The Life in Iowa program is starting a club this year for students who want to help Iowa communities by participating in service projects and other activities throughout Iowa.

Although the details of the club are not finalized, it will be student-run and will involve weekend activities, said Nancy Bevin, director of the Life in Iowa Program.

The club will be open to anyone who wants to join, said Lindsey Black, senior in public service administration in agriculture and student coordinator of the Life in Iowa program.

Those interested in joining the club can contact Black.

The new club is being formed in addition to the Life in Iowa program. The program, in its third year at Iowa State, offers class credit, scholarships and internships to students looking to learn about careers and opportunities within the state.

“We provide students with the opportunity to see what Iowa has to offer,” Black said.

Black said the program seeks to counter the “brain drain” effect occurring in Iowa, which happens when large numbers of college graduates leave the state to work after graduation.

Members of the program work with ISU Extension staff to provide service learning projects and internships to students, Bevin said. The service learning projects involve students doing volunteer work designed to help prepare them for their respective careers, while the internships allow students to do paid work for various nonprofit organizations around the state.

The service projects can vary from teaching youth in Iowa communities to planting trees and other horticulture projects designed to beautify towns.

Black said the projects are tailored to the students’ majors and career goals.

Students in the program begin taking classes in the spring semester to familiarize themselves with living in the community as well as finding out what they can do with their majors.

Black said speakers are brought into the class, and students are assigned projects to help them explore their career plans.

“I think it’s a worthwhile program,” said Joseph Haley, senior in political science.

Haley interned with the City of Jefferson, helping develop a capital improvement plan and participated in a learning project that involved helping with Jefferson’s Bell Tower Festival.

Shelly Moeller, senior in environmental science, said the program helped her learn what was expected of her both in the community and at her job. Moeller worked for the Soil and Water Conservation District in Fayette, Iowa, which allowed her to help farmers conserve resources.

Students interested in the program can attend information meetings beginning Oct. 13. The list of dates and times is available at the program’s Web site, www.lifelearner.iastate.edu/lifeiniowa.htm. All students in good academic standing are eligible to participate.