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Whether you are affiliated with a student organization, a class, or wish to learn more about a particular public issue as a concerned citizen, there is an abundance of organizations nearby that could use the assistance of able and willing volunteers. Use the different headings below to locate an organization, register your volunteer work online so that the University can track and recognize what you do, complete an evaluation about your volunteer experience, or help you narrow down your search for the right volunteer experience.

• Guide to Social and Public Services: Travis and Williamson County (Word)
  A comprehensive list of organizations that address social, ethical, or civic issues in Georgetown, Austin and other surrounding areas.
• Volunteer Preparation Questionnaire
  Volunteering is a reciprocal endeavor. Here are some questions to clarify what interests you most, and how to find the community organization that best fits your skills, interests, and schedule.
• Volunteer Activities Log (Web Form)
  Make note of your volunteer activities for tracking purposes. This information will be sent directly to Suzy Pukys, Coordinator of The Office of Civic Engagement. This information will help us tally overall SU student volunteer hours. Your private information will never be released without your consent.
• FAQ's (Adobe PDF)
  Frequently Asked Questions about Volunteerism and Community-based Learning..
• Hydra Newsletter (Adobe PDFs)
  Monthly publication from The Office of Civic Engagement. Features scholarly articles, profiles, and upcoming events.

Student Highlights 2006-2007

-Education students and the GISD Bridges Program.  Beginning with sophomore Ashly Hernandez, Education students seeking to fulfill their intercultural requirement worked with students in the GISD Bridges Program, which has been housed at Southwestern since Fall 2005.  Bridges Program students are disabled adults ages 18-22 transitioning from school to work who meet weekday morning for class at Southwestern.  Ashly and other students began meeting with the Bridges class each week to provide unique enrichments and fellowship (as students of the same age).  Ashly’s work with this program helped to inspire the re-establishment of the campus organization Best Buddies, which will work primarily with students in the Bridges Program.

 -EcoVillage:  Green Living at Southwestern.  Ben Johnson, Aubrey Weeks, Ansa Copeland, Matt Glenn, Alex Rutledge, other members of SEAK (Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge), and the Environmental Studies Program mobilized to begin several eco-friendly campus initiatives.  Such initiatives include proposals for green architecture, a permaculture garden, and the Talloires Declaration.

 -Sean Kissinger’s Tennis Clinic.  For his Business Entrepreneurship independent study, senior philosophy major Sean Kissinger developed a business plan for an on-going tennis clinic for kids ages 7-12 at no cost.  He piloted the clinic on May 5, 2007 with the support of his tennis coach, tennis team, and other interested constituencies at Southwestern and in the community.  Forty kids came to the 5-hour clinic, and Sean will pass on his business plan to a successor and will work toward earning 501(c)3 status for this project.

-Men’s Basketball and Annie Purl Elementary.  With encouragement from Head Basketball Coach Bill Raleigh, members of the Men's Basketball Team mentored at Annie Purl through the first semester, and the full team ran activities for kids at two Annie Purl programs, the WatchDOG kickoff in the fall and the Mega Party Fundraising Celebration in the Spring. “We will definitely be involved in some capacity next year,” said Coach Raleigh.  “It was a tremendous experience for our players. The positive feedback that they received from teachers, parents and especially the kids made it all worthwhile. A great hidden benefit was the team got a good look at what parenthood is about and I think it opened up some eyes on how tough it is.”

-SU Native Community Education.  Working with advisor Ben Nava and his family, members of SU Native – Paul MacCammond, Alex Rutledge, and Rob Atkinson – raised awareness about Native American culture and practices by presenting to students in Georgetown ISD and by organizing the third annual SU Native Pow-Wow in April 2007, a forum in which Native Americans across Texas gather together for dancing, drumming, and fellowship.

PAIDEIA

-Max Taub’s Sophomore Cohort created a documentary to discover and assess public needs in Georgetown through interviews with concerned students, faculty, civic leaders, and professionals who work in the non-profit arena. The cohort plans to share this film with other Paideia Scholars and the campus community to help communicate social and public service issues in Georgetown and Williamson County.

-Michael Kamen’s Sophomore Cohort worked toward creating a Southwestern scholarship for a local high school student.

-Emily Northrop’s Sophomore Cohort developed three satirical “infomercials” encouraging students to think more intentionally about they use resources on campus, such as electricity, water, fuel (driving to class), and paper/printing. They plan to air these pieces on the Southwestern channel.

-Mark Bottorff’s Sophomore Cohort investigated family planning and advocacy work done by Planned Parenthood (pro-choice) and the Pregnancy Help Center (anti-abortion).  Some Paideia Scholars participated in a fundraising walk for the Pregnancy Help Center.

-Don Park’s Sophomore Cohort volunteered/developed programs for the Boys & Girls Club of Georgetown.

-Hal Haskell’s Sophomore Cohort developed proposals for cultivating an organic garden on campus or erecting a monument for veterans of the Iraq war.

-Glenda Carl’s Sophomore Cohort organized the showing of the film, Stolen, on March 27 about international child labor, prostitution, and military service for children ages 5-17.

STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS

 -Chess Club involved the community in a fun and culturally enriching way by teaching chess at the Georgetown Public Library.

 -Art Association participated in the Empty Bowls campaign, a nationwide fund-raising project that focuses on hunger awareness. Participants made and sold ceramics bowls to the community along with a simple meal of bread and soup. They also sponsored “A Day Without Art,” an event that drew attention and raised money for artists with HIV-AIDS.  Several members of the Art Association devoted several hours to teaching and mentoring art to kids at the Boys & Girls Club of Georgetown.

 -SU Women’s Soccer Team and their Coach Jack Flatau brought a soccer clinic and an afternoon of fun-non-competitive games to young women in the After-School Action Program, a program for at-risk middle school students.

 -ASIA Club sponsored an Iron Chef Cook-off this fall in combination with Pi Kappa Alpha to benefit the American Cancer Society. Teams donated money to enter a dish in the competition and students then paid to attend the cook-off and eat the food.

 -Operation Achievement. OA provides an avenue for over 70 Southwestern students a year to make a lasting impact in the lives of young people and this fall was no exception. This semester SU students not only tutored and mentored the middle school students, they participated with cultural enrichment activities to broaden and enhance the scope of the worldview of their mentees.

 -Greek Organizations.  Delta Delta Delta held several campus events to raise money for St. Jude’s and Children’s Cancer Charities including Delta Desserts, Delta Duck Derby, and the TriDelta Kickball Tournament. Zeta Tau Alpha volunteered to work Austin's Race for the Cure and the Jameson 5K. They held their annual penny parade and Painted the Town Pink to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Alpha Xi Delta sponsored a school supply drive and gave the money from their fall and spring semester fundraisers to children’s charities, and held their annual spring teddy bear drive for children at Hope Alliance, the county’s domestic violence shelter. Alpha Delta Pi volunteered at the Ronald McDonald house in both fall and spring. Members also volunteered as rest-stop attendants at the Poppy Bike Ride. Phi Delta Theta volunteered at Habitat for Humanity, Wesleyan Retirement Home, and Ride On Center for Kids (R.O.C.K). They also raised money for ALS medical research and cancer research through their ALS Softball fundraiser and Strikeout for Cancer fundraiser. Pi Kappa Alpha held its annual Chili Cook-Off, Crawfish Boil* and Showdown with Cancer events to raise money for the American Cancer Society, Cerebral Palsy Research, and the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity. Several members of Kappa Alpha also took time to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity. Sigma Phi Lambda raised money for Relay for Life and also provided direct service in the form of maintenance and construction for the Stonehaven Community. During the Christmas season they also hosted Angel Tree on-campus and helped SU students sponsor over 200 children through the program. Kappa Upsilon Chi helped to sponsor an on-campus blood drive.

 -Fellowship of Christian Athletes traveled to New Orleans on a Katrina relief weekend.  SU students on this trip spent the entire weekend working on projects in order to make the living environments more manageable for gulf coast residents.

 -Alpha Phi Omega continues to tackle myriad projects that support the community through a variety of ways. APO members made a significant contribution by chaperoning GISD high school alternative activities.

 -Indian Student Association used the Indian New Year of Dawali to benefit and educate the community. They sold chai and samosas with proceeds going to an organization in India and had a power point presentation regarding the history and traditions of Diwali.

 -SU Swim Team assisted in the children’s shopping days for local non-profit Handcrafts Unlimited.

 -Tri-Beta went to Hutto Elementary for a Math and Science night in which they showed many children how fun science can be with microscopes and specimens.

 -Sign of the Times has been working to master sign language so that they can support students and families associated with Texas School for the Deaf.

 -Members of SU’s Student Athletic Advisory Board visited three elementary school campuses to engage young students in activities related to their respective sports.  They plan to continue this “Pirates on the Playground” outreach next year.