Skip to main content

Appalachian Today

News and events at Appalachian State University
  • Subscribe
  • For the media
  • Contact
  • Events
  • Webcams
  • Podcasts
  • In the News
  • Research & Arts
  • Awards
  • Experts
  • All News
  • Topics
  • Accolades
  • Alumni
  • Arts and Humanities
  • Athletics
  • Awards and Honors
  • Community Engagement
  • Diversity
  • Events
  • Faculty and Staff
  • Gifts and Grants
  • Global
  • Health and Wellness
  • Publications
  • Research and Creative Works
  • Safety
  • Scholarships
  • Students
  • Sustainability
☰ Menu
  • Events
  • Webcams
  • Podcasts
  • In the News
  • Research & Arts
  • Awards
  • Experts
  • All News
  • Topics
  • Subscribe
  • For the media
  • Contact

Service-learning project benefits Daniel Boone Native Gardens

View larger image

Students in the First Year Seminar Make Stuff/ Do Things dig post holes at Daniel Boone Native Gardens, located off Horn in the West Drive in Boone. The posts present QR codes that the students made in their service-learning project. Photo by Caralynn Knopf

By Stephanie Sansoucy ’16
Posted Nov. 7, 2014 at 1 p.m.

BOONE, N.C. — A group of first-year students at Appalachian State University spent their Tuesday nights researching the eastern redbud, coneflower, American holly and blue flag iris – getting to know these and eight more species of plants native to the Boone area.

They then created Quick Response (QR) codes and information sites for the plants in the Daniel Boone Native Gardens as a part of a service-learning project in their First Year Seminar course called Make Stuff/Do Things, taught by Dr. Paul Wallace.

This is one of many examples of active learning at Appalachian, a key characteristic of why students chose to attend Appalachian.

"This service-learning project has taught me to apply what I learned in the classroom to a real life experience," said student Shelby Weatherman. "Ever since the first day of class, it has been a fun, challenging experience."

View larger image

First Year Seminar student Jon Greeson, right, talks with Daniel Boone Native Gardens volunteer Bob Oelberg as they work to complete the class’ service-learning project. Photo by Caralynn Knopf

Service-learning experience

QR codes are barcodes made from a unique arrangement of black and white squares and can be read by mobile devices which use the code as instructions, in this case, to bring the user to a website.

For Daniel Boone Native Gardens, visitors can scan the student-created QR codes mounted on wooden posts next to the plants. The code will lead them to student-created web pages with information on each plant including pictures, descriptions and facts.

Wallace said the idea of collaborating with Daniel Boone Native Gardens developed from a conversation with Dr. Rebecca Kaenzig, a member of the garden’s board of directors and an accounting professor at Appalachian.

“The garden has long struggled with signage. They disappear or the plant disappears or sometimes both,” Kaenzig said. “We always hope to find good signage that informs the visitor and will not get lost.”

View larger image

The QR codes created by First Year Seminar students installed for Eupatorium fistulosum, or giant Joe-Pye weed, and Iris cristata, or dwarf crested iris, in the Daniel Boone Native Gardens. Photo by Caralynn Knopf

View larger image

Make Stuff/Do Things student Max Noordeloos, left, digs as his classmate Shelby Weatherman holds back branches of the giant Joe-Pye weed. They are preparing the sign they made for the dwarf crested iris. Photo by Laura Kinder

The QR codes also allow the gardens to deal with lost plants by changing out the information page each QR code is attached to.

“Current information is now possible,” Kaenzig said. “We can add more pictures or add more information even after the sign is already in place.”

Garden volunteer and landscape architect Bob Oelberg helped the class choose plants that would get the most use of the codes, such as plants that would bloom for a long time. He also helped the class install the signs.

“I’m delighted that a class of incoming freshmen, most without any experience, was able to learn the technology and apply it at no expense to the garden,” Oelberg said. “We worked together to install the posts and mount the QR codes at the selected plants, and they were a pleasure to work with.”

The Make Stuff/Do Things students also documented their work by taking photographs, used here, and writing press releases about the project.

Active learning and helping others

Wallace said that a big reason for conducting a service-learning project with First Year Seminar students was that it introduces them to their community through the act of helping others.

“From past classes where I have done service-learning projects, I’ve found that it really helped the students to care more about the community,” Wallace said. “My interest is always in helping students’ perceived notions of the community and interest in community service.”

Wallace said he has always been interested in service-learning, especially after his involvement as one of nine Appalachian faculty members in the Service-Learning Faculty Fellows Program in 2009-10.

“I think service-learning is a great way to learn,” Wallace said. “It gets students involved in real life activities. It’s not just making codes for a class that no one will use, it’s engaging the community and giving the project authenticity.”

View larger image

Student Jon Greeson, center, hands out materials to his classmates as they work in teams to install QR codes that will lead visitors to information pages on the plants they see at Daniel Boone Native Gardens. Photo by Laura Kinder

From flowers to robots

The Make Stuff/ Do Things students will finish the fall semester collaborating with Dr. Michael Vallace and his students at Future University Hakodate in Hokkaido, Japan.

Wallace and Vallace’s students will work together via web conferencing to complete four activities. By the end of the collaboration students will build a robot.

“While I am interested in developing STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) skills through building and programming the robots, in this project I'm equally interested in having students practice working in global virtual teams, to develop skills in cross-cultural communication, negotiation and global teamwork,” Wallace said.

What do you think?

Share your feedback on this story.

Alternative Spring Break helps students experience different ways of service
Alternative Spring Break helps students experience different ways of service
June 18, 2012

In 2012, Appalachian’s Alternative Spring Break (ASB) program engaged 322 faculty, staff and students in service opportunities in 18 U.S. locations, as well as in Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Peru and Jamaica.

Read the story
Changing students' lives in Kenya
Changing students' lives in Kenya
Sep. 1, 2011

An Appalachian State University graduate is helping change students' lives in Kenya through a project to distribute e-readers.

Read the story

About First Year Seminar at Appalachian

First Year Seminar (FYS) introduces first-year Appalachian State University students to rigorous academic study at the university level through interdisciplinary engagement with a broad topic or question. Experienced faculty engage FYS students in a shared process of inquiry in small seminar-style classes. Regardless of topic, all First Year Seminars help students build information literacy skills, cultivate intercultural competence, develop creative and critical thinking abilities and practice effective communication skills. Additionally, the seminars introduce the importance of making local-to-global connections and of understanding responsibilities of community membership. Learn more at https://firstyearseminar.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian’s General Education Program

The General Education Program at Appalachian State University empowers students with broad knowledge and transferable skills for responsible global citizenship regardless of their chosen major. The General Education Program provides a rigorous liberal arts education that includes 44 semester hours of courses across the university that explore connections among different areas of study, plus two courses in the student’s chosen major — all of which address the goals of critical and creative thinking; effective communication; making local-to-global connections; and understanding the responsibilities of community membership. Learn more at https://generaleducation.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.

Share

Topics

  • Community Engagement
  • Gifts and Grants
  • Students
  • Sustainability

What do you think?

Share your feedback on this story.

Archives

Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

If you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian State University Podcasts
  • Stories and press releases published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found in University Communications Records at the Special Collections Research Center.
  • A university-wide Google Calendar may be found at Events at Appalachian

Share

Topics

  • Community Engagement
  • Gifts and Grants
  • Students
  • Sustainability

Other Recent Posts

  • Student research and creative projects spotlighted at App State’s annual showcase
    Student research and creative projects spotlighted at App State’s annual showcase
  • Will Sears appointed vice chancellor of university advancement at App State
    Will Sears appointed vice chancellor of university advancement at App State
  • N.C. Governor Josh Stein to address graduates at App State commencement
    N.C. Governor Josh Stein to address graduates at App State commencement
  • App State honors 29 students, faculty and staff with 2025 Awards of Distinction
    App State honors 29 students, faculty and staff with 2025 Awards of Distinction
  • App State to offer AI concentration in master’s programs [faculty featured]
    App State to offer AI concentration in master’s programs [faculty featured]
    WFDD
  • Campus emergency siren test to be conducted May 7
    Campus emergency siren test to be conducted May 7
  • App State students help restore national wildlife refuge as part of Alternative Service Experience
    App State students help restore national wildlife refuge as part of Alternative Service Experience
  • Dr. Neva J. Specht appointed App State executive vice chancellor and provost
    Dr. Neva J. Specht appointed App State executive vice chancellor and provost
  • $2 million grant funds scholarships, supports STEM education for over 50 App State students
    $2 million grant funds scholarships, supports STEM education for over 50 App State students
  • App State named Military Friendly School for 16th consecutive year, ranked a top 10 institution for 2025–26
    App State named Military Friendly School for 16th consecutive year, ranked a top 10 institution for 2025–26
  • Explore the future of business with new AI master’s degree tracks at App State
    Explore the future of business with new AI master’s degree tracks at App State
  • 12th annual iBackAPP Day of Giving draws over 3,100 App State supporters worldwide
    12th annual iBackAPP Day of Giving draws over 3,100 App State supporters worldwide

Archives

Appalachian Today is an online publication of Appalachian State University. This website consolidates university news, feature stories, events, photo galleries, videos and podcasts.

If you cannot find what you're looking for here, please refer to the following sources:

  • Podcasts may be found at Appalachian State University Podcasts
  • Stories and press releases published prior to Jan. 1, 2015 may be found in University Communications Records at the Special Collections Research Center.
  • A university-wide Google Calendar may be found at Events at Appalachian
  • Events
  • Videos
  • Galleries
  • In the News
  • Research & Arts
  • Awards
  • Experts
  • All News
  • Topics
  • Subscribe
  • For the media
  • COVID updates
  • Contact

App State

Copyright 2025 Appalachian State University. All rights reserved.

University Communications
ASU Box 32153
Boone, NC 28608
828-262-6156
[email protected]

Abouts

Disclaimer | EO Policy | Accessibility | Website manager: montaldipa (beltmr) .. | Website Feedback

Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram LinkedIn Snapchat