Zerita Hall, D. P. Psy.​

Senior Lecturer, Department of Criminology and
Criminal Justice, School of Liberal Arts

Service Learning Course(s):

• Institutional Corrections (CRCJ 4333)
• Institutional Corrections (CRCJ 4333)
• Ethics and The Criminal Justice System
  (CRCJ 2335) 

“I can teach what the book says, but I believe in bringing the book to life, and service learning gives you that opportunity."

During her years as an adjunct, Zerita Hall was already incorporating elements of service learning in her courses. Being an educator for most of her life, Professor Hall has always sought to empower her students, which is evident in her personal and hands-on approach. Her service learning courses take her students outside the classroom to experience the inner workings of the criminal and juvenile justice systems through shadowing and write-ups. Her passion and dedication to service learning stems out of her desire for students to see what happens outside of the university and how they take what they learn into the real world.

Her favorite part about being in the Faculty Fellows was learning from the other fellows and seeing how different fields were incorporating service learning in their individual classrooms. Through the Faculty Fellows, Professor Hall has been able to bring her classes outside of the classroom and into the real world.

Professor Hall advises faculty interested in service learning to realize that their projects will not be perfect at first and it is okay to make changes along the way. Something she found helpful was feeding off the students’ reflections and energy as well as ensuring that she was tailoring her projects to her students’ career paths.