Sue Scheff Blog

Volunteering in America and Your Teens

by Sue Scheff on Aug 31, 2011

Community service is not only a way to give back to your neighborhood and community, it is a way to feel good about yourself.  Making a difference is actually helping you and especially your teens with building self esteem.  Feeling good about yourself helps you to make better decisions in life.  Paying it forward is a lesson all parents should teach their children from a young age.  Giving to others is a gift to yourself.

Did you know that your family could be leaving an important mark in American history, simply by giving time and service to your community?  The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency for volunteering and service, released new data on volunteerism. Volunteering in America is the most in-depth report on national service – spotlighting:

·         Who volunteers

·         What cities have the highest rates of volunteerism

·         How Americans are serving their community.

In 2010, volunteers devoted nearly 8.1 billion hours — giving time, expertise and “sweat hours” valued at nearly $173 billion.  Of these volunteers, 22.7 million were Parents who dedicated 2.7 billion hours of service to communities across the country. Volunteers are working to tackle some of the nation’s toughest challenges:  tutoring students, preparing and distributing food, providing disaster relief, and helping veterans and families of active military.

Check out this infograph for a great visual: http://www.volunteeringinamerica.gov/Infographic.cfm

CNCS recently gave me the opportunity to conduct an exclusive interview with Robert Velasco, II, who was designated Acting CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) by President Obama on May 27, 2011.  CNCS is the federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in results-driven service through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs, and leads President Obama’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve.

1. How important is it to instill the value of volunteering to our teens early on?

Volunteering is a habit and – just like with reading, eating healthily or being active – often the “hard sell” can backfire. You can have a bigger impact by setting an example by volunteering yourself, and then gently nudging your teen towards trying specific service opportunities that meet their interests. Maybe your outdoorsy teen could improve a hiking trail, your promising athlete could help coach and mentor younger children, or your artist or computer whiz could lend their talents to a community organization or religious group. Volunteers of any age stay hooked when they’re able to find fun and rewarding ways to use their skills to help others. Visiting Serve.gov is a great way to find a volunteer opportunity that fits.

2. Are there any statistics as to whether volunteering as a teen leads to higher success in their futures?

Research studies of service-learning, an educational method that intentionally connects community service to classroom learning, demonstrate that service-learning programs can have positive impacts on youth in three general areas: academic engagement and achievement; civic attitudes and behaviors; and social and personal skills.  The National Research Council identifies service-learning as one of the most effective strategies for improving student engagement and academic learning.   Service-learning is one of the most effective and positive interventions for youth from disadvantaged backgrounds because it builds social networks, trust, confidence, skills, and other tools that can help youth succeed in school and in life.

3. What are some ways teens can encourage their peers to get involved?

A great way for your teen to stick with volunteering is to encourage him or her to bring a friend (or two) when they start. Having a peer to try new things with can make any activity more fun and working alongside someone who is also new to volunteering takes the pressure off. Teens can see each other try new things – and sometimes fail – and learn from early missteps. Part of the fun of volunteering is stepping outside your everyday life and trying to find your own answers to challenges instead of always asking someone else. If your teen is a regular (or semi-regular) volunteer, then you can suggest they invite other friends, or new arrivals to the school, to go with them and see if they like it.

4. How many hours are teens putting into volunteering today?

More than four million 16- to 19-year-olds volunteered last year, according to the Corporation for National and Community Service’s “Volunteering in America” report. All told, they contributed 377 million hours of service, with a particular focus on education and youth service activities. The top places where teens volunteer include schools (30%), religious institutions (30%), social service organizations (14%), and hospitals (10%).

5. What are some personal benefits that teens get out of volunteering? And do you find volunteering also influences teens to perform better in school?

When teens take on an issue in the real-world, they gain skills such as initiative, problem-solving, collaboration, compassion, and planning.   Volunteering often provides a perspective and a community connection that are invaluable both in school and beyond.  Studies have shown that high school students who participated in service-learning and service are more likely to be engaged in a community organization and to vote years after their participation in the program than those who did not participate.  Other studies have found that high quality service-learning strengthens academic achievement. A large-scale Michigan study found service-learning to be positively correlated with test scores on fifth grade state achievement tests in writing and social studies.  Three separate studies–in Philadelphia, Denver, and Hawaii–found that service-learning students developed better problem-solving skills and understanding of complex issues.

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Tags: Community Service, Community Service Hours, Sue Scheff, teens volunteering