ira service

Summertime is the best time to complete service in the community.  There are a number of things that you can do to gain volunteer hours and help your community at the same time.  Below are 10 possible ides for ways you can give back this summer.

  1. Assist with a community garden. Gardening is a big trend and a lot of people and organizations are making the choice to grow their own and provide more organic options.
  2. Help at a local homeless shelter. There are a variety of options for families, just children, just women, and just men. Find a shelter that speaks to your desire to assist.
  3. Support a good cause.  Many organizations will host summer events such a races, carnivals, awards banquets, and more outreach events. Find a cause that is near to you and see what they have on the calendar.
  4. Donate time and supplies to a local camp.  Summer camps run throughout the entire summer and can be found everywhere from local churches to YMCAs.
  5. Clean a park/playground.  Find a park or playground that needs some attention.  Now find the organization responsible for the upkeep and find out how you can help. Even picking up trash could make the difference for the animals and children.
  6. Go abroad. Find a mission trip to be a part of and assist those in other countries.
  7. Build a house.  Habitat for Humanity and similar organizations will work to build or repair existing houses for those in need.
  8. Play with puppies.  Animal shelters need your special skills to play with animals awaiting adoption.
  9. Support a Food Bank. Lend a hand at a local bank to help organize and package items accordingly.
  10. Create your own project. Examine your passions, community, and issues affecting you or your family.

This list will hopefully jumpstart ideas within you that will stir some excitement in giving back. Once you have identified how you would like to give back, now you have to determine how to get involved.

There are a number of ways to research ways to get involved.  You can scour the internet using a variety of search terms based on your topic of choice. Get creative and don’t just search for volunteer opportunities in my city.  You may have to do some cold calling to organizations in your area of interest and let them know who you are, what you want to do, and how you could be of service to them.

You may have to step away from the computer and conduct your search in person. Smaller and start-up nonprofit organizations may not have big robust websites.  However, they usually have an office and you showing up in person could provide you with a better opportunity to landing the volunteer opportunity.

Lastly, get out into your community.  Look at local newspapers, go to local community centers, visit town hall meetings, reach out to local fraternity and sororities to find out how to get involved.  You can often see posters or ask local librarians or community center directors about upcoming opportunities, projects that organizations are working on, and ways you can get involved.

If you cannot find the project you are looking for, consider starting your own.  Develop a name, come up with a mission, and fundraise to help achieve your goals. Start off simple and small and allow the project to grow organically.

Be prepared that you may have to go through an interview process or you may just get thrown into the project.  Expect and be prepared for both. You should ace the interview by knowing a little bit about the organization, their mission, and how your skills, passion, and education can benefit the mission.  You should treat this experience like a real job; interview seriously, work hard, and be professional.  At the end of the experience, be sure to ask for a letter of recommendation or a document indicating how many hours you completed and your responsibilities.  Keep this information handy as it could be useful when you want to apply for scholarships, jobs, and future volunteer experiences.  It is important to get the information on paper right after the experience versus two years later, when people that were around when you volunteered are no longer able to assist.

Find some time this summer to give back in at least one way.  Use your social media to track the event and to hopefully inspire others to get involved.

Have you gotten involved with campus activities/organizations? Why not? What are you waiting for? College is about growth inside and outside of the classroom. What are you passionate about outside the classroom? What do you like? What do you want to learn more about? The only way you will get involved outside of the classroom is if you venture off and take a chance.  Find out which campus organizations are active on your campus.  You can find this information on the website, in the student activities office, or by asking other student like student governments, classmates, and your roommate.  You will find organizations from intramural sports, to drama groups, to political groups, to special interest groups such as anime, ballroom dancing, and much much more.

Identify a couple of organizations that might be of interest to you.  Find out when they meet.  How? Look for flyers on campus, use the email listed on the student activities website, or follow them on social media.  When they host events; go! When they have a meeting; attend! When they need officers on the executive board; run! This may sound easier than actually doing it, but going is the hardest part.  Once you arrive others will welcome you with open arms, because they want some who is there to support the mission, do the work, and share the same interest.

Are you afraid you won’t fit in? It’s okay and it is normal. Go to the meeting and be yourself.  You will find people that will appreciate you for who you are.  You will not have to pretend, people will navigate towards the natural you. If you attend the event and things are not what you thought they would be stay (know that you do have the option to leave at any time) and give it a chance.  Come back again, you will be a little more comfortable and you will recognize some familiar faces. After giving the experience a fair chance, if you still feel like this is not the organization for you. Go back to the drawing board; choose another organization and try again.  Continue to try and put yourself out there.  You will learn more about yourself, expose yourself to new social situations, and benefit in the long run from the experiences.

One of the “side effects” of college is being exposed to things that you may not have been exposed to previously.  It is also a chance for you to gain interest in things that you may not have previously had an interest. Your campus will offer a variety programs and activities.  You should challenge yourself to attend at least one program in each category per year or at least one each before you graduate. There will be plethora of things to choose from: plays, symposiums, concerts, parties, lectures, athletic events, novelties, comedians, musicals, dance recitals, art gallery showings, and the list goes on and on. Even if you are not extremely intellectual, not the artsy type, or do not understand the plays in football, still attend an event at least once. This the time when you be able to support your classmates, meet new people and gain exposure to unknown territory for free or relatively cheaply. Students gain admission into many university sponsored events for free, at a special rate, or they receive a discount.

Going out and trying new things, being exposed to the unknown is what helps make you well-rounded and “cultured”.  Enjoy the talented peers you have in your class, you never know what will become of them and how your paths may cross in the future.  In addition to making you a better-rounded person, these activities give you something to do.  Activities occur throughout the school year and are usually planned so there is not much overlap with programs being scheduled at the same time.  You can usually find a master calendar with most events on the school’s homepage and then there are departmental (Dance, Music, Athletics, etc.) calendars available with events as well. Most events are planned well in advance some as early as the beginning of the semester.

Not sure where to get started? Stop by the Student Activities office and ask what is happening on campus.  Enjoy the challenge and attend as many programs as possible.

 The Spring semester is now (or soon) underway.  This is the perfect time to get a fresh start if things did not go the way you hoped during the Fall semester. This is also a good time to get more involved and add to your resume.  Being successful in college will require involvement in and out of the classroom.  It is important to find a balance while in school.  One cannot be consumed with just the rigors of coursework, but one must also tap into their interest, develop their leadership skills, and strengthen their social skills. Getting involved is essential to the college experience. 

If you were unsuccessful last semester at getting involved, make an effort to join an organization this semester.  Many organizations engage in Spring recruitment and are actively seeking new members.  Look for flyers and posters on campus promoting organization fairs and other outlets to get involved. If your school does not offer a fair or if you have missed the fair, you should consider researching the university’s student activities website.  The website should offer you a list of all active organizations on campus and provide contact information. Simply state your interest in the group and inquire about future meetings and events. 

Spring semester is a good time to get your feet wet, with student ran organizations, but it is also a good time to prepare for the next school year.  Spring is where leaders are selected for the next school year.  This is a good time to decide how you would like to bring change to the university, how you would like to leave your mark, and how to shape your experience.  Student government is a great way to make an impact on the campus, academic organizations are a great way to make an impact on the department, and special interest groups are a great way to impact your individual interest.  All options serve as a great way to improve your college experience, leadership skills, and ability to balance commitments. 

Of course you can be successful in college without being involved in organizations and of course being too involved can cause you to not be successful.  The key to optimizing the college experience is to find balance within your weekly routine.  All class and no play does not help you develop life skills that will be needed in future social and professional settings, while all play does not help develop you academically; finding balance is the key.

Academics serve as a big part of college life, but extracurricular activities also account for a major part of college life as well.  As a student you want to aim to have a well-rounded college experience. Too much emphasis on academics may not give enough attention to developing social skills and too much emphasis
on extracurricular activities may not give necessary attention to academic demands. Refer to chapter 16 of the Freshman Survival Guide for more information about getting involved, but not too involved.  College allows students the opportunity to explore interests and try new things.  Extracurricular activities are a good way to explore interests and display talents outside of the classroom.

There are hundreds of clubs and organizations to peak your interest in what extracurricular activities have to offer. Honor Societies, fraternities, sororities, special interest clubs, and academic clubs are all options that will be available to you.  Each club or organization offer different benefits for membership, but all require that you get out and network with other students.  Networking with be an important part of your extracurricular life on campus, this is how you will learn of activities and events happening on campus.

Regardless of your interest there should be a club that sparks your interest. Anime, dance, community service, racquetball, and more are all available on campus in the Student Activities office.
If you have a special interest and the club does not exist on your campus, there is a relatively simple process of starting your own club on campus.

Another way to get involved on campus is to talk with your RA.  Your RA can assist you with getting involved in the hall and residence hall complex. The residence halls offer a variety of programming and leadership opportunities.  The residence halls offer hall councils and a hall government; a place where you can program and make changes within the halls. Residents that become involved in the halls often lead to employment in the hall as an RA or front desk worker.

When graduation comes and it is time to look for job opportunities, employers look at candidates that can bring a well-rounded college experience to the table. Being well-rounded insinuates you have successfully completed the requirements of your major, you have successfully worked with others, and you have successfully participated or planned activities outside of the classroom. Employers look for a nice balance between classroom and non-classroom experiences.  To join or not join is the challenge as the new student.  Let us know what you decide.