How to Better a Community; Step One: College Students

In "Serve or Fail," Dave Eggers argues that college should consider instituting a service requirement for graduation. Eggers gives us some purpose of college education to link with volunteering that help students getting beneficial effects. He gave some good points in terms of helping others out. He explains that college is too short to sit back and become the best foosball player and waste your time with no commitments to any after school obligations, etc. I think that everyone should be able to give some of their time to volunteer and put a smile on someone's face because they think that you care. I find Dave Eggers writing “Serve or Fail” very persuasive for the following reasons.

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.

Often as we grow our schedules we forget to acknowledge the fact that our name does not read “volunteer needed”. It has been said, and I sincerely repeat, that if we fail ever say no than our yes loses its value. A resounding alarm greeted an early six o'clock sunlight that signaled the end of a sleep cycle. Pulling on clothes and a quick flash of vision directed at a schedule summed up the morning other than the arrival to a National Honor Society meeting, which would be followed by a Leo club lunch meeting and trailed by a Business Professionals of America after school practice. A typical day of a Stephenson High School senior displays in this way. They are involved in many activities, both school oriented and community involved. This leaves little to no time to develop personality traits other than ones that involve servitude. While it is important to be involved in the community, overinvolvement decreases the quality of the rendered services and overwhelms the individual performing these service

For the past two years I’ve worked with a local organization, TAASC, which helps disabled adults and children participate in action sports. During the winter months I help teach and assist with their skiing program and in the summer with paddleboarding and canoeing. It’s been a very rewarding experience. Nothing compares to that smile and the joy that you share. Volunteering is a key part of being a contributing citizen and it is one of the best ways to give back to the community. It also introduces you to students and experiences outside of your field of study and offers the potential to discover new interests and friends. During my years at Ohio State I plan to take advantage of volunteering programs and look forward to broadening my education and leadership

Taking time to volunteer at the many nonprofit organizations, homeless shelters, advocacy centers, philanthropic fundraisers, local schools and child care facilities in the inner city is not always at the forefront of young people’s minds while navigating through their college experiences. But, with a little push from student organizations, local nonprofits and passionate individuals, volunteerism and community change can start to take a front seat and become not just an opportunity, but also a priority in the lives of young people.

Over the past decade, as the job market has become more competitive - volunteering has become a way to show superiority when it comes to applying for positions in the work force. This influential change has encouraged high school and college level students to participate more in extracurricular activities. Most large corporations and firms are now looking to hire those individuals with outstanding GPAs, strong work ethic, and dedication of time and effort to other activities apart from their academic studies. Colleges such as Liberty University mandate that their students complete twenty hours of Christian service per semester.

For most, not all college students have time to volunteer to do community hours because they have jobs to attend or families to take

He then goes on to explain that community service can have a profound effect on college students and help them to find potential careers. So then what about the students that don’t waste their time in college playing football and already have a good idea of what they want their potential career to be? The hours that Eggers

Another need on our campus is the need for students to have volunteering opportunities available to them. Our campus is located in a high socio-economic community where students are blessed to be very privileged. Unfortunately, students are often very self-centered and don’t think of others who may have less opportunities. By developing a program that always students to leave the campus to use the skills they are learning in the classroom, students will become more connected to the community and less focused on themselves.

The great Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Life's most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?” I deem this to be a vital question that everyone should ask themselves. I wholeheartedly agree that serving others impacts your community in a positive light. Therefore, I've made it my duty to volunteer with students throughout my community. This is because I’m very proactive about seeking change in the area I grew up in.

“‘The Logic of Mandatory Volunteerism”, by Stewart Ains, is an intriguing piece regarding the assertion that community service should be a requirement for graduation from high school. There are a multitude of arguments fighting this claim, but as a high school student who has to complete this task, I have strong feelings about why it is significant. If community service was not required by high schools, a vast number of students who attend that school would never have the opportunity to do something to give back. Completing community service can also benefit a student on his or her college applications and can help when deciding what one is passionate about. Accomplishing something for the community can teach a great deal of life lessons,

Author Yvette Boysen writes about the President’s Community Engagement Honor Roll initiative created by the Agnes Scott College, that recognizes volunteers on several different levels. JLP Prince, director of community engagement, suggest that if schools recognize volunteers and their service hours in the same manner they acknowledge those with high grade point averages, students will be more inclined to civically engage within their community. He provides several examples of what constitutes volunteer hours from group service projects to community-based research projects to internships with nonprofits or government agencies. Such a creative tactic developed by the university sheds a positive light on both the core values of the campus and

During college I searched for different volunteer opportunities; however, it wasn’t until my second semester of college that I became involved with the non-profit organization, Reading Partners. This program was conveniently located near the

This is what sets the students at Valley Region apart from others. Students attending Valley are not required to turn in volunteer hours in order to graduate, thus making volunteering in the community completely optional. When approached on why students like Freddie himself, from Valley, would still fill their already busy schedules with volunteer work Kerr responded, “Even though it seems cliche, I joined Habitat to make a positive difference in my community. With Habitat, I knew I could physically make a difference in somebody’s life, that’s something you can’t really do everyday.” This philosophy is what makes students from this particular community shine out among the rest. This group of kids was not looking for any spot light or racing for a requirement to fulfill, but volunteered merely out of the kindness in their own

In my five years of active volunteer work with multiple non-profit organizations, I have seen firsthand the lack of attendance of my peers in times of great community need and support from its members. Although it has become more complicated to find time to give back to the community, with a full-time school and work schedule, there is always spare time to give back. The rapidly growing demand for volunteers in communities all across America is increasing and it is everyone’s duty, especially college students, to pay their dues to the