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The International Partnership for Service-Learning and Leadership (IPSL) is a worldwide association of universities, colleges, nongovernmental and related organizations united to foster service-learning. It was founded in 1982 as the Partnership for Service-Learning and incorporated in the state of New York, USA, as a not-for-profit educational organization. In 1996, the Board of Trustees incorporated the word "international" in the name to reflect the international nature and focus and, in 2003, incorporated the concept of leadership development into its mission and the title.
IPSL is governed by a Board of Trustees that consists of outstanding leaders in education and the service sector from around the world. With headquarters in New York City, it is managed and led by a full-time professional staff. For its work in developing service-learning, the International Partnership has been awarded grants from major foundations and trusts, as well as from individual donors.
The mission of IPSL is twofold: to promote service-learning through publications, conferences, research, and training opportunities for faculty and service-agency staff and to offer international programs for undergraduate and graduate students from institutions of higher education around the world.
Each year, IPSL publishes and distributes books and newsletters related to service-learning, leadership, and/or international education. The biennial conference, which has been held in Europe, Asia, and the Americas, draws participants from around the world. Ongoing research evaluates the impact of service-learning on students, institutions of higher education, and the agencies and communities in which the students serve.
Today, IPSL offers undergraduate service-learning programs in thirteen nations—programs in which almost 4,000 students from 400 universities or colleges in the U.S. and twenty-five other nations have participated. The IPSL-coordinated M.A. in International Service, developed in cooperation with partner universities in Jamaica, Mexico, and the United Kingdom, prepares graduates for careers in international non-governmental relief and development agencies. Other special programs are designed and managed to fit the needs of particular institutions and organizations.
