STUDENTS CAN CHANGE THE WORLD WITH JUST 15 MINUTES
Students' volunteerism meets professor's hope for a community of service
Andrew Pantazi
Issue date: 4/21/09 Section: News
Candace Tschirki is undertaking a sizable feat. She wants every student at South Campus to give 15 minutes of community service each day, amounting to 28,000 hours each week and $202,000 of service at minimum wage.
"I would like to see the school embrace a community of service," said Tschirki, a 48-year-old education major.
Tschirki is the South Campus volunteer coordinator and the president of Students for Community Involvement, a student club at South Campus focused on serving the local community.
The club began when Dr. Karen Morian, a humanities professor at South Campus and a former construction supervisor for the Tallahassee Habitat for Humanity, saw how many students were already working in the community and wanted them to have a platform to work under.
Morian said her goal is "to create a culture of volunteerism, a culture of service. College students are in a position of privilege, and with more privilege comes more responsibility."
In order to reach her goal of having the students at South Campus give 15 minutes of service each day, Tschirki explained that there are very simple service activities that students can do in 15 minutes.
"While on campus, in 15 minutes you could help clean the campus, tutor a fellow student, and a number of other things. Off campus, you can read to children, write a letter to a legislator about the school budget cuts, or in your neighborhood you could help someone by driving them to the grocery store or picking something up for them.
Really, you can do whatever you want in 15 minutes," said Tschirki. According to Morian, the club has received "enormous support" from many people on campus, including fellow professors, students, and Dr. Dennis Wright, the South Campus president.
The club is also collaborating with Deerwood Center to combine the efforts of both the Deerwood Center and the South Campus volunteers.
On the Students for Community Involvement blog, http://media.fccj.edu/blog/SCI/, it lists the current suggested community service activities: "tutoring or mentoring children, working with the elderly and the homeless, building houses with Habitat for Humanity, and caring for shelter animals."
"I would like to see the school embrace a community of service," said Tschirki, a 48-year-old education major.
Tschirki is the South Campus volunteer coordinator and the president of Students for Community Involvement, a student club at South Campus focused on serving the local community.
The club began when Dr. Karen Morian, a humanities professor at South Campus and a former construction supervisor for the Tallahassee Habitat for Humanity, saw how many students were already working in the community and wanted them to have a platform to work under.
Morian said her goal is "to create a culture of volunteerism, a culture of service. College students are in a position of privilege, and with more privilege comes more responsibility."
In order to reach her goal of having the students at South Campus give 15 minutes of service each day, Tschirki explained that there are very simple service activities that students can do in 15 minutes.
"While on campus, in 15 minutes you could help clean the campus, tutor a fellow student, and a number of other things. Off campus, you can read to children, write a letter to a legislator about the school budget cuts, or in your neighborhood you could help someone by driving them to the grocery store or picking something up for them.
Really, you can do whatever you want in 15 minutes," said Tschirki. According to Morian, the club has received "enormous support" from many people on campus, including fellow professors, students, and Dr. Dennis Wright, the South Campus president.
The club is also collaborating with Deerwood Center to combine the efforts of both the Deerwood Center and the South Campus volunteers.
On the Students for Community Involvement blog, http://media.fccj.edu/blog/SCI/, it lists the current suggested community service activities: "tutoring or mentoring children, working with the elderly and the homeless, building houses with Habitat for Humanity, and caring for shelter animals."