Working in Community

Volunteering in service to community has a far-reaching impact for young people. It’s how they express their identity and values. As well as the intrinsic rewards in the act itself, it’s powerful to give back to our communities and find space in our lives for altruism and compassion.

When engaging in community, students see first hand how their actions have an immediate impact on the lives of others. In today’s 24/7 news cycle where young people often see injustice happening across the globe, feelings of disconnect can become the norm. It’s essential to help young people connect in meaningful and impactful ways with their community so that they see the connection between awareness, action, and change.

By engaging in projects aimed at helping others, young people begin to see their role as a connected and valuable part of the whole. Each player has meaning. Each and every role is important.

Living and thriving within a community – whether a school, local, or global one – is about looking deeply at ourselves and our community to determine how we can best work with others to improve the whole. This interconnection reflects the true meaning of community and life.

Practical Skills

Volunteer projects allow students to develop important practical and life skills that are valuable inside and outside of the classroom. Placing real-world and relevant outcomes to actions such as problem solving, collaboration, communication, and leadership further the application of these skills in other areas.

Hands-on projects in practical skills help our students develop a ‘can-do’ attitude. They know how things are made because they make them themselves. They can picture the steps needed to reach their goals. Their motivation is strong and their confidence is high to try new things based on the positive experiences of the past.

“Children who learn while they are young to make practical things by hand in an artistic way, and for the benefit of others as well as for themselves, will not be strangers to life or to other people when they are older. They will be able to form their lives and relationships in a social and artistic way. Out of their hands can come technicians and artists who will know how to solve the problems and tasks set us.”

~Rudolf Steiner