Challenge Guidelines

OCS > Service Challenge > Guidelines

 

On September 11, 2009, First Lady Michelle Obama offered a significant challenge to The George Washington University: perform 100,000 hours of community service throughout the 2009-2010 academic year. If GW students, faculty, staff and trustees meet the goal by this spring, the First Lady promised to speak at the University’s Commencement on May 16, 2010.

 

In order for service hours to be counted toward the challenge, they must meet the guidelines set by the university. These guidelines are based on the definition of community service established by the federal government’s Corporation for National and Community Service. According to the Corporation, community service activities may include but are not limited to: service-learning, volunteer activities, as well as Work-Study community service and paid community service internships. Community service includes both direct service to citizens (e.g., serving food at a soup kitchen) and indirect service (e.g., assessing community nutrition needs or managing a food bank).


Volunteer opportunities found through VolunteerMatch must meet service challenge guidelines in order to be counted towards the tally.  Not all volunteer opportunities meet the service challenge guidelines.

 

The following are examples of activities that will be counted for the challenge:

  • Time spent providing direct service for a non-profit or similar organization (e.g., nursing home, school)
  • Time spent organizing and preparing for a service project
  • Time spent organizing a charity fundraiser or raising funds for a charity
  • Time spent participating in a charity event like a run/walk
  • Pro-bono professional and/or medical services provided to a non-profit organization
  • Service-learning activities that take place outside the classroom
  • Internships with non-profit groups that serve the community
  • Service-related Federal-work study hours coordinated through the Office of Community Service and the Career Center (e.g., DC Reads, Jumpstart, AmeriCorps, PeaceCorps, Human Rights Watch)

The following are examples of activities that will NOT be counted towards the challenge:

  • Paid employment (e.g., babysitting, service-related work tied to current employment)
  • Any activity related to the proselytizing of a religion or the campaigning for a candidate or policy
  • Internships with companies or organizations that do not provide a direct service to the community (e.g., issue advocacy group, government or congressional office)
  • Participation in non-service university-related events (e.g., working at Commencement)

The service hours of GW students, faculty, staff and trustees are eligible to be counted, and all participants will be required to affirm that their service meets the definition of service outlined above. Questions about the eligibility of specific service activities not captured above can be directed to the Office of Community Service and will be addressed on a case-by-case basis by the Service Challenge Advisory Committee. You can e-mail your questions to serve@gwu.edu.

 

All service hours must be completed and reported to GW’s Office of Community Service by 11:59 p.m. EDT, May 1, 2010.

 

Report your hours now.