is purposefully created to serve others
before oneself, it becomes the leadership style of people that engage in service-learning. The
problem of identifying the effectiveness of leaders in their effectiveness of using service-learning
as the impetus of helping students become servant leaders was addressed.
In the 1940’s, Abramson (2007) examined leadership theories. He found that behavioral
theories of leadership came to the surface in the 1950s, and, in the 1960s, situational and
attribution theory were discovered to relate to various leadership models. Transformative and
transactional theories were also analyzed and developed at that time (Abramson, 2007). The
foundation of leadership has a long history, beginning with the Bible (Spears, 2004). Power,
position, and authority make up the fundamental roots of leadership. One of the aspects of an
exceptional leader is the ability to delegate and designate someone to perform an action for the
organization, and an employee is usually willing to comply with the instructions or directive by
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 30

the leader. Leaders with strong moral values and concrete relations with their employees are
preferred among other leaders (Spaulding, 2015). To look more in-depth at servant leadership, it
is important to look at the other leadership models that are widely used today: transactional
leadership, situational leadership, transformative leadership, personal leadership, and, later,
servant leadership.
Transactional Leadership
Transactional leadership in the 1970s was solely focused on organizational performance
(Behling & McFillen, 1996; Hunt, 1991). Kanungo (2001) stated, “A transactional leader is
more concerned with the routine maintenance activities of allocating resources, monitoring, and
directing followers to achieve task and organizational goals” (p. 257). It is the performance of
the subordinate that is most important (Burns, 1978). Transactional leaders may give rewards
and punishments to influence the performance of their employees, while leaders have a
relationship built on monetary gains (Bass, 1985).
Situational Leadership
Situational leaders use a problem-solving approach when leading (Bolman & Deal,
2003). Leaders’ and employees’ different behavior patterns bring a set of new behaviors to the
workplace, which could result in different outcomes (Hersey, 1984). For a task to have been
completed satisfactorily, a leader must be understood in the areas of knowledge, skills,
commitment, and confidence related to their employees (Hersey, 1984). Four different
leadership styles make up situational leadership. These styles are delegating, supporting,
mentoring, and coaching employees (Hersey & Blanchard, 1977). Delegating is the practice of
persuading an employee to complete a task, while the leaders’ perspective is to be cognizant of
the employee’s background and cultural identity (Madhlangobe & Gordon, 2012). Supporting an
employee is to acknowledge and accept their experience as viable to their ability to complete a
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 31

task or contribute to the needs of the team (Madhlangobe & Gordon, 2012). Mentoring is the
ability to teach by modeling and encourage employees to use their potential to learn from others
(Spaulding, 2015). Coaching is a one-on-one ongoing process that helps an employee reinforce
their self-efficacy of their abilities to perform at their highest level in an exemplary way (Rhodes,
2013).
Transformational Leadership
Bass and Avolio (1994) defined transformational leadership as the formation of inspiring
employees to reach what they believe is possible. Yukl (1998) reported that transformational
leaders motivate their followers by “(a) making them aware of the importance of task outcomes,
(b) inducing them to transcend their own self-interest for the sake of the organization or team,
and (c) activating their higher-order needs” (p. 351). Maslow’s (1954) hierarchy of needs,
consisting of physiological needs, safety, social needs, esteem, and self-actualization, are needs
that transformational leaders understand. These individual needs, and the ability to satisfy
employees with these needs, are representative of what Bass and Avolio (1994) meant when
speaking of transformative leadership. Based on the foundation of Bass and Avolio (1994),
according to Pounder (2016), there is a need to advance transformational leadership for current
students who will use the practice of blogs and student-LinkedIn as a mode to exemplify new
future leaders.
Personal Leadership
The development of personal leadership as a leadership style is relatively new and has a
connection to servant leadership. Reflection is a key ingredient to how servant leaders make
decisions (Blanchard, 2010) using innovative ideas with their team, or an integrative system that
enables a partnership to thrive. With personal leadership, reflection is a core command of how
the self looks at honesty and integrity (Schaetti, Ramsey, & Watanabe, 2008). The six practices
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 32

of personal leadership are attending to emotion, attending to physical sensation, cultivating
stillness, engaging ambiguity, and aligning with vision (Schaetti et al., 2008). All of the
practices are independent, require a great deal of practice, and may be mastered in one’s lifetime.
Many of the personal leadership practices are taught to servant leaders. These include the ability
to have a vision and align it with goals to be achieved and to listen and reflect deeply upon the
experience of the past, the present, and the future. These practices are intertwined and meant to
serve as challenges within diversity issues, cultural communication disputes, or global dilemmas
(Schaetti et al., 2008).
Twenty-First Century Leaders
Leadership styles of individual managers or leaders depend on the cultural context of
how those leaders were trained, how they handle physical and work space areas, and whether
they have a philosophical perspective of transactional, situational, transformational, personal, or
servant leadership (Murray, 2008). In any kind of leadership, it is critical that relationships in an
organization are taken care of, recognizing each person’s unique talent and individualism and
paying attention to the creative possibilities that exist (Marquardt, 2000). There are seven
attributes of leadership that emerged as being necessary in the twenty-first century (Marquardt,
2000): systems thinker; change agent; innovator and risk-taker; servant and steward;
polychromic coordinator; teacher, mentor, coach and learner; and visionary and vision-builder.
Based on these seven attributes, a leader chooses to practice team–building and collaboration
with employees that are identified within each of the attributes.
To problem-solve, it is important to be a systems thinker. The systems thinker can see
the holistic picture, connecting all details together (Senge, 1990). Isaacs (1993) stated that it is
important for leaders to see the holistic picture so that both the internal and external parts can be
better examined before making a decision. Action learners become knowledgeable about the
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 33

whole picture in understanding areas of organizational challenges (Marquardt, 1999). Action
learning is built around a combination of people from different backgrounds, inquiring and
asking questions, to have a picture of the problem before coming to a solution. The core
questions asked by management in action learning cause the managers to look for long-range
solutions and always recognize the critical part that relationships play in the process of a systems
thinker. Reflection is also a crucial part of action learning (Marquardt, 1999). Action learning
helps the leader think about existing problems by using the method of reframing, context
shifting, and thoughtful reflection. Meaningful action is inspired through taking risks.
Another attribute of leadership is to be a change agent. All leaders must exemplify a high
level of competence based on their position as a change agent (Kanter, 1985). Change agents
can successfully motivate others while overcoming obstacles (Wheatley, 1992). To become a
change agent, the system itself cannot be changed unless the self is also changed (Revans, 1980).
In essence, it is important to act efficiently and to learn effectively to become the kind of change
needed in leadership.
Taking risks is another attribute essential for leaders in the twenty-first century. By
taking risks, one is also creating opportunities (Marquardt, 2000). The leader is the one in an
organization who creates the cultural environment, decides upon how creative a company must
be, and who can encourage risks. “White-space opportunities” (Marquardt, 2000, p. 245), which
are ideas for growth not acknowledged or that have existed before, must be created by leaders.
Oftentimes, there are fixed ways of solving problems within an organization; however, a leader
in the twenty-first century takes time to listen to fresh new ideas and put them into place where
needed (Ravens, 1980).
A powerful paradox comes to the surface regarding servant and steward as attributes.
Normally, they are thought of as being opposite of one another. In the twenty-first century,
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 34

however, they merge into one to encourage service to others, an understanding of engaging in the
community, a holistic approach, and decision making that is made in a collaborative effort
(Nanden, 2010). A true leader is one who has the intrinsic motivation to help others. A servant
leader must be able, and willing, to look at their own experiences, morals and values, and that
superiority does not exist (Spaulding, 2015).
Another attribute of leadership involves polychronic coordinators, who are people who
manage many things simultaneously. They also must be willing to collaborate with many others,
listening and hearing the ideas and opinions of their members of the team. Managers need to be
both generalists and specialists, thinking of what needs to happen in the future and what is best
for the company, and plan accordingly (Kiechel, 1994). Analytical and strategical critical
thinking skills are needed for the leader to be both self-reliant and a team player (Kiechel, 1994).
Twenty-first century leaders empower others to do their very best at all times and to motivate
members of their team.
Leaders must have the ability, and capacity, to continue learning (Jacques, 1989). The
attribute of being a self-directed learner is essential for success (Marsick, 1987). Organizations
must become not only learning companies, but also companies willing to teach, coach, and
mentor what they know (Tichy & Cohen, 1997). A leader strives to coach and mentor
employees to recognize and further their skills so they, then, can become the new leaders
(Spears, 1996).
Lastly, leaders must be visionaries and know what direction the company is going (Autry,
2001). They should inspire their staff by acknowledging their staff strengths so that the staff can
perform well at all times and be engaged in the learning process of the organization. This
engagement then becomes the impetus for the employees to prepare themselves as the next
leaders of their company. In that preparation, they are not just using traditional leadership styles
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 35

but incorporating some of the transformational leadership theory to result in a smooth transition
to practice the servant leadership style.
Difference between a Servant Leader and a Traditional Leader
Wong & Page (2003) noted that, at the core of the expanding circles of servant
leadership, is the heart (Appendix A). Serving others is done with humility and integrity. As
potential rises from leaders, the visual provided by Wong represents that all tasks, processes, and
models rise from the center of the model: the heart. These are aspects of being a heart-led leader
(Spaulding, 2015).
In the globalized world, knowledge is a critical asset (Correia de Sousa & Dierendonck,
2010). Peter Drucker (1959) created the term knowledge worker to examine the shift from a
financial business model to one where knowledge is the impetus to describe employees working
in large organizations and contributing their own intellectual capital. There are three basic areas
towards work: work as a job wherein one works as a means to financial security; work as a
career, which is work in essence to position, pay, and status; and work as a calling, which refers
to work for pleasure and fulfillment.
Most often, knowledge workers will work for the orientation of a calling (Correia de
Sousa & Dierendonck, 2010). Knowledge workers seek meaning in their work and deliberatlyly
strive for a goal that transcends them. Thus, servant leadership closely resembles what
knowledge workers are looking for related to fulfillment and holistic approach, encouraging a
sense of community, and sharing the need for decision-making so that many feel empowered.
Overall, the feeling of giving service to others and the focus on authentic service will enhance
mutual respect and trust in workers (Correia de Sousa & Dierendonck, 2010).

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 36

The History of Servant Leadership
Robert K. Greenleaf, in 1970, coined the term servant-leadership (Spears, 2004) to
prompt action for people to do a better job of caring for one another, and, in particular, for
leaders to do a better job of caring for each other. Greenleaf became inspired through one of
Herman Hesse’s most notable works, the Journey to the East. In the story, Leo, the protagonist,
is on a journey with a team. He is a servant who nurtures and supports the individuals of that
team until, one day, Leo is not seen again. The group falls into shambles and the journey is
abandoned (Spears, 2004). Since then, the Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership was born
and is a successful network of like-minded educators and leaders who strive to lead from serving
others first. The Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership is a non-profit educational
organization that inspires others to practice and teach servant leadership. Its mission is to
improve quality and compassion through servant leadership to other people and institutions
(Spears, 2004).
Perceptions of Servant Leadership
Many leaders have contended that servant leadership appears to be seen as a weak model
of leadership. Spears (Dateline, 1994), former CEO of The Greenleaf Center for Servant
Leadership, reported that it is just the opposite—servant leadership is not at all weak because the
heart is strong, and that’s what servant leadership does: it leads with the heart (Spaulding, 2015).
Leadership begins with knowledge that an individual character is at the forefront of management
and decision-making for an organization. To be an effective leader, the individual needs to
understand the capacity of the workforce, place people in teams where each one excels and offers
their individual talents, and recognizes the employees as participants who contribute their
expertise to help the company achieve company goals for a competitive advantage. (Autry,
2004). We know that the best kind of teaching is through modeling (Billig, 2000); therefore, by
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 37

serving others, one’s own behavior is exposed and lives are transformed (Spaulding, 2015).
Servant leadership is about showing love for another, which should not be misconstrued as being
soft (McMahone, 2012). Keeping others accountable, with an emphasis on the concept of love,
is a practice of a servant leader. (Hunter, 2004). It would not be loving if leaders did not hold all
people to the same high esteem that an organization has for their employees. Leaders who are
excellent are those who care about the company, over themselves, with a sense of humility and
willing to do good (Collins, 2001).
Servant leaders do not possess the quality of greed (Spaulding, 2015). Servant leaders
are those who lead with their hearts and not out of self-interest (Autry, 2004). To focus on
serving others, one must put one’s ego aside (Blanchard & Hodges, 2005). Servant leadership is
more than learning the techniques to becoming a leader; it is having the internal insight of
understanding human nature, having empathy and strength of character in helping others
(McMahone, 2012). An example of this insight is presented by Stengel (2008) in a conversation
with Nelson Mandela, a servant leader, who stated that one should let others believe they are in
the front, leading, while leading from the back. This statement itself speaks to the importance of
serving first, and putting ego aside.
Mismatch of Motivation and Team Cohesiveness
There is great difficulty in motivating employees within the team environment. Clark
(2003) reported that 50% of workers in the job market today do the bare minimum of the work
required in their job. More than 80% admitted that they could work much harder in their
positions. Lencioni (2002) identified five dysfunctions that result in uncooperativeness and the
division of team members not working together. When a team is not cohesive, an absence of
trust is the biggest factor for a team not working well together (Lencioni, 2002). Team members
do not feel safe in an environment where they can share their ideas, resulting in a fear of conflict.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 38

Another factor of mistrust is a lack of commitment from various team members. When no action
plan is in place with the team members input, the result is the avoidance of accountability within
the team and inattention to results, which happens when individuals work solely for themselves
and their ego instead of the betterment of the team (Blanchard & Hodges, 2005). These
individual factors contribute to a lack of motivation and present a problem among employees
who are required to work in teams. Servant leadership as the base and structure of an
organization may provide the solution to the problems that are seen by knowledge workers in
organizations that result in a lack of motivation and fear.
The Need for Examining Servant Leadership
At present, there is not a way to examine and evaluate the characteristics of a servant
leader. Dennis and Winston (2003) stated that the “reason for this gap in the literature is the fear
that of operationalizing servant-leadership runs the risk of reductionism and trivialization of the
concept” (p. 457). Another reason for the gap in the literature is that there are no studies that
examined or evaluated servant leadership characteristics to replicate and teach those
characteristics to youth in a global society. To master servant leadership, it must be practiced for
a lifetime. There is not a “quick fix” program, but, rather, it is a process of learning. Having a
high moral and spiritual character can certainly help (Dennis & Winston, 2003). Covey (1998)
stressed the importance of committing oneself to the service of others to reinforce our own
ethics, values, and morality for which we live.
Characteristics of a Servant Leader
Many characteristics are critical in a servant leader, but there are ten that are paramount
above all others (Spears, 2004). These ten characteristics are achievable in anyone’s lifetime.
The first characteristic is to listen. Servant leaders hear what is said, and what is not being said,
and do everything in their power to identify and clarify what is heard. Listening is a skill in
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 39

which the receiver hears from the giver what is not said. A true servant leader is one who listens
and integrates the information from a sensitive perspective to respond to the giver in a caring and
nonjudgmental way. The second characteristic is to empathize. As a servant leader, empathy is
the understanding of a person’s circumstances without being judgmental but able to give sage
advice. The third characteristic is healing. The strength of the servant leader is identifying how
the individual needs to receive the healing and perceive how to effectively suggest what process
a person needs to receive healing. Greenleaf said that servant leaders can make whole those with
whom they come into contact (Greenleaf & Spears, 1998). The third characteristic is parallel to
how Jesus practiced servant leadership. The fourth characteristic is awareness to show people
how they may become self-aware and to identify examples in their life that categorize their self-
awareness. Persuasion is the fifth characteristic. A servant leader can persuade others to
recognize their own ability to persuade themselves to be effective communicators and problem-
solvers.
The sixth characteristic, conceptualization, is another distinctive part of the servant
leader. Servant leaders, while they interact with others, teach how to conceptualize so that the
people they teach can learn how to conceptualize for themselves. This conceptualization is
practiced in dreaming big and creating realistic goals. Conceptualizing is the ability to have a
far-reaching vision and believe it can become a reality. The seventh characteristic is foresight. A
servant leader uses insight to have the foresight of decision-making or problem-solving. Sharing
this insight with people in their community, or with others, helps the community of people have
the faith to trust themselves, learning from their past to change their future. The eighth
characteristic is stewardship. The concept of stewardship is to practice letting go of control and
controlling situations, and to teach others how to handle their own control issues. Commitment
to the growth of people is the ninth characteristic. The servant leader practices the concept of
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 40

commitment to teach others how to grow professionally, spiritually, and personally. The tenth
characteristic is building community (Spears, 1998). Spears, Russell and Stone (2002)
elaborated on the ten characteristics of becoming a servant leader and specified the depth of
servant leaders’ behavior. The moral fiber of integrity, honesty, trust, and service are represented
as foundational traits that servant leaders practice in their daily life. The application of these
traits includes modeling, pioneering, appreciation of others, vision, and empowerment as
qualities, which can be taught as opposed to the difficulty of teaching moral fibers (Russell &
Stone, 2002). In addition, accompanying attributes are communication, credibility, competence,
stewardship, visibility, influence, persuasion, listening, encouragement, teaching, and delegation
(Russell & Stone, 2002).
Role-Models of Servant Leaders
Martin Luther King stated that “Everyone can be great, because everyone can serve.”
(Blanchard & Miller, 2014). His demonstrations in Washington, D.C. and his keen sense of
followers showed the love he had for his people. Princess Diana and Mohammed Ali were also
servant leaders, as was Mother Theresa and Nelson Mandela for their role in serving others
throughout their lifetimes.
Servant Leadership Examples
Humility and faith are at the core of servant leadership (Dateline, 2004). The image of
Jesus washing the feet of his disciples embodies a servant leader, which Spears (2004) specified
as the practical application of servant leadership. The image is nearly 2,000 years old and
indicates that true leaders are servants first. Colleen Barrett, President of Southwest Airlines, as
explained by Spence, (2009) ran the company on a servant leadership model, by prioritizing the
needs of her employees and recognizing their abilities, which results in their personal motivation
to become committed to their position, their work, and the organization. Spence (2009) discussed
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 41

how Barrett spent 85% of her time on employees and on pro-active customer service to the
airline employees. The idea is that the employees will give passengers excellent customer
service, and the passengers will pass on the kindness, and perhaps even fly again with Southwest
Airlines.
History of Up with People
The establishment of the organization Up with People has a historical beginning. In the
mid-1960s, the Moral Re-Armament (MRA), a religious organization, was based off of four
absolutes: absolute honesty, absolute purity, absolute unselfishness and absolute love. These
four absolutes were connected to the Up with People documentary, Smile ‘Til It Hurts (Pearlman
& Lechner, 2009). It was an international network of students who discussed the political and
social issues, through their Sing Out performances. In 1965, J. Blanton Belk took over the
leadership of Up with People which had already been involved with Sing Out, a musical
performing group.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Up with People had become popular as they had been asked to
sing in five Super Bowl shows in the United States, attracting global and media attention. Glenn
Close, a well-known actress in Los Angeles, was part of the notable cast members who was a
vocalist for the performing arts group in the 1960s. Blanton Belk, founder of Up with People,
said that “some people thought that Up with People played their part in adverting
a third World War” ( Pearlman & Lechner, 2009). Their positive energy and ways in which they
sent out messages to the world was through music composed of social issues of the time.
Up with People became a hit all around the world, but they are more than a performing
arts theatrical group. Each cast member rehearses in Denver, Colorado, in the summer for five
weeks. During this time, the cast members (students between the ages of 17 and 29) learn the
show, including the choreography, music (both instrumental and vocal) and dance taught by the
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 42

writers and producers. The songs of the show speak to social issues, political pressures,
environmental causes, and other international dilemmas that connect individuals on a global
level. Each individual becomes engaged on a deeper level and relates to themes spoken through
music. The title of the show may change because of the political climate of that year and the
need to address social issues in a positive way. When the issues change, there is a need to
compose new lyrics to songs, write new original songs, and adapt the music to the lyrics for the
group to reach their audiences in the timeframe of their performance and the country in which
they perform. All of the songs are translated into the language that the students perform in.
After five weeks of rehearsals, the cast members (student participants) travel to nearly
twenty or more communities to perform on two or three continents. The participants stay with
host families, many who are alumni. In addition to staying with host families, as a core part of
the program, the students participate in service projects in the community and learn about cross-
cultural exchanges and experiences through volunteering in community centers while attending
other societal activities.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 43

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
Purpose of the Project and Questions
The purpose of this project was to conduct an evaluation of leadership and service, two of
the four facets of Up with People. The curriculum was assessed to learn how service-learning
prepares individuals to become servant leaders, which is one of the goals of Up with People.
The stakeholders in this study are the executive management team members as well as the
curriculum director, and two education coordinators. By interviewing the executive management
team who make management decisions, it will be possible to understand how they use service-
learning as a preparation for servant leadership. The analysis will focus on knowledge and skill,
motivation, and organizational resources, which are an integral part of becoming a servant
leader. As such, the questions that guided the evaluation study are the following:
1. What is the current status of Up with People’s leaders’ knowledge, motivation, and
organization influences needed to produce servant leaders?
2. What solutions and recommendations in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and
organizational resources may be appropriate for Up with People’s leadership and service
program?
3. What components of the Up with People program are participants receiving in terms of
leadership and service that cannot be found in a traditional education program?

Introduction
Chapter 3 includes methodological framework, instruments used, a description of the Up
with People organization, executive stakeholders as participants, interviews, assumptions,
limitations and delimitations. Also included as areas of consideration are data collection and
analysis, validation of the performance needs, trustworthiness of the data, the role of the
investigator, and the knowledge, motivation, and organization charts. The details of how this
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 44

study was conducted and the research questions related to the organization’s practice of servant
leadership through their service and leadership programs are addressed. The methodological
framework and the knowledge, motivation, and organization skills are also detailed in this
section. A background of the stakeholders, and the purposeful choice (Patton, 2015) for their
participation in the study is also discussed. The instruments used and the study’s limitations and
delimitations are also mentioned to provide substance, or the lack of substance, for this study.
This study involved analysis through Clark and Estes (2008) framework to evaluate Up with
People’s mentorship and practice of creating servant leaders. The data were used to suggest
improvement of educational programming.
Methodological Framework
The methodological framework of the Clark and Estes (2008) gap analysis process model
(Figure 1), the eight-step process, was used to evaluate the data. A gap analysis examines
current performance against a desired level of performance, or outcome. The intention of a gap
analysis is to challenge an organization to reflect on its current status and examine what it wishes
to become. Clark and Estes (2008) partnered to create the gap analysis process model to help
break down the steps of the core problem in an organization. In the first stage of the gap analysis
process, goals are communicated between employer and employee to be concrete, challenging,
and current. (Clark & Estes, 2008). Each business, or organization, needs to clearly identify,
evaluate, modify, and communicate its business and professional goals. In the second stage, it is
essential to observe and understand what achievements were made to evaluate the company’s
strengths. In the third stage, gaps are identified. A gap is an empty void that needs to be filled to
eliminate problems occurring within an organization. In stage four, Clark and Estes (2008) stated
that gaps can be caused by a lack of knowledge, skills, or motivation as well as by organizational
deficiencies (Clark & Estes, 2008).
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 45

Gaps can be caused by one, or a mixture of two, or even all three causes. It is important
to recognize the cause in order to solve the problem. In stage five, the organization must state
the root causes of the problem (the foundation of the problem) and examine ways within the
organization to solve the problem or problems. In stage six, a solution needs to be found. In
stage seven, findings need to be implemented. It is important not to rush to judgment about the
causes and to examine and investigate carefully before creating solutions. This is critical
because, if the evaluation is not conducted accurately and with precision, the danger of another
gap might appear elsewhere. Lastly in stage eight, an evaluation needs to be performed to see
the effectiveness of the process and the program and whether the problem was resolved. As
noted in Figure 1, there are various critical parts of the gap analysis model.

Figure 1. The gap analysis process (Clark & Estes, 2008).
This evaluation focused on the Up with People program and its process of building
servant leaders. It is critical to analyze their leadership and service models to evaluate how the
program builds servant leaders. To evaluate the program, the gap analysis model (Clark and
Estes, 2008) was used to identify knowledge, motivation, and organizational causes to explain
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 46

the existence of any gaps. It is essential to evaluate the program of study to see if it
accomplished its goal of creating servant leaders.
Assumed Performance-Based Influences
Rueda (2011) described the gap analysis process as “a way to clarify both short-term and
long-term organizational goals, assess them, and describe gaps from the actual levels of
performance or achievement to the desired levels” (p. 73). Therefore, it is vitally important to be
sure that performance-related issues, needs, or assets are validated in any study. Often,
assumptions are made without any justification behind them, which can lead to a misdiagnosis of
the problem itself, only causing more problems. Therefore, careful attention was placed in this
study to provide authentic information regarding the issues, needs, and assets of the Up with
People program to parallel with its education curriculum. As such, a thorough investigation of
organizational performance should include three components: (a) scanning (informal) interviews
with stakeholders; (b) learning, motivation, and organization/culture theory; and (c) review of the
literature on servant leadership (referred to as related literature). Related literature was discussed
in Chapter 2. The following is a discussion of the knowledge, motivation, and organizational
issues, needs, and assets of the Up with People service and leadership curriculum.
Preliminary Scanning Data
Many people in the 1960s felt unsure of the disputes and disagreements that originated
and proceeded to grow at that time. America was in the midst of a Cold War, in a combat with
the Soviet Union over who was conducting an arms race with atomic weapons, and the country
was divided over the war in Vietnam. On the home front, America was fighting racism.
Adolescents, in particular, felt frustrated and disenfranchised, wondering how their country had
lacked cooperation in dealing with international affairs. When the youth tried to speak out
against issues they felt strongly about, they were silenced by the American government. This led
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 47

to the birth of Up with People, founded by J. Blanton Belk. Belk’s goal was to create a statement
in support of these young people that would bring hope to their nation.
Fifty-one years ago, the creation of Up with People sought to fulfill the mission of the
young people to become change agents. Now, nearly 26,000 alumni have traveled, performed,
and learned from the organization’s education curriculum, focusing on service and leadership.
Their medium of understanding and language is through music, with an emphasis on community
relationships and developing servant leaders.
The following are the knowledge, motivation and organizational issues, needs and assets
that the organization currently has in its programs.
Knowledge and skills. Up with People is an organization that encompasses an
educational curriculum that includes a highly reputable program consisting of executive
managers who know how to develop servant leaders. The executive managers also model the
behavior and characteristics of a servant leader and know the criteria of servant leadership. The
managers practice the leadership and service curriculum delivered to their participants. Quality
of instruction is exceptional and reflection with critical feedback is given to the coordinators and
teachers to assess and improve their participants practice. The knowledge gap existing is in how
to create the next generation of leaders for a sustaining organization, and in creating a modern
marketing approach to further recruit students interested in the program.
Motivation. The executive management team is committed to high integrity, strong
service values, and model servant leadership, which are the foundation of the organization.
Persistence in making sure that the program succeeds is invaluable, and the leaders work hard to
structure the education curriculum so that it reflects a high degree of experiential learning. The
team chose to research what a servant leader is and how a person who exemplifies the
characteristics of a servant leader lives their life. The research underlying service-learning and
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 48

servant leadership is the impetus of the executive management team to show how research leads
to practice which eventually helps to teach and share values that help change behaviors of
teachers and students to fulfill the mission of service and leadership. The motivation factor that
the leaders lack is the emphasis on looking at their competition in order to help them improve or
change aspects of their marketing plan for recruiting purposes.
Organization. The organization carefully selected key people to lead their programs.
These individuals are knowledgeable about the leadership and service curriculum needed to
become servant leaders, formally assessing the participants by using a pre and post-assessment of
their experience. This assessment is a reflective indication of how well the participant felt they
have grown as a leader committed to serving others. However, from an organizational
standpoint, the leaders lack the insight that a junior member could benefit the organization if they
sat on the board in order to fill the generational gap.
The executive management team believes that the student program will result in active
alumni who eventually give back to the organization financially and morally and become
exemplary servant leaders. This is evident through their highly visible and progressive Up with
People International Alumni Association (UWPIAA). This organization was established for the
benefit of Up with People alumni around the globe and as a non-profit organization partner to Up
with People. Most importantly, the organization and its leaders support the overall mission of
the Up with People experience in service and leadership, and models what a good servant leader
is through their actions.
Participating Stakeholders
The participating stakeholders for the evaluation study are the eight members of the Up
with People executive management team, one education director and two education coordinators,
for a total of eleven people. To understand and assess the curriculum, it is important to look at
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 49

the individuals who make the decisions for the organization. All eleven leaders were asked to
participate in the project by answering semi-structured questions, participating in an interview,
and reviewing pertaining to Up with People.
Data Collection
The University of Southern California Institutional Review Board granted permission
prior to any interview, or analysis of those interviews being conducted. Knowledge, motivation,
and organization causes were addressed through the interviews. The interview method is
described below.
Interview
The participants are the executive management team members who were interviewed,
along with the education director and education coordinators, who deliver the curriculum. The
interviews were conducted in person in September 2016 after approval from the University of
Southern California Institutional Review Board. Eight questions and sub-prompt questions were
asked and each interview took between 45 minutes to 6 hours. All interviews were conducted in
English and took place at the Up with People Headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Each member
received a letter of consent describing the study and their role as participants. Also included in
the letter of consent was an opportunity to withdraw from the study without penalty in the event
they chose not to continue. The interview was recorded for transcription and coding purposes.
Each of the eleven members mentioned in this study were purposefully chosen (Patton,
2002) and selected for this evaluation because they play a key role in making decisions on the
leadership and service operations, programs, and curriculum. A member check was conducted
for the first participant.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 50

Validation of the Performance Needs
The rest of Chapter 3 presents a description of how the organization’s needs were
validated. Knowledge, motivation, and organization is the underlying structure of the
organization, and research-based studies guide the ability to validate the programs. Each of these
areas are explained as the impetus for understanding how Up with People’s mission and goals
are supported through the practice of the various curricula and designated programs.
Knowledge
Anderson and Krathwohl (2001) determined that there are four different kinds of
knowledge: factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive. These four types kinds of
knowledge provided guidance to the needs necessary in examining the leadership and service
curriculum.
Factual knowledge is literal knowledge. Factual questions listed in the interview were
assumed to be answered with great ease and expertise by the executive management leaders.
Declarative knowledge is a statement made of emphasis on acknowledging a fact (Rouse
& Morris, 1986). Emphatic information about facts ensures the fact of something can be
declared. It is literal interpretation (Rouse & Morris, 1986).
According to Streveler, et. al., (2008) “Conceptual knowledge is a deeper understanding
of the domain” that relates to “problem-solving procedures” and “helping them evaluate whether
alternative procedures are worth trying” (p. 279). Conceptual questions listed in the data
collection instruments were assumed to be answered with respect to how they are connected to
aspects of the program and their relationship to each other.
According to Streveler and Lam (2009, p. 324), “Procedural knowledge refers to how to
perform a task including compilation steps, traversal strategies, and optimization methods.”
Procedural questions ask the “how” something occurs amd make up nearly half of the interview
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 51

and focus group questions. In understanding servant leadership, it is essential to ask how this
model is intertwined with the leadership and service curriculum that is already built. Equally as
critical is the importance of how this curriculum is delivered to the participants.
Metacognitive knowledge is knowledge that is known to self (Pintrich, 2002).
Metacognitive questions ask how something is being thought through, and the thinking behind
the curriculum strategies Up with People developed. Table 1 explains the types of questions and
how many questions are related to the individuals for the interview,
Table 1 below contains a summary of the knowledge, motivation, and organization
assumed needs of the Up with People executive management team. The interview instrument
provided validation that these needs were accurate.
Table 1
Assumed Needs
Trustworthiness of Data
The interview participants were credited with trustworthiness since they are familiar with
in-depth information on the knowledge, motivation, and organization of the Up with People
programs. Trustworthiness is a component of triangulation of the data. All interviews were
confidential and held in a private room at the Up with People headquarters in Denver, Colorado.
A member check was conducted in the first interview to ensure accuracy, and pseudonyms were
used to protect the participants.
What are the assumed Knowledge/Motivation/Organization factors for an effective service
and leadership program? Validation of Needs.
Organization: Up with People
Assumed KMO Needs for
Up with People
Interview
Factual Questions 1
Declarative Questions 1
Conceptual Questions 2
Procedural Questions 3
Metacognitive Questions 1
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 52

Role of the Researcher
As a researcher in this study who is conducting a problem-solving investigation, the role
is to obtain information needed to evaluate the leadership and service programs of the Up with
People organization. By examining the curriculum and the functions of the experiential learning
process, an evaluation of the gap analysis (Clark & Estes, 2008) was used to identify how leaders
have, or are becoming, servant leaders. The role of the researcher was to evaluate all the data
received to address the research questions.
As an Up with People participant in 1993 and a public relations representative working as
a volunteer for Up with People in 1994, it is the researcher’s understanding that the program is
still as successful as ever and that servant leaders are trained to be global citizens who care about
the world and each other. With vibrant employees in the organization who critique and change
the education curriculum to fit the changing times, there is a tenacious spirit and attitude towards
creating servant leaders and people who care. During time with Up with People, the researcher
had an opportunity to travel with 175 individuals from 28 countries, hearing first-hand
experience stories from people who were directly affected by cultural and governmental change.
Living with this new family for one year presented experiences related to cultural differences and
similarities. As part of an education, the experience was fulfilling beyond traditional learning
from a textbook. The program demonstrated the importance of authenticity, ethics, and a sense of
caring. Those personal hands-on experiences emphasize qualities that were foundational for
becoming a servant leader.
Data Analysis
Once all the data were collected, qualitative analysis was created as themes and sub-
themes to understand and answer the research questions. The themes and sub-themes, which
were used to create the Servant Leadership framework, will be presented to the Up with People
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 53

organization. After the interviews were conducted and transcribed, key words and phrases were
underlined or identified from all the participants. These key words and phrases were then color-
coded as themes and sub-themes, creating the properties and categories. These major themes are
reported. Using the gap analysis framework by Clark and Estes (2008), a careful look at the
process took place to ensure that the needs of the program have been found by looking at the
knowledge, motivation, and organization factors, with the hopes of those needs being
transformative.
Limitations and Delimitations
Limitations are parts of the study which the researcher does not have control over or any
weakness in the methodology itself. As a past participant with Up with People, a limitation may
be the confounding idea that bias may surface—a bias towards not wanting to disclose any
negative findings for fear that it may warrant a view of the organization that was no longer
evident. The use of bracketing may help the bias that might develop because of past experience.
Bracketing is a self-reflective process that assists the researcher in limiting the extent of bias in
conducting the research (Marshall & Rossman, 2016).
The study was delimited to one specific organization that focuses on service-learning for
the preparation of developing individuals to become servant leaders. Up with People was chosen
because the executive management team has the foundation as servant leaders, and the study was
delimited for evaluating an organization for its potential servant leadership preparation. The
study was delimited to Up with People since their organizational structure can be evaluated using
the gap analysis (Clark & Estes, 2008). The study was delimited to a gap analysis evaluation to
assess how well, and in what ways, Up with People trains young people to becoming servant
leaders. Eleven members were selected as the stakeholder group because these members were
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 54

executive members of the organization and provided information to assist in the gap analysis
evaluation.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 55

CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND FINDINGS
The purpose of this study was to investigate and evaluate how effective the leaders of Up
with People are in preparing students to become servant leaders, and if they have the capacity to
do this. Interviews were analyzed to find if any gaps existed in the leaders’ knowledge,
motivation or organization in creating servant leaders. The stakeholders, who are members of the
senior executive management team and members of the education staff, were the participants for
this study. By interviewing the leaders, the data provided information on education curricula the
organization uses to explain why and how the leaders are effective in developing and mentoring
students to become servant leaders. The analysis focused on the leaders in the areas of
knowledge and skill, motivation, and organizational resources from Clark and Estes’ (2008)
theoretical framework. The study was an analysis of the organization’s underlying philosophy
and evaluated the effectiveness of two programs in the fields of leadership and service.
Results and Findings for Knowledge, Motivation, and Organization Causes
This study was qualitative and included interviews. The organization examined the use
of service-learning as an impetus for modeling servant leadership. The data addressed the
following research questions.
1. What is the current status of Up with People’s leaders’ knowledge, motivation, and
organization influences needed to produce servant leaders?
2. What solutions and recommendations in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and
organizational resources may be appropriate for Up with People’s leadership and service
program?
3. What components of the Up with People program are participants receiving in terms of
leadership and service that cannot be found in a traditional education program?
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 56

4. Seven participants, who were the stakeholders of the senior executive management team
and four members of the education department were interviewed. Transcriptions from
each interview were read several times. The eleven participants were assigned
pseudonyms to protect their anonymity and confidentiality.
This next section also addresses the assumed needs that were validated and those that
were not validated. The validated needs include: 1) the leaders know how to strategize to help
maintain the credibility of the program; 2) the leaders know the criteria of servant leadership and
use it in their organization; and 3) the leaders know how to teach and assess the participants of
the program. The three assumed needs that were not validated include: 1) the leaders know how
to develop the next generation of leaders for the organization; 2) the leaders know their
competition and they research what a successful servant leadership program looks like; and 3)
the leaders know how to use creative and inclusive marketing to sustain the program and attract
the next generation of leaders. Key words and key concepts were identified and underlined to
represent similarities among all of the participants. The data evolved from key concepts, and
decisions were made as to whether the concepts were global or specific. Global concepts created
themes and specific concepts developed sub-themes. Each theme and sub-theme is defined using
the transcriptions. The themes were color-coded and each sub-theme was double color-coded.
The sub-theme was double color-coded to ensure that the relationship of the theme and sub-
theme were synchronized. Because the creation of the themes and sub-themes was an
evolutionary process (Bogden & Biklan, 2007), the possibility of moving themes and sub-themes
required changing the coding, or changing the color of the coding. The color-coding became an
organizational procedure for analyzing, and grouping, the findings. As a result, the following
four themes (a) the essence of Up with People, (b) life lessons learned, (c) commitment to
sustainable relationships, and (d) economic longevity and corresponding sub-themes emerged,
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 57

which created a new servant leadership framework complete with discussion and findings for the
Up with People organization, which will be shared with the Up with People organization
The following KMO Table was created to find what assumed needs were validated and not
validated.
Table 2
Summary of Validated Assumed Knowledge, Motivation, and Organization Needs & New Needs
ASSUMED
NEEDS:
Knowledge,
Motivation,
Organization
RELATED
THEMES
VALIDATED NOT
VALIDATED
NEW
The Up with
People leaders
know to
strategize to help
maintain the
credibility of the
program( K)
All Themes Interviews New
Terminology
The leaders in
the program
know how to
develop servant
leaders as
evidenced in
their curriculum.
(K)
Essence of Up
with People,,
Life Lessons
Learned,
Interviews New
Terminology
The leaders
know how to
develop the next
generation of
leaders for the
organization (K).
Essence of Up
with People,
Economic
Longevity

NOT
VALIDATED

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 58

Table 2, continued
ASSUMED
NEEDS:
Knowledge,
Motivation,
Organization
RELATED
THEMES
VALIDATED NOT
VALIDATED
NEW
The leaders
know the criteria
of servant
leadership and
use it in their
organization (K)
Essence of Up
with People,
Life Lessons
Learned,
Economic
Longevity.
Interviews Economic
Longevity is
new involving
alumni and
current
students.
The leaders
know how to
translate theory
into action when
developing and
delivering the
curriculum (K).

Essence of Up
with People,
Life Lessons
Learned.
Interviews

The leaders know
how to train their
education
coordinators to
create student
ambassadors (K).

Essence of Up
with People,
Commitment
to Sustainable
Relationships
Interviews
The leaders know
how to cultivate a
donor base to
support the
organization (K).

Economic
Longevity.
Interviews New
Terminology:
Praying for
Hope
The leaders know
how to teach and
assess the
participants of the
program (K).

Life Lessons
Learned.

Interviews

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 59

Table 2, continued
ASSUMED
NEEDS:
Knowledge,
Motivation,
Organization
RELATED
THEMES
VALIDATED NOT
VALIDATED
NEW
The leaders know
their competition
and
they research
what a successful
servant
leadership
program looks
like (K).

Life Lessons
Learned,
Economic
Longevity,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships.

NOT
VALIDATED

The leaders know
how to use
creative and
inclusive
marketing to
sustain the
program and
attract the next
generation of
leaders, for
example they
help to create a
ripple effect
within the
organization (K).

Essence of Up
with People,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships,
Economic
Longevity.

NOT
VALIDATED

The leaders
provide
a comprehensive
educational
program that is
inclusive of all
people (K).

Essence of Up
with People,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships,
Life Lessons
Learned.

Interviews

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 60

Table 2, continued
ASSUMED
NEEDS:
Knowledge,
Motivation,
Organization
RELATED
THEMES
VALIDATED NOT
VALIDATED
NEW
The leaders
know how to
provide high
levels of interest
and intrinsic
motivation to
motivate
students. (K).

Essence of Up
with People,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships,
Life Lessons
Learned.

Interviews
The leaders
know how
successful the
leadership and
service program
is. (K).

Essence of Up
with People,
Economic
Longevity.
Interviews
The leaders
choose to be in
the Up with
People
organization due
to similar values
matched with the
mission
statement.(M).

Essence of Up
With People,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships,
Life Lessons
Learned.
Interviews
The leaders
persist in their
efforts to
succeed in the
program
outcomes.
(M).

Essence of Up
with People,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships,
Life Lessons
Learned,
Economic
Longevity.
Interviews

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 61

Table 2, continued
ASSUMED
NEEDS:
Knowledge,
Motivation,
Organization
RELATED
THEMES
VALIDATED NOT
VALIDATED
NEW
The leaders put
mental effort into
restructuring the
curriculum each
year. (M).

Essence of Up
with People,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships,
Life Lessons
Learned.
Interviews
The leaders
choose to commit
themselves
wholeheartedly to
the
organization.(M).

Essence of Up
with People,
Economic
Longevity.
Interviews
The leaders are
confident in
their ability to
sustain the next
generation of
leadership (self-
efficacy) (M).

Essence of Up
with People,
Economic
Longevity.

Interviews

The leaders
model the
behavior and
attitude of a
servant leader.
(M).

Essence of Up
with People, Life
Lessons Learned,
Economic
Longevity.
Interviews
The leaders
believe that the
outcome of the
student program
will result in
active alumni.
(M).

Essence of Up
with People,
Economic
Longevity.

Interviews

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 62

Table 2, continued
ASSUMED
NEEDS:
Knowledge,
Motivation,
Organization
RELATED
THEMES
VALIDATED NOT
VALIDATED
NEW
The organization
values learning
from what
happened in
history (O).

Life Lessons
Learned,
Economic
Longevity.

Interviews
The organization
has appropriate
staff who are
knowledgeable
about the
leadership and
service
curriculum.
(O).

Economic
Longevity,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships.
Interviews
The leadership
aligns resources
with its most
important
priorities
(sustaining the
organization).(O).

All Themes

Interviews
The organization
supports the
overall mission
of the Up with
People
experience in
service and
leadership.
(O).

All Themes Interviews

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 63

Table 2, continued
ASSUMED
NEEDS:
Knowledge,
Motivation,
Organization
RELATED
THEMES
VALIDATED NOT
VALIDATED
NEW
The leaders hire
people who
embrace the
mission of the
organization,
perpetuating a
positive cultural
setting. (O).

Essence of Up
with People,
Economic
Longevity.
Interviews
The leaders
create structures,
policies and
practices that
reinforce the
values of the
organization (O).
Essence of Up
with People,
Commitment to
Sustainable
Relationships,
Economic
Longevity.
Interviews

Addressing the Research Questions
Research question one. The first research questions for this study asked, what is the
current status of Up with People’s leaders’ knowledge, motivation, and organization influences
needed to produce servant leaders? The stakeholders addressed this question based on
knowledge, motivation, and organization from their experience and understanding the longevity
of how to produce servant leaders and expressed the specific practice of what Up with People
symbolize. All eleven participants believed that it was important to practice service. For
example, Al stated, “We’re a movement with a touring musical show that spreads the message of
servant leadership and education is the end result.” Sue stated, “Being a leader in a non-profit
organization, I want to be the kind of leader that I would expect Up with People to have and
leading by example is the best way I am doing that.” Bob agreed, “Up with People appealed to
me because it was something bigger than me.” Jane expressed her idea of the ripple effect with
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 64

creating a slogan, “Someone once said that your slogan should be something like, Serve the
World Today, Leave an Imprint on the World Tomorrow.” Practicing service was found to be a
pre-requisite for understanding service-learning in preparation for becoming a servant leader. Al
emphasized,
The best service we do is when we interact. We don’t define it as service. Talking to
someone at a gas station, talking to our host family—we’re in a host family all week and
we eat dinner with them, they serve us by giving us some place safe to stay—to call home
for a week. When we do a show, we don’t call that service, but it’s service. It’s 100%
service. The students have to, from the minute they step off the plane, start to learn how
to be a servant leader.
The participants believed that it was important to identify the qualities of servant
leadership and how one becomes a servant leader. Ronnie talked about critical skills of service
as the foundation for becoming a servant leader. He stated,
Servant leadership is when people own it themselves, driving from a personal passion.
When they believe that it’s their idea and that they made it happen and the leader has an
imprint on it happening and that everybody feels that they’ve accomplished it themselves.
That’s not necessarily the methodology but that’s how you know if it’s happened or not.
And people follow not because they have to, but because they want to.
The quote is representative of the qualities of servant leadership because when people
own it, it becomes a personal characteristic, in that they understand their own intuition and value
servant leadership. Being part of Up with People, this intuition is an important part of critical
thinking and critical skills. Aspects of personal passion are also factors of servant leadership
because when you have personal passion, you know how to identify other people’s personal
passion, placing them first before one self.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 65

In addressing the qualities of servant leadership, Sue stated,
Servant leadership is about a number of things: leading by example to create other
servant leaders, leading and coaching of other people to create servant leaders, leading
people not for your benefit but for the good of the cause or the good of whatever that
particular group of people is willing to participate. It’s a mindset.
Leading by example and coaching are traits that a servant leader has and uses to help other
people. A servant leader leads for the cause, putting others before themselves. To be a servant
leader, one needs to think critically about the skills of others and acknowledge those skills in a
positive way.
In discussing servant leaders, Mike’s position was slightly different in identifying how he
defined servant leaders. He stated,
A servant leader finds a void and fills it. It is someone with the ability to recognize the
need and has the skillset to address it, or fix it, or help it, whatever it might be. To me,
that is someone who is willing to dive in. It’s the ability to step back at times and ask,
what is the need and what abilities do I have to fill that need.
Mike’s understanding of a servant leader is someone who has qualities that result in a
personal, reflective understanding of who they are as servant leaders, so that they can re-evaluate
how they adapt to the needs of the individual receiving the help. Ronnie’s perspective is similar
to Mike’s, but includes a conceptual understanding of looking at an individual’s intuition and
personal passion. Sue’s perspective focuses on the aspect of coaching others. All of these
stakeholders expressed the status and influences of what Up with People needed to produce
servant leaders of which they themselves, as leaders, modeled.
As the result of the stakeholders’ specific knowledge, motivation, and organization it was
important to acknowledge that the stakeholders introduced new terminology to describe how the
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 66

concept and practice of being a servant leader is now defined. This new knowledge adds to the
body of research and fills a gap in the literature. The stakeholders continued to emphasize
concepts related to knowledge, motivation, and organization. For example, knowing oneself or
having intuition, using the knowledge to create a personal passion that motivates the stakeholders
to provide the opportunity to coach and teach through the organization, which is foundational to
model a servant leader.
Research question two. The second research question for this study asked what
solutions and recommendations in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and organizational
resources may be appropriate for Up with People’s leadership and service program. Eight out of
eleven participants emphasized that one of the key factors in teaching service–learning is to
establish partnerships, which has potential to be sustainable and long-term relationships. Mike
specified the importance of partnerships, which the organization is continuously reinforcing, by
stating,
We come into a community and it’s this whole, instead of selling them a product to a
sponsor, and we need to evolve into corporate partners that see us as a way for them to
extend their reach within their community. It’s like you have to learn how to become a
donor and see how good it feels. It keeps you connected. Rather than just an investor,
we want a partner.
Mike’s reinforcement of the strength of partnerships is that the leaders see the totality for
sustainable relationships. Sue extended the concepts that Mike is reinforcing by stating, “You
don’t want to lose the alumni, especially the alumni on your staff.” Bob emphasized the
sustainable relationships as he explained the innovation of Camp Up with People as an affiliate
program. He stated, “Camp Up with People is an affiliate program – it’s a partnership. Over the
six years of camp, we’ve had over 386 campers, and I think we’ve had 26 that have matriculated
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 67

into Up with People.” Just as much as partnerships are important to Up with People, so is the
critical need of succession. Mike added,
When I find a young hungry person who wants to work here, who thinks in that same
way, I hate it when we lose them. Drives me crazy. You know the next phase. We have
to be looking for that. [succession]. We should. We should always be thinking of
succession.
Mike explained the succession: “It’s important for the students to know the history of the
organization and the torch that they are carrying forward.” Each of the participants expressed
their passion for the ripple effect as the result of the students’ time, learning, participating, and
teaching in the organization foundation for carrying their own torch as servant leaders. The
succession is a continuation and recognition of the partnerships. When you acknowledge
partnerships for Up with People you are using the concept of succession and reinforcing Up with
People’s history.
Promoting promise reinforces the fact that generations of students, over fifty years in Up
with People, have practiced servant leadership. They have been promoting the concepts,
philosophy, and the paradigm that recognizes the importance of the communities which student
volunteers from their host families use to sustain the organization for growth. The purpose of
promoting promise is to recognize that they have a new group of students each semester for
promoting promise to maintain their philosophical views, teach service-learning and prepare
servant leaders. Sue observed that the heart of promoting promise for future generations is
collaborating with a corporate sponsor from each community so that the concept of economic
longevity is sustained for lifetime funding. Mike stated how promoting promise for future
generations encompasses the totality of the organization, he stated, “When I’m out there with the
cast, I’m typically with a prospective donor or current donor.” Establishing and maintaining
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 68

donor relationships is essential to continued donations. The donations help the organization stay
afloat and be self-sustaining. Sam expressed making a difference through the strength of lifetime
funding, such as bequeathing ones’ estates to organizations, which the organization can depend
upon the funding for the lifetime of the organization. He stated,
I’m a firm believer that, as you get older, you need to get up and get out of the way. The
Internet changed everything. Before the Internet, people couldn’t find out information,
didn’t look for it, and we were the only organization that came through their town
offering what we offer. The Internet and semester abroad changed everything.
Sam’s emphasis was on suggesting how promoting promise becomes the strength of lifetime
funding by preparing the organization to have new leaders, recognizing changes in technology
that will add to the organization’s economic longevity.
Based on the interviews with the stakeholders, creating an atmosphere where Up with
People is self-sustainable in the event that the executives retire and using creative and inclusive
marketing to sustain the program and attract the next generation of leaders are essential.
The above section which addressed the three questions included partnerships, promoting
promise, and the importance of succession. These are not only concepts but they directly apply
to what the leaders have said regarding their experiences over a long period of time, promoting
service-learning related to servant leadership. This data specifically confirmed the need for the
leaders to practice servant leadership so that they would be an example for the students in the
program. For instance, partnerships is at the foundation and helped to form the Up with People
organization. The leaders are creating curriculum to develop the moral compass of these
students year after year through the longevity of the company in order to promote promise for the
sustainability of the organization. Succession is the other foundation of making sure that the
leaders recognize the history so they can carry on the legacy of the Up with People organization.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 69

Research question three. All eleven participants agree that Up with People is not a
traditional educational program. The third research question for this study asked which
components of the Up with People program were participants receiving in terms of leadership
and service that cannot be found in a traditional education program. All eleven participants
agreed that Up with People is not a traditional educational program. Al stated,
We’re selling someone the idea of hope for the future and it’s intangible values but
without that value in Up with People, I wouldn’t work here. We’re church without the
God. So, make the most of it. That’s your legacy. That’s what you have to deal with.
That’s what these next six months are about. What is this show thing that you’ve learned
and what is the legacy that you’ve inherited?
In addressing question three, it is clear that traditional education programs do not discuss hope,
intangible values, and morals. Furthermore, the Up with People organization is very strong on
leaving a legacy based on servant leadership, whereas traditional programs do not address
servant leadership in their curriculum.
Sue approached the legacy of servant leadership from a practical perspective of alumni
who benefited and are now practicing servant leadership, something that other educational
programs rarely provide. These alumni attend a reunion to reinforce their life’s work and their
reoccurring interest in helping the organization. Sue stated,
You watch the young people deliver in front of your eyes. You look back in time at what
the Up with People alumni have done in their lives and careers. The demonstration of
that, each year at the reunion, is when there are so many candidates for the Everyday
Hero Awards, and that’s just really moving. That’s a great demonstration. If you really
look back in time to see what these young people, who are now older, what they have
done over the years is really fantastic.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 70

Sue points to the fact that very few traditional programs emphasize the importance of
their alumni in the same way as Up with People does. In a traditional program, the focus of the
communication is centered on monetary needs. However, communication In Up with People
doesn’t just focus on funding, but rather on the need for alumni being host families and
sponsors, who play an integral part of the program. The biggest difference in Up with People’s
non-traditional curriculum is their alumni who have yearly relationships with the stakeholders
and have even created an Everyday Hero Award that Sue shared in her quote. This award is
nominated by cast members and given to individuals who have gone beyond their call as
servant leaders in the scope of giving back to others. The other notable change with the Up
with People organization is their connection with all generations that have graduated who
returned to the organization to act as mentors, donors, and assist with the needs of the
organization. They continue to want to be affiliated with the Up with People organization.
Ronnie also observed the legacy of Up with People as two-fold. First, he recognized that 51
years as an organization is a legacy. Another perception of understanding from Ronnie is his
statement of thinking outside of tradition, i.e. outside of the box, and innovating. He stated,

Having over 50 years of “doing it this way” can sometimes stop people from thinking
outside of tradition and thinking how to continue “the way we do it” rather than how can
we be relevant to the issues and the times today.
Ronnie’s perspective of the legacy is also expressed as stopping innovation because he also
stated,
I say all of that not because I think those are the right directions to head, but, rather, as
possible examples to make us think freshly about Up with People today. That is what I
meant by our wonderful legacy can also stop us from reinventing at some point.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 71

Ronnie acknowledged the need for the legacy of the organization, but also reinforces the
changes that have happened over the last 51 years as the organization has experienced changes.
He believes that Up with People needs to rethink legacy with fresh new ideas and approaches
while still maintaining the vision and value of using performance as a vehicle to teach students
service-learning, preparing them as servant leaders for the impact in a culturally diverse global
society.
The leaders highlighted the importance of having alumni of the organization living a
legacy for the organization, expressing how they honor former students for their goodwill in the
community, which they know because of maintaining the relationships with the graduates.
These specific areas of emphasis are leadership and service, which are not a part of a traditional
educational program. For instance, a traditional program may have alumni, which are graduates,
but most are not interested in leaving any kind of legacy, especially a legacy of moral and ethical
values as a pre-requisite for becoming a servant leader. Another specific difference between Up
with People and a traditional education program is the honor award. In the traditional program,
the students are honored during their years in residence. However, the Up with People
organization nominates former students for their leadership and service for an outstanding
Everyday Hero award. This award is based on their longevity of work, service, service-learning,
and servant leadership. These components are also knowledge, motivation and organization
related. The components are very directed toward moral values and insightful practice in
relation to being a servant leader, which is modeled by all the stakeholders.
Assumed needs not validated
The assumed needs that were not validated are mentioned and addressed in this question.
Full details of recommendations appear in Chapter 5. The first assumed need that was not
validated was that the leaders know how to develop the next generation of leaders for the
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 72

organization. Based on the interviews with the stakeholders, the reason this cause was not
validated was the aging population of the stakeholders and their concern of sustainability when
they retire. The stakeholders were concerned that the succession of the organization was the
primary objective and they were not concentrating on creating the next generation of leaders, but
only how the organization would be sustainable when they retire. The solutions for this assumed
need that was not validated include a plan for succession. This plan would include a strategy that
would involve students who traveled with Up with People and their perception of how to execute
the succession for continued longevity. The plan would include approaching students who might
have the skills, or willingness to develop those skills, among the senior executive team to
contribute their knowledge and skills for changes that are needed in the organization.
It is recommended that a formal application process iscreated that invites students who have been
admitted into the program to apply for membership as a junior executive team member. This
student, receiving this honor, would be involved in the decision-making process whereby they
would share their knowledge and opinion of marketing. The student chosen would be committed
to working in this position and have traveled for one year with Up with People. It is
recommended that any student chosen for the junior executive team member would receive
college credit during the time they are simultaneously traveling and taking college credit.
The second assumed need that was not validated was that the leaders do not know how to
use creative and inclusive marketing to sustain the program and attract the next generation of
leaders, which help to create a ripple effect within the organization. Host families are essential to
the Up with People program. Therefore, if there are not enough host families, the leaders are not
able to adequately provide housing. The leaders do not have the technical creativity to take
advantage of social media to recruit host families. The organization highlights the relationship
between students and the host family. Therefore, it would be wise for marketing purposes to
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 73

obtain testimonials from the host family of what they learn and what they would recommend for
others becoming hosts. The host families become an integral part of the organization through the
connections they make. The host families could serve as spokespeople for the group to advertise
their opportunity to enlarge the group of attendees by sharing their experiences on video.
Using alumni, it is advantageous that the organization develop and set up an alumni job
share site. The concept of the board would be structured to include a donation from the alumni
as a membership fee as well as the employer who posts positions available. Both the
organization and the individuals will benefit from this collaboration. Up with People would
receive a donation to be a part of the alumni board and be able to preview job opportunities. The
employer who pays to advertise will be able to select past students for a possible match in their
company. The benefit of the recommendation is to reinforce the collaboration of both the
student chosen and the employer participating in the alumni job sharing experience.
The third assumed need that was not validated is that the leaders do not know their
competition and do not research what a successful servant leadership program looks like.
Therefore, it is suggested that servant leaders from universities speak to the Up with People
students about programs the students can enter. Up with People would have already prepared
them as servant leaders. The universities can become strategic partners, inviting the organization
to speak to the college campus. The connection with college students is really a connection with
the campus students’ families. Both the college students and their siblings could become
potential applicants.
It would be advantageous to offer a certificate of completion for college credit because
the learning and practical application of the curriculum provides student’s knowledge they can
use in their college studies. It is beneficial for the organization to structure a certificate of
completion for college credit and partner with a university that offers a servant leadership major,
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 74

or courses in service-learning. This would instill in the students a direction for their life’s work
and an opportunity to continue to use the curricular and learning skills from the organization. It
is also recommended that a model be created to encompass the concepts that evolved to reinforce
what the organization mastered as an example of training students to be servant leaders.
Summary of Chapter Four
The individual interviews contributed to the creation of the data to address all three
research questions:
1. What is the current status of the Up with People’s leaders’ knowledge, motivation, and
organization influences needed to produce servant leaders?
2. What solutions and recommendations in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and
organizational resources may be appropriate for Up with People’s leadership and service
program?
3. What components of the Up with People program are participants receiving in terms of
leadership and service that cannot be found in a traditional education program?

The four themes of the essence of Up with People (EUP), life lessons learned (LLL),
commitment to sustainable relationships (CSR) and economic longevity (EL) relate to the
comprehensive understanding of an evaluation of Up with People and its preparing and
providing opportunities for students to become servant leaders. Using the established themes, as
a model (Appendix I) was constructed as an evaluation culminating the study to acknowledge the
effective approaches and introduce suggestions related to Up with People’s mission.
In Chapter Five, an explanation of the themes is presented as they are related to the
literature. The chapter also includes implications and recommendations. These
recommendations are part of the evaluator process to inform the senior management executive
team of how to enhance the program and create more success for a recruitment of new students.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 75

In addition, Chapter Five includes recommendations to help with sustainability and economic
longevity.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 76

CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, DISCUSSION, IMPLICATIONS, AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary
The purpose of this study was to investigate and examine the effectiveness the
stakeholders of the Up with People program have in preparing students to become servant
leaders. The following research questions were addressed:
1. What is the current status of the Up with People’s leaders’ knowledge, motivation, and
organization influences needed to produce servant leaders?
2. What solutions and recommendations in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and
organizational resources may be appropriate for Up with People’s leadership and service
program?
3. What components of the Up with People program are participants receiving in terms of
leadership and service that cannot be found in a traditional education program?

Based on the interviews, it was found that many of the assumed needs were validated and
answered the three research questions. Some of those included that the leaders did know how to
create structures, policies and practices that reinforced the values of the organization, the leaders
knew how to provide high levels of interest and intrinsic motivation to motivate students, and the
organization hires knowledgeable staff who know the Up with People curriculum. However,
there were three assumed needs that were not validated. It was found that the leaders did not
know their competition nor researched other servant leadership organizations, did not know how
to develop the next generation of leaders for the organization, and did not know how to use
creative and inclusive marketing to sustain the program.
This chapter presents how the literature addressed the various concepts that developed
from the study, added to the body of knowledge and may fill a gap in the literature. The chapter
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 77

also includes implications of the study, which consist of an evaluation of their effectiveness and
contribution in educating students and acknowledging the alumni in service-learning, eventually
influencing how the students become alumni and alumni become servant leaders. The chapter
focuses on evaluation of Up with People, suggesting changes when appropriate for improving
their mission to continue to fulfill their vision.
Discussion
According to Billig and Furco (2002) service learning is a conceptual process of helping
others through an integration of the skills and talents of the students that provide opportunities
for others to receive what students are giving, which support the essence of Up with People
because service-learning is really experiential education. As reported by the participants,
application of service- learning takes momentum beyond the classroom walls and the students’
education is a collaborative effort of academics and service.
Billig and Furco (2002) also recognized a problem with service-learning because training
faculty in the aspects and concepts of service-learning is a tremendous undertaking when faculty
are unfamiliar with the research and theory underlying the practice of service-learning. The
essence of Up with People includes understanding the research and theory behind service-
learning which the students learn as the impetus for practicing service-learning in the
communities. Therefore, the students are familiar and understand how they execute the service
component of their education to contribute to the communities and also teach through their
practice of service-learning. Consequently, this foundation that Up with People provides in their
experiential education program adds to the body of knowledge for experiential education and
service-learning beyond Furco’s work and fills a gap in the literature.
The theme of life lessons learned contains concepts and factors that explain the depth of
how students use their learning and knowledge to make a difference, to improve themselves, and
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 78

to prepare themselves as servant leaders. Once the students understand that service-learning
originates from a theory, they absorb the information and knowledge and learn to translate theory
into action, thereby creating the sub-theme of translating theory into action. Several researchers
specified the importance of how students become prepared through service-learning and
additional skills to become servant leaders, which incorporates translating theory into action.
Conrad and Hedin (1989) supported the concepts by noting the most important purpose of
service-learning as a prerequisite to becoming a servant leader is to further a student’s academic
progress and develop civic responsibility. Civic responsibility is also emphasized by Richards et
al. (2013) as the result of strengthening a student’s critical thinking skills that apply from a
global perspective. Additional research from Burns (1998) identified four interrelated factors:
preparation, action, reflection, and demonstration, equip students for servant leadership.
Although the current study’s data and the literature support the concepts of preparing
students through service-learning, the study introduced new terms that describe how students in
Up with People use service-learning as a preparation for becoming servant leaders. They
become change makers as they are learning how the theory of service-learning prepares them to
be servant leaders. Students are not just changing their community, but, holistically, they are
changing themselves to be examples of helping their neighbors to change through experiential
experiences as the students facilitate learning. Therefore, the term change maker is an addition
to the literature and adds to the body of knowledge in describing the process of service-learning
as a pre-requisite for servant leadership.
Practicing service as a servant is very much a part of the Up with People curriculum.
Students learn how to give back to others because they are placed in situations, such as living
with a host family, that require them to be giving of themselves. They are continually put
through a learning cycle of giving and receiving, but have found great service in the giving that
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 79

they experience. It becomes a way of life to serve others so that they can generalize what they
learned as their prerequisite for being able to practice service, preparing them to be servant
leaders. The participants explained the importance of this practice as a way of understanding
what it means to be rewarded intrinsically. Their personal satisfaction comes from giving and
helping, instead of waiting for an extrinsic reward that they may have been previously given.
Intrinsic rewards also enable the students to step back and say they feel fulfilled internally by
being able to help others, which then becomes an integration into their life lessons.
Bass (1985) indicated that transactional leaders are familiar with giving rewards and
punishments that relate to performance of employees. Transactional leaders do not usually
emphasize monetary rewards. The literature (Bartol & Srivastava, 2002) does not recognize,
even in the context of business, that intrinsic rewards are the emphasis of employees’ job
satisfaction or performance. According to Bartol and Srivastava (2002), extrinsic rewards
emphasize that business designates as a reward system because employees respond positively to
receiving extrinsic rewards for their performance, which increases their job satisfaction.
Classroom practice emphasizes intrinsic motivation, as discussed by Deci and Ryan (1985) who
acknowledge a system of understanding how children are taught what intrinsic motivation
means, but lack the practice of embracing intrinsic rewards rather than extrinsic rewards.
Children’s behavior changes because of their receipt of extrinsic rewards. Therefore, children
are not focusing on the real meaning of knowing what an intrinsic reward feels like, but their
attention is to the extrinsic rewards they receive. An effective difference in the literature on
intrinsic reward systems or teaching intrinsic motivation (Deci & Ryan, 1985) is that learning
about intrinsic rewards comes from a student’s authentic giving, as reported by the participants.
Up with People teaches, as one of the student’s life lessons, that PSS is the impetus for receiving
intrinsic rewards, which means internalizing an emotion related to giving. Service teaches
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 80

students how to embrace a different reward system that changes them, changes their relationships
to others, and becomes a lifelong opportunity for growth. Since there is new information on
understanding intrinsic rewards from the study, those concepts and factors underlying the
comprehension of PSS adds to the body of knowledge and fills a gap in the literature.
Up with People strongly believes in the value of personal reflection. The participants
strongly spoke about the importance of having personal reflection as a lifelong learning
experience for students who are admitted in the program. Many of the students, although very
talented, have never left their country or been exposed to multiple cultures or a global situation,
such as coming to the United States alone without their family. When they are required to reflect
by personal choice (write, discuss, artistic expression, performance) as part of the curriculum,
they overcome their personal doubt about themselves while internalizing their own experience.
The participants explained the diversity of not only the cultural ethnic aspect of each of the
students, but how their documentation is through personal choice. The students have an
opportunity to process their experiences as they are practicing service-learning.
The components of service-learning whereby students are engaged in giving to their host
family, community, and one another present a new, unique participation that needs debriefing
discussions and self-evaluations to reinforce and change in order to proceed to the next learning
level. This reflection was specified by Jane, who stated, “A lot of that self-reflection is coming
back to the self and asking, ‘How does this affect my behavior and my actions?” An integral
part of the organization’s personal reflective debriefing involves a deeper understanding and an
insightful self-discovery that results in the student’s life lessons learned. For example, Ronnie
stated, “Processing the self-reflection, students ask, ‘What did I just do? What specifically did I
learn to do? and How can I generalize that in my life for moving ahead?’ to embrace service-
learning as a process for my life?” These questions provide the depth of student’s understanding
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 81

of how their essence is interwoven into self-efficacy (Bandura, 1977) as a way of understanding
how their accomplishments in service-learning affect the lives of others, who they are as
individuals and as people in a global society.
Several studies supported the concepts of personal reflection related to self-efficacy from
a theoretical perspective. Furco (1996) emphasized the importance of self-reflection by
summarizing the process as pre-reflection, post-reflection, and reflection during the process to
help orchestrate the critical thinking needed in service-learning (Furco,1996). Billig and Furco
(2002) reiterated how teachers and administrators put experiential education at the core of their
curriculum, allowing for reflection as a means of self-evaluation and personal development.
Based on the concept of personal or self-reflection, the theory of self-efficacy is the underlying
philosophical supposition that explains those principles. Therefore, Rhodes (2013) explained
self-efficacy as the ability of an individual to perform at their highest level in an exemplary way.
Rhodes elaborated on the concept of self-efficacy by explaining that one learns self-efficacy
from an ongoing coaching process, being guided by an individual who assists employees in the
process of their development and their understanding of themselves. Bandurra (1977) originated
the theory of self-efficacy and stated, “Efficacy expectations determine how much effort people
will expend and how long they will persist in the face of obstacles and aversive experiences”
(p.194).
Although the literature is verified as supported information and theory for personal
reflection and self-efficacy of the students, the participants explained that the diversity of ways
the students personally reflect are specific to the students’ needs and acknowledge their own
personal growth, not in comparison to any other student. The process becomes a group
experience of reflection with individualistic learning, incorporating the practice for lifelong
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 82

skills. The end result is self-efficacy, which is an essential and fundamental component of
building character to live in a global society.
Up with People qualifies as rigor because the participants affirmed students are
challenged with different objectives and responsibilities where they are continuously learning,
sharing, and exposed to the most difficult lessons about giving of themselves, embracing cross-
cultural differences, learning new talents, accepting themselves, and understanding the global
framework in which the organization exists. Since the curriculum is an open boundary with
flexible walls, the students’ experience is rigorous because, although the itinerary is scheduled,
the curriculum is flexible to meets the needs of the students within the service-learning context.
Since the students are practicing service-learning in their communities, they have a responsibility
to use critical thinking as they make decisions on how to help and give of their authentic selves.
Richards et al., (2013) noted and supported the present data that critical thinking skills
have assisted youth in strengthening their civic identity, which guides the youth to understanding
the world as a global place of fulfilling needs and accepting opinions of others for a collaborative
solution. Seamann and Gass (2004) also identified character development as a civic
responsibility which addresses the concept of rigor and factor in helping students see how their
voice contributes to society and prepares them as democratic citizens. The participants explained
that REP is an application of practice taking action to make a contribution to the communities,
host families, and the organization for their sustainable life lessons.
Serendipitous circumstances recognizes that students’ lifelong learning is changing on a
continuous basis, but their position enrolled in the program remains steadfast, engaging in
service-learning, providing experiences for their learning, experiences for their teaching, and
compelling experiences to represent the organization as a culturally cohesive unit that changes
the world. According to the participants, a major lesson the students learn is that, even within
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 83

the structure of the organization, their life’s work may involve serendipitous situations and
learning from the organization on how to approach those situations and circumstances willingly.
They learn to adapt to change, which helps them bring about additional meaning to what they do
in performance, serving, and in preparing themselves as servant leaders.
Understanding that circumstances change, the organization prepares them through lessons
learned to understand that change is a positive and they can use these lessons to accept
themselves and others from a different cultural context. The circumstances they are placed in
and the unselfish outcomes they want for others by participating in service-learning teaches them
that acts of serendipity are a part of their experiential learning as an impetus for servant
leadership. Searching the literature, there is no indication that the phrase serendipitous
circumstances appears as a concept or a descriptive way of addressing experiential learning,
service-learning, or even servant leadership, as a viable way to describe people’s lifelong
learning journey and endeavors.
It is apparent from the participants’ perspective that situations in Up with People helps
the students internalize their current knowledge, which is tacit knowledge, embracing their
serendipitous experiences to share and put into action, which is explicit knowledge (Frappaolo,
2006). Then they can truly become servant leaders and change the world.
The theme of commitment to sustainable relationships presented participants with an
acknowledgment that commitment was regarding human connection between people so that they
could help each other. At the core of the organization, the participants shared how critical the
students needed to recognize that their personal passion was the driving force in how they
accepted the underlying decision to just let things happen. In order for their relationships to be
sustainable, students needed to create their own relationships while always remembering the base
of their work, learning, and the sustainability of those relationships.
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Personal choice is a large part of Up with People. It allows the students to take their
experiences and performance and use them, sharing the message of social justice through music
and song as the impetus for distinguishing entertainment from changing and teaching through
service-learning. It is the student’s personal choice to share their passion, as the participants
explained the staff catch the students using their skills in a leadership manner while reinforcing
that they have made a formidable choice to participate. The reason for the personal choice is the
students embrace not only the performance, but also their ability to know they can help others
through service-learning and contribute as a global citizen to change. These steps verify
personal growth for each student guides them to becoming servant leaders based on the data the
participants shared.
Cherkowski (2012) supported the idea of personal choice and explained that building
youth moral fibers is the impetus for people to care about one another. This caring extends as
part of a collaborative community-based giving, exploring global issues to provide a foundation
for youth to be servant leaders as supported in the literature (Cherkowski, 2012). The Up with
People organization has a history of preparing students enrolled in their program for the
sustainable relationship as a servant leader. The totality of the program, which prepares the
students to be servant leaders, incorporates the personal choice for building their relationships to
model the ideals of human connection. As the organization recruits students for their program,
they choose people who want to better themselves and have a commitment to relationships and a
wider vision, although they may not know exactly how they are going to learn those lessons once
they are enrolled into the program.
Kohlberg’s (1981) moral development theory reinforces how children see themselves as
moral beings and where they belong in the world, wanting to create collaborative solid
relationships. Therefore, it is evident from the participant’s data that the students see themselves
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 85

as ambassadors, creating sustainable relationships with their community and each other because
of their foundation as understanding themselves as moral beings in which they are making a
difference.
Partnerships are related to sustainable relationships since the students are interested in
extending reach within communities for philanthropic advantages. Up with People’s mission is
to prepare students for their position in the world as giving back in a synergistic way. Students’
involvement in the partnerships contributes to the totality of the organization as the students
prepare to be servant leaders. Searching the literature, there is no indication that the term
partnerships appears as a concept or a descriptive way of addressing experiential learning,
service-learning, or even servant leadership as a viable way to committing to sustainable
relationships involving the students enrolled in the program as active members of the
partnerships. Since there is an introduction of new terminology in terms of the totality of the
organization to involve students as active representatives and ambassadors for extending the
reach for philanthropic advantages, partnerships adds to the body of knowledge and fills a gap in
the literature.
These students, in addition to the alumni, are an integral part of Up with People’s
partnerships, as the participants shared the importance of the evolution of corporate partners to
include students. Students’ philanthropic reach among collaborative partnerships in
communities with contributors who understand the vision and purpose of the organization, have
become a foundation that enables all people to support aspects of service-learning as an impetus
for training the students in servant leadership.
Up with People recognizes students as ambassadors and specifically acknowledges that
students are in the role of representing the organization because they are the major reason for
teaching how change is imminent within an individual’s soul when they have an opportunity to
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 86

put others before themselves. The participants were very focused on explaining how students are
exposed and practice internal traits of integrity, commitment, honesty, and giving in order to
prepare them as ambassadors of the organization. Students are taught that they hold these traits
internally and, given the destiny to embrace and use their owned outcomes, they accept the
responsibility of becoming ambassadors to share their current life work as a preparation for their
life as servant leaders.
Once they are practicing ambassadors, according to the participants, returning as alumni,
they can continue on their life’s journey to fulfill ambassadorships in a different role. Students
accept their qualities as recognized by the staff, which gives them an aspirational future. They
want to represent the organization because they know and have the insight to aspire because of
their own success in helping others. The organization’s sustainability to bring students with
cultural differences, language, family and overall ethnic differences together equips students
with skills that become part of their lifestyle of learning. They are happy to share as
ambassadors because of the positive experiences that exposed them to how giving and sharing
can change their life as well as the people around them. Ronnie shared his reinforcement of
students as ambassadors by stating, “Leading a cast is the epitome of developing the skills for
servant leadership because you’re helping them own the outcome.”
According to Richards et al, (2013), students as ambassadors is supported in the literature
since the introduction of service-learning can have lasting effects on personal character, having a
dramatic effect on future career choices, engaging ones’ own interest in the local community,
and instilling altruism. Richards et al. (2013) also supported the practice of alumni returning to
and continuing their ambassadorship. Richards et al. reported 44% of adults began giving
service to others in their teenage years and that adolescents who started to participate and be
involved in community service programs in their teenage years are twice as likely to continue
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 87

giving service in their adult years. The Up with People participants emphasized the continuation
of its alumni to act as ambassadors in a variety of different situations, reinforcing the literature.
Up with People has the capacity to be interwoven, particularly with partnerships and
philanthropic reach. The theme of economic longevity is defined as the strength of lifetime
funding. The participants stated the importance of making connections with movers and shakers
of the community. Their need to have collaborative partnerships with these lifetime funders in
each of the communities where they perform enables them to continue relationships. Making
connections with each city or town based on their previous experiences with the organization is
an integral part of promoting promise for future generations, praying for hope and leaving a
legacy of Up with People.
Corporate sponsors are influenced because they have the heart to make a difference and
they want to continue that lifetime of funding. Those relationships are repeat business visits
because of the impact that students made during their first visit to the city or town. Combining
performance with service-learning made a lasting impression on the corporate sponsors or
donors, reinforcing their continuation of the returned visits. Participants explained the
organization’s interest in sharing their vision and mission with the students as they travel to other
locations. Students reinforce past visits by reappearing in previous communities, which helps the
organization show how the students will continue to have an impact on their communities, while
building long lasting relationships that result in economic longevity for both the communities
and the organization.
One of the most important results of the theme of economic longevity is that there is an
interwoven connection between previous themes. This connection between the themes is also
the foundation for economic longevity. Instead of mutually exclusive themes, the
interconnectedness of the concepts represents the reinforcement of each theme, as well as an
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 88

acknowledgement of the first theme of the essence of Up with People (EUP). The essence of Up
with People represents a grounding of their mission and vision to prepare students to engage in
service-learning while providing a firm foundation to be servant leaders.
Promoting promise for future generations is what the participants stated as an overall way
to make a difference, not just in the heart of the donors, but influencing the local communities
when financial contributions are made. The partnerships are so strong that everyone sees mutual
value in promoting promise. The organization proposes some different avenues for sponsorship
whereby the sponsor can receive proceeds from the show or give the proceeds to another non-
profit organization. The strength in the lifetime funding is the collaboration of the sponsorship
and donors in each city or town with the organization and its commitment to help students
practice their service-learning in the community while experiencing enjoyment of student’s
performances. Reinforcing that concept, Mike stated, “It’s important for the students to know
the history of the organization and the torch that they are carrying forward.” Therefore, the
cohesiveness of the relationships and the continued support are results of the totality of the
students’ giving. The donor understands the students’ lifelong lessons and the economic
influence upon the corporate sponsor’s own community, which is promoting promise for future
generations.
Guertin and Nguyen (2003) support the corporate sponsorship from the current study
incorporating service-learning projects in Geological courses with a specific objective of raising
funds for cancer organizations. Their data showed student enthusiasm related to their ability to
raise funds during the service-learning project. They equated the fund-raising part of the project
as a motivator for completing their project because they knew that the monetary gain would help
children with cancer while they were engaged in the service-learning. Research by Hartman and
Rola (2000) also presented data regarding the effectiveness of service-learning at the university
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 89

level for incorporating projects in higher education to improve the lives in one’s community for
promoting world citizens. Hartman and Rola (2000) explained that a service-learning study is a
paid internship that helps the non-profit organization in various tasks, but is different from the
objectives that Up with People uses in involving students in their corporate sponsorship and
fundraising efforts. Up with People students help to fundraise because they are the recipients of
character concepts that teach giving and performance to benefit the character as they learn how
to be servant leaders. In students’ appreciation, they become the promotion because they are the
future generation. Therefore, their participation in fundraising efforts is an integration of their
education.
Govekar and Rishi’s (2007) study identified the costs involved in adopting service-
learning. The study matched university students with non-profit organizations, such as in a paid
internship format where university students performed jobs based on their interest to help the
non-profit. It was not the intention for the student to participate in actual fundraising, but, rather,
to learn what is entailed in shadowing a nonprofit organization, which is different from the Up
with People organization. Based on the limited research that explains the advantage of students
as an integral part of an organization’s fundraising efforts, more research needs to be conducted
that uses the same organizational structure as Up with People, where the students of the service-
learning component become advocates for helping the organization fundraise to learn how they
benefitted educationally from their experiences.
Praying for hope is the ultimate way that the participants expressed their solution to
quantify having the granters and donors as consistent funders. Participants explained the
difficulty and struggle of quantifying what the organization does in terms of the essence of Up
with People and how important the students’ life-long lessons) are in reinforcing their integrity
and teaching the components of service-learning. Continued communication and partnerships
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 90

need to emphasize the importance of raising funds. Praying for hope is a realistic understanding
and expectation of economic longevity to sustain the organization. The participants shared their
concern in the supply and demand part of corporate sponsorships, balancing that with donations
from alumni and the consistency of retaining both to continue helping communities, helping the
students, and presenting a message of cohesive cultural continuity with people around the world.
The hope of continuous donations originates from the knowledge that a percentage of
alumni go into education, the arts, and politics. Alumni assist the participants in continued
repeat business, returning to locations while searching for new ones. Introducing the group and
the message of giving and social justice to as many different communities as possible is the goal.
Therefore, praying for hope is the practice of relying on the students, alumni, and previous
corporate sponsors to share the word and message of harmony through service-learning while
educating the students with their own life’s lessons. Although the research does not specify the
financial gains, the focus from Kiechel (1994) explained how managers as generalists and
specialists capitalize on what needs to happen for the future of the organization, what is best for
the company, and plan accordingly.
The participants are continually planning because they see, both generally and
specifically, the needs of the students, how the students’ service-learning helps the community,
and how the result of that collaborative effort educates all. The participants also see that,
through the performance, communities come together in joy and understanding to celebrate one
another, acknowledging the strength of cultural differences. Although the literature does not
specifically address funding, Hawkins (2006) study reiterated the importance of an aspect of
servant leadership to include a leadership trait of active dreamer. Consequently, praying for
hope may be equated as a leadership skill described by Hawkins’ acknowledgment of the term
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 91

active dreamer. The phrase praying for hope within economic longevity adds to the body of
knowledge and introduces a new term that is similar in scope to Hawkins’ term.
The legacy of Up with People is a strong component of economic longevity because the
participants feel optimistic about the world and have faith in the future, even in the struggle for
raising funds. Aspects of legacy are interwoven within many of the themes and sub-themes
explained in this discussion. Leaving a legacy is not a culmination, but more a continuation of
watching young people develop their integrity, helpfulness, cultural understanding of people and
nations, while they continue to engage in service-learning. The concept of legacy is practically
noted since alumni continue to demonstrate their commitment to help with financial donations,
their time and effort to solicit for funds as well as new places to perform. The alumni’s internal
sense of knowing how the organization helped to encourage their lifelong learning reinforces
their values and acknowledges them for their direct and indirect participation. To continue
aspects of this legacy, the participants shared how each year the organization plans a reunion that
specializes in the Every Day Hero Awards, which recognizes alumni who made an impact in
their own lives and currently serve as servant leaders because of the lifelong learning skills they
used to practice these skills during their time away from the organization.
That process of coming full circle is also interwoven in the ripple effect. The legacy is
hope for the future, as described by the participants, values that the students learn and that the
alumni embrace in their daily lives many years after they have left the organization. The
participants also shared that current students are made aware that their service-learning
component, lifelong lessons, and performance are all part of the organization’s legacy. Covey
(1998) supported the idea of legacy by stressing the importance of committing oneself to the
service of others to reinforce our own ethics, values, and morality. Another study by Misener,
Doherty, and Hamm-Kerwin, (2010) verified what legacy is and how it makes a difference in the
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 92

lives of others by reporting that “being part of a legacy through giving back to their community
was an important aspect of volunteering that gave them a sense of pride and fulfillment” (p. 276)
Patterson, Mickelson, Petersen, and Gross (2008) also presented legacy as “weaving a tapestry of
memories” (p. 310). The literature described a visual picture of legacy, similar to how the
participants described the legacy that they were building from all the different people that
influenced the economic longevity of the organization. Since economic longevity is a new
concept and presented as a foundational grounding of the organization, the study adds to the
body of knowledge.
Implications
The data presented a series of themes that included concepts of promoting service-
learning as the impetus for servant leadership. The essence of Up with People was at the
forefront of how the organization used performing arts and music to encompass world peace
through service-learning in preparation for servant leadership. The essence of Up with People
implies that the organization fulfilled its mission and strives to continue the vision and reinforce
success in sustainability. Another implication of the study is the recognition of an evaluation
component of how the organization is excelling, what the conditions are that help them excel,
and what changes they may need to make to maintain the organization’s level of achievement
fulfilling their mission and vision.
Based on the experience of the stakeholders as servant leaders, the participants
explained that helping the students practice service to become servant leaders was essential as
they encouraged students because the leaders led by example, modeling the behavior of a servant
leader. In addition, the participants explained how their roles, as coaches and mentors, are the
foundation of becoming a servant leader and the integral part of what students see as the core of
the organization. Therefore, the leaders rigorously teach the students how conducting service and
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 93

becoming leaders is at the root of servant leadership and their solutions of modeling servant
leadership, showing the students how servant leaders become life-long leaders.
The participants provided justification in terms of four umbrella themes of essence of up
with people, life lessons learned, commitment to sustainable relationships, and economic
longevity that supported the premise of preparing students and staff to be servant leaders. Since
the essence of Up with People is an acknowledgment of the spirit of the organization and how
they have sustained operations and training, the first theme reinforces, supporting the essence of
the organization, implies that what they share is more than just a non-traditional program. All the
students, alumni, and communities they reach are affected because they practice servant leader
traits. An implication of the study is that they practice their essence as they build relationships
between different factions of a global community, which embraces servant leadership qualities
while raising funds so they are a sustainable organization.
The organization has a definite application of the theme life lessons learned and
reinforces beliefs about practicing service, reflection, and translating theory into action.
Additional lessons in reinforcing rigor of educational performance, while providing
serendipitous circumstances to help students prepare for their place as servant leaders in society,
are visible. Since life lessons learned is the practical application of becoming a servant leader,
the individual skills the students learn are examples they have to know and understand their role
as servant leaders.
Rigorous educational performance is the foundation for the students to present
themselves as individuals who are prepared to serve others unselfishly while learning that their
commitment to service brings meaning to the students and their communities where they visit
and perform. The organization’s mission is to make sure there is a sustainable ripple effect as
the students complete the program. The organization is not aware of when and if students return,
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 94

but the data implies that the rigorous program verified that students will continue to make service
an integral part of their life and to know that they have traits for being servant leaders. When
they leave the program, Up with People has had such an impact in their life that they will
continue to live those lessons learned within the ripple effect of influencing others along the way
and become servant leaders.
The data that includes the commitment to sustainable relationships implies that the
students practice being comfortable as they connect with strangers who become partners while
they see themselves as ambassadors. Becoming an ambassador is a compelling trait related to
their desire to help others around them. The insight into giving to others is a teaching and
learning process whereby they extend their reach in becoming servant leaders.
A strong implication of the study introduces new terminology of economic longevity that
holds the premise for a reinforcement of sustainability and the strength of the organization,
which has continued potential to thrive because of its mission for teaching servant leadership.
Students, staff, alumni, and community members who may all have the potential of lifetime
funding for the organization, are also learning the qualities of becoming servant leaders, thereby
implying that the Up with People organization is practicing enhancing character development in
each student, staff, and community member preparing servant leaders.
Another implication of the study included the participants’ questioning the pace of the
program for students to have ample time and space for reflection. Participants shared the
importance of this time as a preparation for understanding how servant leaders build upon
experiences to apply significant traits as the impetus for putting others before self. Additionally,
several of the participants raised concerns on changes that the organization may make, or want to
make, in the curriculum’s application of the legacy and how it may change after 51 years, not
knowing the effects it may have on alumni and previous sponsors and host families. The
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 95

implication of these concerns that were raised during data collection is a realistic interest.
Therefore, recommendations are suggested to help the organization approach these concerns with
realistic expectations.
Based on the interviews, one university is currently working closely with Up with People.
The data suggests that students get credit for completion of their curriculum work, which
includes performance and service-learning. This implies that students can use their credit in a
variety of ways after they leave the organization. Currently, there is not a certificate of
completion for college credit, which implies that there is a gap in the completion process. It
would be advantageous for the students to get a certificate of completion for college credit.
Recommendations
The following recommendations are applicable to creating the change that the senior
executive members requested during the interviews. They discussed very clearly that they want
to create an atmosphere where Up with People is self-sustainable in the event that the executives
retire. Based on the data, it is recommended that there be a plan for succession. This plan would
include a strategy that would involve students who traveled with Up with People and their
perception of how to execute the succession for continued longevity. The plan would include
approaching students who might have the skills, or willingness to develop those skills, to work in
the headquarters alongside the current senior executive members to learn how the organization is
run. From this planning dialogue the senior executive team should involve students with their
professional network an opportunity to suggest someone they know as a marketing director who
has vision, innovation, and creativity to move the organization from its present status to market
the full-fledged servant leadership program.
Based on the data and the assumed need that was not validated, it is recommended that a
formal application process be created that invites students who have been admitted into the
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program to apply for membership as a junior executive team member. This student, receiving
this honor, would be involved in the decision-making process whereby they would share their
knowledge and opinion of marketing. The student chosen would hold a commitment in this
position and need to have traveled for one year. It is recommended that any student chosen for
the junior executive team member would receive college credit.
Another recommendation and assumed need that was not validated highlights the
relationship between students and the host family. Therefore, it would be wise for marketing
purposes to obtain testimonials from the host family of what they learn and what they would
recommend for others becoming hosts. The host families become an integral part of the
organization through the connections they make. The host families could serve as spokespeople
for the group to advertise their opportunity to enlarge the group of attendees by sharing their
experiences on video.
Using alumni, it is recommended that the organization develop and set up an alumni job
share. The concept of the board would be structured to include a donation from the alumni as a
membership fee as well as the employer who posts positions available. Both the organization
and the individuals will benefit from this collaboration. Up with People will receive a donation
to be a part of the alumni board and be able to preview job opportunities. The employer who
pays to advertise will be able to select past students for a possible match in their company. The
benefit of the recommendation is to reinforce the collaboration of both the student chosen and
the employer participating in the alumni job sharing experience.
Based on information from the data and the assumed need that was not validated, it is
suggested that servant leaders from universities speak to the group about programs the students
can enter. Up with People will have already prepared them as servant leaders. The universities
can become strategic partners, inviting the organization to speak to the college campus. The
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connection with college students is really a connection with the campus students’ families. Both
the college students and their siblings could become potential applicants.
It would be advantageous to offer a certificate of completion for college credit because
the learning and practical application of the curriculum provides student’s knowledge they can
use in their college studies. It is recommended that the organization structure a certificate of
completion for college credit and partner with a university that offers a servant leadership major,
or courses in service-learning. This would instill in the students a direction for their life’s work
and an opportunity to continue to use the curricular and learning skills from the organization. It
is also recommended that a model be created to encompass the concepts that evolved to reinforce
what the organization mastered as an example of training students to be servant leaders. A
representation of that model is below.
Conclusion
The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of the stakeholders of the Up
with People and how effective they are in preparing students to become servant leaders. Based
on the analysis of the data, there was a relationship between the assumed needs and how these
needs were addressed. For instance, many of the assumed needs were validated and answered the
three research questions. Some of those included that the leaders did know how to create
structures, policies and practices that reinforced the values of the organization, the leaders knew
how to provide high levels of interest and intrinsic motivation to motivate students, and the
organization hires knowledgeable staff who know the Up with People curriculum. However, it
was found that the leaders did not know their competition nor researched other servant leadership
organizations, did not know how to develop the next generation of leaders for the organization,
and did not know how to use creative and inclusive marketing to sustain the program.
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 98

Implications around the study revolve around the recognition of an evaluation component
of how the organization is excelling, what the conditions are that help them excel, and what
changes they may need to make to maintain the organization’s level of achievement fulfilling
their mission and vision. Another implication is that the data presented a series of themes,
recognized in the new model for servant leadership that included concepts of promoting service-
learning as the impetus for servant leadership. Recommendations include creating host family
testimonials for marketing purposes, allowing a junior staff member to become part of the senior
executive team meetings, and creating an alumni job share. Two other recommendations were
inviting servant leader professionals from universities as guest speakers to the students and
offering a certificate of college completion.
The opportunity to evaluate the Up with People organization meant that the stakeholders
were open and willing to receive feedback based on the data collected for this study, so that they
could address issues that were highlighted and to remain a sustainable organization. Based on
the data presented in chapter 4 and implications and recommendations presented in chapter 5 a
model was created that will serve as an effective tool for the Up with People stakeholders to be
used as they continue to improve the organization and move toward a sustainable organization.
This model was created as a toolkit, which will be presented to Up with People.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 99

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SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 108

Appendix A
Figure 5.1 (Wong – Measuring Servant Leaders) – HEART TABLE

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 109

Appendix B
Wong: Measuring Servant Leaders
Command-Leadership Servant-Leadership
A leader’s objective is to be served. A leader’s objective is to serve others.
Interesting primarily in the leader’s image and
advancement. Self-preservation and personal
image is at the forefront of most decisions.
Seeks to enable subordinates to advance to
their fullest potential by downplaying self and
exalting others. The team or enterprise and all
its members are considered and promoted
before self.
Entitlement of the position is more important
than its responsibilities.
Responsibilities are more important than perks
of positional entitlement.
Co-workers are seen and treated as inferiors
and not usually invited to participate in
decision-making or offered important
information.
Co-workers are treated with respect as part of a
team who work together to accomplish a task
and make decisions with shared information.
Easily accessible to only closest lieutenants. Often seen interacting with others and
maintains an open door atmosphere.
Creates an atmosphere of dependence using
power of position to influence.
Creates an atmosphere in which others see
their potential being encouraged and developed
and power is used to serve others.
Wants others to first listen to the leader. Wants to listen to people before making a
decision.
Seeks first to be understood rather than to
understand.
Seeks first to understand then be understood.
Condemns others for mistakes and reluctantly
accepts responsibility as a sign of weakness.
Values individual workers and learns from
mistakes while offering praise to others.
Rejects constructive criticism and takes the
credit for accomplishments.
Encourages input and feedback and shares
credit for the results. Process is as important
as accomplishments.
Does not train others to function effectively. Equips and invests in others with a view to
their advancement.
Followership is based on personality. Followership is based on character.
Expediency is the main criteria in making
decisions in secret.
Principles are the main criteria for making
openly arrived at decisions.
Uses intimidation to silence critics. Defensive
in nature.
Welcomes open discussion on improvement.
Openness to learning from anyone.
Wins support for ideas through deception,
power plays or manipulation. People respond
out of fear.
Wins support for ideas through logic and
persuasion. People respond out of respect and
a sense of it being right.
Promote those who follow without questioning
or are pliable.
Promote those who demonstrate in contributing
to success.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 110

Authority is based on external controls in the
form of rules, restrictions, and regulations
maintained by force.
Authority is based on influence from within
through encouragement, inspiration,
motivation and persuasion.
Accountable only to superiors. Shuns personal
evaluations as interference.
Accountable to the entire organization.
Welcomes personal evaluations as a means to
improve performance.
Clings to power and position. Are willing to step aside for someone more
qualified.
Little interest in developing competent
successors.
Leadership development is a high priority in
serving others.
Wong: Measuring Servant Leaders

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 111

Appendix C
Diamond Pyramid (Wong – Measuring Servant Leaders)
When the organization is running smoothly, the practicing model resembles the center of the
diagram where the CEO is also among an equal.

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 112

Appendix D
Assumed needs of Up with People executive management team

What are the assumed Knowledge/Motivation/Organization factors for an effective service and
leadership program? Validation of Needs.
Organization: Up with People
Assumed KMO Needs for Up with People Interview
The Up with People organization is a
reputable program. (F)

X
The leaders in the program know how to
develop servant leaders by evidence in
their curriculum.
(F)

X
The leaders in the program provide
professional development opportunities in
leadership and service for their employees.
(F)

X
The leadership knows the criterion of
servant leadership and uses it in their
organization. (C)

X
The leadership knows the relationship
between service and leadership and
designs them in curriculum to work
congruently. (D)

X
The leadership knows the model(s) in
which they have designed or duplicated in
their leadership and service programs. (C)

X
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 113

The leaders know and are able to
articulate how the program is being
delivered to the students. (P)

X
The leadership knows how to train and
evaluate their education coordinators
(delivering it out).
(P)

X
Every leader in the organization believes
in the mission of Up with People.
(D)

X
The leaders know how to teach, learn, and
assess their learners (participants in the
program).
(P)

X
The leaders choose to be in the Up with
People organization due to similar values
matched with the mission statement. (F)

X
The leaders persist in their efforts to
succeed in the program outcomes.
(D)

X
The leaders put mental effort into
restructuring the curriculum each year. (F)

X
The leaders choose to research what a
solid servant leadership program looks
like. (D)

X
The leaders choose to commit themselves
wholeheartedly to the organization. (F)

X
The leaders understand, and teach, the
motivational principles of self-efficacy
and competence beliefs.
(M)

X
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 114

The leaders provide high levels of interest
and intrinsic motivation to motivate
students. (M)

X
The organization has appropriate staff
who are knowledgeable about the
leadership and service curriculum.
(F)

X
The organization believes that the
outcome of the student program will result
in active alumni. (M)

X
The organization supports the overall
mission of the Up with People experience
in service and leadership.
(D)

X
The leaders know well the cultural setting.
(F)

X
The leaders know well the culture,
structure, policies and practices of the
organization. (F)

X
The leaders know well the cultural model
they are working in. (F)

X
The leaders know how successful the
leadership and service program is. (D)

X
The leadership knows how to train and
evaluate their education coordinators. (D)

X
The leaders model the behavior and
attitude of a servant leader.
(P)

X

SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 115

Appendix E
Interview Questions
There were eight interview questions that were asked to the participants. These questions
were meant to provide a further analysis of the Knowledge, Motivation, and Organization
questions that guide this evaluation. Due to the breadth of answers from the participants, several
prompt questions were asked to gain clarity. The interview questions were also the foundation
for answering the research questions.
Interview Questions
How is the education curriculum developed to
provide evidence of service – learning related to
servant leadership?
Open question
What kinds of professional development
opportunities in leadership and service are provided
to your employees to promote successful programs?
Open question
How is the program being delivered to your
students?
Open question
What similar values do you and Up with People
share?
Open question
In what ways do you persist in efforts to help Up
with People succeed as an organization?
Open question
How do you motivate students? Open question

In what ways is the Up with People program
different from traditional leadership and service
programs?
Open question
What recommendations do you have for the Up with
People service and leadership curriculum?
Open question

Examples of Sub-Prompts Used
Please give examples of how you have
motivated students, both on the road and here
in the office.

Open question
How did that decision affect the logistics or the
curriculum of the program?

Open question
Why do you believe professional development
is not available?

Open question
Please describe the history of the organization. Open question
What has the organization learned from its
past?

Open question
SERVICE LEARNING AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 116

Beyond Up with People how are you
volunteering in your community?

Open question

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Asset Metadata

Creator Broeckel, Angela Marie (author)

Core Title Service-learning and character development: an analysis of Up with People resulting in a model of global citizens for servant leadership

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Global Executive

Publication Date 08/07/2017

Defense Date 08/07/2017

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag character development,experiential education,experiential learning,OAI-PMH Harvest,servant leadership,service-learning

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Ahmadi, Shafiqa (committee chair), Filback, Rob (committee member), Seli, Helena (committee member)

Creator Email angiebroeckel@hotmail.com,broeckel@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c40-423897

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