Partnership Forms
The templates below are provided to assist campuses with the process of partnership development and pre-placement risk assessment. The recommended forms present the questions that should be considered when gathering information for the first time or as a follow-up with a learning site. If information is not gathered electronically, but via a conversation or site visit, the open-ended questions may be asked when appropriate, allowing the learning site representative to expand on their answers and explanations. Online research of the learning site is also a quick and efficient way to accentuate a pre-placement risk assessment. Some examples may include googling the name of the organization with the word “safety record” or “injuries” or “investigations” added; or checking the Better Business Bureau for complaints, etc.
Request to Initiate Partnership Form (RTIP): The Request to Initiate Partnership form can be used to gather necessary information from the proposed learning site interested in partnering with the university. This form serves as an initial repository of information about the potential learning site. The site’s responses will help the service-learning/community engagement department, or if applicable, the faculty member, determine if an organization is appropriate for service-learning students or if it is more appropriate for an intern or student volunteering for no course credit. The RTIP also gathers important risk information to allow programs to do a risk review prior to beginning or as part of the university-agency agreement process.
A Word document example of a Request to Initiate Partnership FormThis link will open a Word document. (docx) for non-S4 campuses can be found on the Center for Community Engagement website. CalState S4 campuses have an example web-based RTIP Form that they can request of the S4 Help Desk.
Service-Learning Course Planning Checklist for Faculty: Faculty who gather their own placement site information and conduct their own site visits, may use the Service-Learning Course Planning ChecklistThis link will open a Word document. (docx) designed especially for them. It is a course-specific form that helps faculty review requirements for the learning site and students. Use of the checklist can prevent future issues with student placements and allow faculty to have a better understanding of any potential student risks, site logistics, and site supervision.
Note: Faculty from campuses using CalState S4 do not need to use the Service-Learning Planning Checklist as it is already built into the S4 RTIP form as part of the Partnership Intake process.