Student Community Service
St Paul is a non-profit, private elementary school that requires students' participation in a Student Community Service project in grades four through eight. Students in these grades are required to provide community service totaling 10 hours per quarter in formally documented time at local charities, in community organizations and at school functions. This volunteer service time must provided outside of the home and contribute to a worthwhile community or civic activity. Some examples of service hours include collecting toys at Christmas for overseas distribution, working at the local food pantry, spending time at nursing homes, visiting hospitals with cancer patients, and serving meals in a local soup kitchen. The hours are tracked and adequate service hours are recorded toward the grade in our religious education curriculum. It is a mandatory part of the curriculum that is providing them with hands-on experience with ethical and moral decision-making. Through their interaction with our larger community and their “call” to service, these students are self-motivated to complete these projects for the sake of their community and for their academic success. The local community is actively involved and provides opportunities for student service in local businesses and non-profit organizations on a continuous basis. School staff value the feedback from the local community that they receive in newspaper articles and in public recognition of the students that this program is working and is very active in our community. The program is working effectively to increase student’s moral character development through required service to their community. It has also turned entire classrooms of students graduating from St Paul into life-long volunteers.