“Community and Inventiveness” are two of the six pillars that define the school’s values. However, in recent years, the school’s value on “community” has blurred. In 2017, former US Principal Max Delgado proposed a new community service plan when he was Dean of Students to encourage students to connect their interests to volunteering and contributing to the world around them. Delgado’s strategy involved embedding community activities as part of students’ daily schedules during tutorials by working with club leaders to organize service and transportation. However, this commitment seems far from where the school is now, perhaps due to the effect of COVID-19. But in 2023, how is the school holding up values of “community” when sophomore volunteer hour requirements get cut and students only need to complete 12 hours of community service during senior year to graduate? SPA’s community does not stop at the Davern doors. It’s time to bring back the value of service and promote a more robust society through community engagement.

Engaging in community service exposes individuals to real-world issues, providing them with hands-on learning opportunities and crucial education that only exists beyond textbooks. This fosters a broader sense of community and belonging, enabling individuals from diverse backgrounds to connect and learn from each other. Volunteering gives students a chance for personal growth as they develop problem-solving, communication, and leadership skills. SPA should make a more meaningful commitment to community service at the institutional level and within the student body to be accountable citizens of the larger community.

It is crucial to reincorporate community service into the school curriculum. Rather than treating service hours as a graduation requirement or a checkbox to become a better person, the school should encourage students to get involved as community members contributing to the world around them in ways that build connection and meaning. The school should strengthen its community service system with the larger goal of student engagement in the Twin Cities. Weaving community service into the curriculum introduces students to new learning experiences and allows them to engage in social issues from a different perspective.

For a service-centric community, change is needed at the institutional level. While it’s true that some students have already weaved community service as part of their habitual schedule, it’s not an excuse to eliminate the community service component of the school’s curriculum. This can look like bringing back service hour requirements and extending them for all grades, creating a larger service program, launching events such as a community service fair and celebrating service to recognize SPA’s dedication and contributions to the community.

From creating weekly service opportunities to raising cultural awareness and funds, the school’s commitment to community service now relies on the club leaders. Community Action and Service provides the opportunity to volunteer on a weekly basis, HerSpace initiated a hygiene drive to make menstruation products more accessible to fight period poverty, USC hosted blood drive, and affinity groups like ASA have held bake sales donating to organizations to fight off social media discrimination during the pandemic. But that’s far from enough. While it’s important to honor individual clubs’ efforts to increase students’ community engagement, students should be driven by thinking from a worldly perspective.

Recently, however, it has become more difficult for student groups to get involved and contribute to the community. The MLK Day of Service moved from SoCLC to the Parent Association’s hands, and student groups can no longer host bake sales. Given these restrictions at school, students should start by changing their mindsets and treat service hours as an opportunity for growth to step out of their comfort zone and explore nuance. The best way for students to find service opportunities is to first find a community issue they care about and then seek a way to make a small difference. Students should learn to seek opportunities for themselves, turning skill sets and knowledge they have developed in school into action in the community.

It’s important for students to share their time and resources with the bigger community. Education stretches far beyond what’s presented in the textbooks and some lessons can only be learned through engaging as part of the greater Twin Cities. Community service is a holistic approach to societal well-being as well as personal and social growth. When individuals actively contribute through service, it collectively contributes to the betterment of society as a whole.