Community Service in Secondary Schools

After spending the day observing a fourth grade inclusive class and attending a fourth grade PLC meeting focused on testing, I began my community service at the after school program. I was quite curious to see what the after school program is like as I work as a supervisor at an after school program in Sussex County. At dismissal, all the students came to the cafeteria and began their homework. They were very talkative and sitting in close proximity as there were only a few tables left down for the students. Once everyone had arrived, the teachers called out that all students were to quietly work on homework.

A continuous debate that is currently receiving much attention is whether community service should be a mandatory graduation requirement. Preparing students to effectively function in the real world is an important aspect of our education system. Today more than ever, there is an emphasis on having experience before beginning work. Most jobs are now focused on looking past your resume to see what you have given back to the community. Nevertheless, it is important that schools focus on preparing college students for the work force by mandating that they receive all of the necessary exposure and experience. Numerous schools across the country have mandated that in order for their students to graduate, they must complete a predetermined amount of community service. In Maryland, high school students are required to complete a minimum of 75 hours of service in order to graduate. However, this decision has resulted in a lot of mixed responses. Advocates of this decision stress that mandatory community service opens doors for students, while the opponents feel that it takes away valuable time from students who need to focus on their education. I believe that gaining experience outside of school is critical for future success in life. To ensure that students are prepared to transition smoothly from school to work, they need to be involved with the community while in school in order to build the leadership skills that are necessary to succeed.

Community service, one of the several pillars outlined by the National Honors Society (NHS), is defined as the desire to work and serve the community in order to improve the conditions for the citizens who dwell in it. Most importantly, those who uphold those standards do so without the need of money, or recognition; they are simply intrinsically motivated to make the world a better place. It wasn’t until I volunteered at an event hosted by the Jubilee Center that I learned the true meaning of community service and charity.

Community service has been part of my high school experience from the start of my junior year. Helping people had always been my passion. Although I was constantly assisting my peers with minor situations in school it wasn't until later that I had my very first eye opener on what I can truly accomplish. Chick-fil-a Leadership Academy helped me recognize how big of an impact I have on the community by giving me life lessons. When I pondered about community service before Chick-fil-a Leadership Academy it revolved around my local community, however after the completion of the Kick-Off Ceremony my point of view of the community included every person that I could help even if they are half way around the world. During the Kick-Off Ceremony I was able to assist packing over 1 million meals for children in need with the continuous effort of other members. This resulted in the realization that food is something thousands of people take for granted.

Winston Churchill’s quote "We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give" embodies what community service is really about. Over the years I have had the pleasure of working for several organization and volunteering in a variety of different areas. There has been a community service experience that changed my life tremendously though. From 2009 until 2014 I had the amazing opportunity to work for the Nash-Edgecombe County Teen Court Program and doing so profoundly shaped my future.

Encouraging students to engage in meaningful, sustained community service and get involved in causes that speak to

The mission for adolescent and adult community service is to develop compassion and the spirit of service and charity in elementary, middle and high school. With that said, community service workers provide young people and adults with hands-on volunteer opportunities to help others in their local and global communities. For instance by being a part of volunteer community service work it can solve a few problems such as: health care, child care, literacy training, education (including tutorial services), welfare, social services, transportation, housing and neighborhood improvement, public safety, crime

As young adults, our characters are still being molded and we believe to have an efficient environment each individual should strive to be modified to his or her full potential. An aspect of community service promotes finding individuality and purpose in life. Actually connecting with hundreds who have

“Community Service is important for many reasons. Taking part and volunteering teaches compassion and understanding. You can volunteer for something you really believe and have an interest in, and can volunteer as much or as little as you'd like or have time for.” Community service is really easy to get into. I mean, it is not like you have to put out an application and have an interview in order to do it. It is really easy to get into, and is really fun. It is things you wouldn’t even think are considered, like:

As Key Club President, a fourth-year blood drive coordinator, and a University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics volunteer, I witness community service’s influence and encourage high school students to serve

On average, when people think about community service, they assume that volunteering is just ‘hours we need to be able to graduate’ and that is it. Community service is more than just hours; community service is based on the acts performed by someone with the purpose of helping or bringing benefits to his or her community. People frequently compare community service as a punishment since it is often offered to small-time offenders as an alternative to fines or jail time. However, community service is the vital force to many communities since they depend on the service made by the volunteers

In Maryland, 75 hours of community service are required for students to graduate. Getting in the way of many after school activities, students should not be required to have community service hours to get a diploma.

Our Community Service Program is mainly described as being a neighborhood watch program as well as a after school program. Our goal is to form a community collaboration to fight crime and minimize the student dropout rates. We plan to have police officers train our volunteers and choose areas to monitor in the neighborhood that are crime ridden. We will also work to add more police officers to those areas as well. Churches and schools will offer after school programs as well as tutors to help children succeed in

As an 18-year-old tennager, I was forced by my parents to participate a summer volunteer program in my freshman year. Even though I felt that I was a victim of “tyranny” in the beginning, I realized that I actually enjoyed the process of helping people in the middle of the program. Now, I participate that program every year as an active member, and I have gained the personal enrichment that I am unable to learn from other sources such as math club or SAT preparatory class. There is no doubt that community service can bring essential benefits in helping students develop their moral value and future interest, and it should be mandatory because some students attempt to utilize community service as a tool for their own profit without the school supervision.

The term ‘‘service-learning’’ means a method (A) under which students or participants learn and develop through active participation in thoughtfully organized service that (i) is conducted in and meets the needs of a community; (ii) is coordinated with an elementary school, secondary school, institution of higher education, or community service program, and with the community; and (iii) helps foster civic responsibility; and (B) that (i) is integrated into and enhances the academic curriculum of the students, or the educational components of the community service program in which the