Service

The Office of Student Life believes volunteering is an essential component of a well-rounded and fulfilling college experience, and would like to help you get involved and make a difference. Whether you are interested in volunteering for fun and personal fulfillment, to earn service hours or as a part of a group or organization, please visit our list of volunteer opportunities or the campus calendar for more information on upcoming volunteer experiences.

Reasons to Volunteer

Whether you are cleaning up debris from a tornado, improving houses in the community or creating a safe and fun place for children to “trunk or treat,” volunteering is one of the most beneficial and rewarding experiences a person can have. There are numerous reasons to volunteer, including:

Connecting with your community
Conserving the funds of charities, nonprofits and organizations by donating your time
Sharing your established skills and acquiring new skills
Developing self-esteem and self-confidence
Meeting new people and having new experiences
Enhancing your resume and making networking contacts
Promoting a worthwhile activity, and inspiring others to do the same

Planning a Group Project

Volunteering as a group can help bring your group closer, build or improve communication skills and foster teamwork. If you are planning a group volunteer project, you may find the following tips helpful:

Pick a meaningful volunteer experience.
- Try to pick a project that ties into your organization’s mission or that is meaningful to your group members.
- Choose an experience that focuses on your strengths, using what your group and its individuals already know and are good at.
- Focus your group’s volunteer work on one or two specific causes, rather than spreading your members too thin working on numerous causes.
Prepare for the event.
- Schedule the event with enough time to recruit and coordinate volunteers.
- Maintain contact with the organization or agency you will be volunteering for and call to confirm approximately one week before the event.
Reflect on the experience.
- Have your group members discuss and reflect upon how the volunteer experience impacted the agency, the community, your group and themselves.
- Reflection changes the volunteer experience from simply doing something nice to being an integral part of the community.

Student Life

Service

Reasons to Volunteer

Planning a Group Project

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