James Toole - Service-Learning Providers' Network Profile

James Toole, Saint Paul, Minnesota

Organization(s): Compass Institute and the University of Minnesota School of Social Work and College of Education and
Position(s): President and CEO; Senior Fellow
Work Setting: National/Regional Non-Profit Organization

Send James a Message

What I Do

Workshops/ Presentations

Current Projects

Interest Groups
Social/ Digital Media (e.g. social networking, multimedia, blogs), Social Justice, Social Entrepreneurship, Peer Helping, Philanthropy Education, Professional Learning Communities, Organizational Change, Marketing Service-Learning, Leadership Development, Juvenile Justice, International Service-Learning, Interfaith Service-Learning, Health, Faith-Based Service-Learning, Dropout Prevention, Civics-Based Service-Learning, Children and Youth Literature, Character Education, Capstone Projects, Brain-Mind Learning, Art Education, 21st Century Learning/ Global Education, Socio-Emotional Learning, Spirituality, Sustaining the Service Leader, Urban Service-Learning

Where I Work
Urban (small city), Tribal, Rural, Suburban, Urban (large city)

Who I Work With
Faith-Based Organizations, Community-Based Organizations, AmeriCorps, Young Professionals (20’s and 30’s), Higher Education, K-12

Short Description of My Current Work
I teach and conduct research through the University of Minnesota, but the majority of my work involves consulting with a wide variety of organizations on a growing list of topics. Service-learning is still a passion, but I have branched out to work with civic organizations focused on leadership development, social entrepreneurship, global education, and organizational development. I am typically found at home developing a project or curriculum, or on a plane headed to work with a group somewhere.

Professional History
As an intern high school teacher in California, I happened to hear someone talk about a new peer helping program. I was surprised that an adult had thought of a program where youth help other youth. I volunteered for three years and then co-coordinated the program full time. My wife Pamela and I ran about 10 projects where students provided service inside of the school/ school district (e.g. peer tutoring, youth-led parent education, Friendship Project for high school transition) and loved the work.

 
In 1989, after being given an article by Dan Conrad and Diane Hedin on service-learning, we moved for a year to the University of Minnesota as Senior Fellows. Unknowingly, our timing was perfect as soon thereafter we attended the first NYLC Summer Institute and gained a fuller vision of service-learning. When the federal legislation was passed to provide state support for service-learning, we started the NYLC professional development department.
 
In 1994, I left NYLC to pursue a graduate degree in Educational Policy. I wanted to understand the complex big picture of educational reform/ change. In a way that I didn't predict, the experience was transformative and has led to many new interests and work avenues.

Professional Expertise/ Passions
One of the blessings of service-learning is that a person develops a long list of passions. Here's mine! The entries are diverse but they all strangely fit together nicely for me (if anyone can tell me how, I'd be much appreciative!). Social Innovation, Leadership Development, Appreciative Inquiry, Spirituality and Service, Organizational Development, Building Positive Work Cultures, Sustaining the Soul (life/work balance), Systems Thinking, Curriculum Development, Global Youth Social Entrepreneurs, Training of Trainers, Peer Helping, PeaceJam, 21st Century Learning, Global Education, Professional Learning Communities

What I'm Most Excited About in My Current Work
Three projects stand out:

1. PROVIDERS NETWORK: What attrracts me to the project is: a). it can create a community of people doing the same work that can find and help each other; b. everyone is invited to share their best work with others; and c. we need to grow the leadership base of the field and we hope the site exposes others to many talented local and regional peoplet..........
 
2. APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY: My doctoral thesis taught me how tough it is to build a positive and productive work culture, and the critical role that culture plays in implementation. Ever since, I have looked for tools to help others to do this. Appreciative inquiry has given me a new mindset that I feel privileged to share..........
 
3. GLOBAL YOUTH SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS: I've always had a love of global affairs. My undergraduate major was in international relations. The last four years I've worked with people around the world, especially young leaders in their 20's, and love the contact and learning and sharing that occurs.