Volunteering for the Right Reasons

Some of the most valuable lessons in life are learned outside the classroom. That’s the idea behind increasingly popular programs in schools in the San Fernando Valley and across the nation that require students to perform community service before they graduate. Many private schools in the Valley already require such service. Most public schools offer academic credit. And both the Los Angeles and Burbank school districts are mulling plans to make community service mandatory. The intent is admirable--to expose students to worlds beyond their own and direct their energies to easing the burdens of others--but the requirement is questionable when applied across the board.

Without a doubt, volunteering shows young people that the world does not revolve around them. It also gives them the confidence of knowing that their contributions, however small, can make a difference in the lives of others. Working in a homeless shelter or visiting elderly patients in a hospital can change a young person’s life.

Colleges and universities know this and in many cases use records of volunteer service to help decide whether a student is worthy of admission. So do some employers. The benefits of community service both to the volunteers and those they touch, frankly, cannot be understated.

But making such service a required part of a curriculum defeats the purpose. Politicians from the White House on down proclaim the virtues of community service. Rightly so, but volunteering means more than simply showing up, which would be an expected outcome as thousands of students scramble to meet their obligation. In Maryland, the first state to require service for graduation, counselors discovered halfway through the year that one-third of seniors had not volunteered. That led to hastily organized efforts designed simply to help students pass. Who’s helped by that?

At the same time, Southern California schools have a difficult enough time ensuring that graduating students can read, write and figure. Making diplomas dependent on yet another nonacademic requirement threatens to further erode confidence in a system that too often places a higher value on process than product.

Institutions that depend on volunteers say that getting an unmotivated student can be more trouble than it’s worth. Most simply don’t have the time or the inclination to spend hours training someone who doesn’t want to be there.

Rather than make service mandatory, schools should encourage volunteering by continuing to offer academic credit for structured community work. For instance, regular shifts as a hospital volunteer might count as an elective. Or instructors can require service as part of classwork. Students working on a social studies project, for example, might be required to volunteer at a service agency they’re writing about.

Institutional encouragement like that could prompt more students with the inclination to volunteer to make the call and sign up. Then, at the end of the semester, they might discover the confidence and joy that giving of themselves can bring and decide to continue on their own time. Volunteering should remain voluntary.