Life at Richmond: Community Service
You enjoy helping other people. In fact, you often willingly share your time and talents wherever they are needed. At Richmond, you'll be able to continue your efforts, as community service is an integral part of University life.
You can join the nearly two-thirds of Richmond students who donate hundreds of hours each year to community service projects in the local area and beyond through the:
- Center for Civic Engagement brings together campus and community members in collaborative study, reflection and action to address contemporary social issues in Richmond and throughout the wider world.
- Build It is a weeklong, student-led community service project that brings together the University and Greater Richmond communities to build a Habitat for Humanity house for a family in need and enhance three local K–12 schools. The project combines academic concepts with meaningful, hands-on learning to encourage ongoing civic responsibility and educate all participants about the issues surrounding poverty, education and housing.
- Volunteer Action Council (VAC), a student-created, student-organized community resource center that connects individuals and groups on campus with local agencies and organizations in need. Habitat for Humanity is just one of the organizations that looks to Richmond students for on-going support of their initiatives. Richmond students have the distinction of raising more money for Habitat than any other college or university of its size in the nation.
- Bonner Scholars program, a special scholarship opportunity available to students who have demonstrated a commitment to community service during their high school years and who seek to continue their involvement in college.
- Serving learning opportunities, which connect classroom learning with community service.
- Connect Richmond, an online community information network that unites nonprofit organizations with academic resources and offers leadership opportunities for students.
- Community Partners is a Federal Work-Study employment program designed to encourage students to participate in community service activities. Students strive to improve the quality of life for community residents or to solve particular problems related to their needs by working with a community agency.
- Center for Faith and Service, which coordinates a variety of volunteer programs for students.
Beyond these formalized groups with a mission for service, many Richmond students participate in service initiatives through their fraternities and sororities, residence halls, faith-based organizations and athletic teams.