As a St. Mary's student and or Registered Student Organization, you will be surrounded and encouraged by the culture of service and servant leadership present and alive on campus. The Civic Engagement and Career Development Center is here to support you in your co-curricular activities that involve supporting the community and addressing social justice issues and neighborhood concerns.
During your collegiate Rattler experience, you will be engaged in both direct and indirect service through various opportunities. You may be involved in one of the following services:
Volunteer Now
Service Learning
Service Learning is a method under which students or participants learn and develop through active participation in thoughtfully organized service that is conducted in and meets the needs of a community; is coordinated with an elementary school, secondary school, institution of higher education, or community service program, and with the community; and helps foster civic responsibility; and that is integrated into and enhances the academic curriculum of the students, or the educational components of the community service program in which the participants are enrolled; and provides structured time for the students or participants to reflect on the service experience.
Community Service
Community Service is defined as services which are identified by an institution of higher education, through formal or informal consultation with local nonprofit, governmental, and community-based organizations, as designed to improve the quality of life for community residents, particularly low-income individuals, or to solve particular problems related to their needs. This includes such fields as health care, child care, literacy training, education (including tutuorial services), welfare, social services, transportation, housing and neighborhood improvement, public safety, crime prevention and control, recreation, rural development, and community improvement.
Civic Engagement
Civic Engagement is defined as individual and collective actions designed to identify and address issues of public concern. Civic engagement can take many forms, from individual volunteerism to organizational involvement to electoral participation. It can include efforts to directly address an issue, work with others in a community to solve a problem or interact with the institutions of representative democracy.
The Civic Engagement and Career Development Center staff is more than happy to sit down with you and discuss ways in which you can get involved. You can walk in or schedule an appointment with a staff member to learn about opportunities and community partners seeking volunteers.
Service Involvement Report
No matter the type of service, be sure to keep track and report your service hours on the Service Involvement Report! The Service Involvement Report, or SIR, helps capture and record your service and/or fundraising events. The Civic Engagement and Career Development Center- at your request - can generate a report of all the hours you reported, which can be used for resumes, letters of recommendation, or for personal reasons.
What is Service Immersion Trip?
Immersions are intense service experiences in which students participate during a school break, weekend, or during the summer.Students from all St. Marys academic programs are invited to participate in immersion trips.Immersions offer students the opportunity to experience a different community or culture and to better understand the social issues that affect the population or community with which they are working.Because of the intensity of the experience, there is an application process for immersions.
Who Can Participate?
An immersion group normally includes eight to ten students and two faculty or staff facilitators.Because a principle objective of the program is mutual collaboration in work, play, and prayer between the host community and the immersion group, students live with the host community and serve in projects identified by that community.
Favorites
Facebook
Twitter
Digg
Del.icio.us
Technorati
Reddit
Newsvine
StumbleUpon
MySpace
