Service Opportunities

SENIOR SERVICE EXPERIENCE & PRACTICUM: Decisions about the structure and frequency of the Senior Service Practicum Program will not be made until late July, as we gain a better understanding of the restrictions and social distancing guidelines we will be facing during the fall and spring semesters. All information will come directly from Mr. Perry - the director of the Senior Service Practicum, to students by email or Moodle message. Separate communication will be sent to parents. 

SUMMER VIRTUAL SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES: We are currently offering the following Virtual Service Opportunities for the Class of 2021. Students participating in virtual programs should be prepared for service to continue into the school year:

• Book Nook Virtual Tutors - Virtual (Program full)
• United to Learn Video Teacher - Virtual (Program full)
• International Pen Pals Program, Mexico - Virtual (Program full)

SUMMER/FALL IN-PERSON SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES:

A limited number of in-person service projects are tentatively scheduled to resume in July as conditions allow. All in-person service during the month of June for the Class of 2021 is suspended. We are currently offering the following in-person service opportunities:

• Texas Ramps, July & August - In-Person (Spaces still available)

SERVICE SIGN UPS: All signups for service will be online through our Sign-Up Genius Portal. Only the projects listed online are approved for Jesuit service. 

For an accounting of your service hours contact Dr. Riemer directly. 

Update: We have begun recruiting for in-person service opportunities for the Class of 2022. Opportunities are listed below and the list will be updated as opportunities are cultivated and finalized. 

SOPHOMORE YEAR MAKE-UP SERVICE: Sophomores who were scheduled to complete their service on the 4 & 4 Service Track, 24/7, or MAGIS will receive information from Dr. Riemer highlighting options for completing their service either virtually or in-person during the months of July and August.

SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS: Sophomores participating in a Service Organizations (Ignatian Service Corps, 24/7, Brothers for Others, United to Lead) will complete their Sophomore Year Service Requirement through their participation in their service organization. These students do not need to sign up for any additional opportunities listed below.

JUNIOR SERVICE EXPERIENCE (including summer service): The theme for the Junior Service Experience is “Practicing Christian Charity.” In line with that theme, we anticipate a significant number of charitable opportunities that will provide students options for hands-on, in-person service which do not conflict with federal, state, and local social distancing and other guidelines. The following opportunities are currently available at this time: 

• Bonton Farms Summer Cohort (opening for the week of July 20 - contact Dr. Riemer directly if you are interested in signing up)
• Catholic Charities Food Pantry Summer Cohort (program full)
• Manna for Others 2020-2021 Kitchen Crew (program full)

SERVICE SIGN UPS: All signups for service will be online through our Sign-Up Genius Portal. Only the projects listed online are approved for Jesuit service. 

MAKE-UP SERVICE: Members of the class of 2023 who were scheduled to complete their second service event during the months of March, April or May will receive information from Dr. Riemer the final week of July highlighting options for completing their service before the start of the school year. If you have questions or concerns about completing your service, contact Dr. Riemer directly.  

SOPHOMORE SERVICE EXPERIENCE: The Sophomore Service Experience is two parts. 1) Direct Service, 2) Formation & Guidance. We are currently offering the following options for completing the Sophomore Service Experience. Options will be added throughout the summer months in order to accommodate all sophomores and as federal, state, and local restrictions allow. Because options are limited, students are only permitted to choose/apply for one:

• Ignatian Service Corps (applications closed) 
• 24/7 (applications closed) 
• Book Nook Summer Virtual Tutors (program full)
• Brothers for Others  (applications closed)
• Elder Care/Assisted Living Pen Pal Program (program full)
• United to Lead (applications closed)

SERVICE SIGN UPS: All signups for "non-service club" service will be online through our Sign-Up Genius Portal. Only the projects listed online are approved for Jesuit service. 

The following information was provided to freshmen parents on December 15, 2020.

SERVICE & JUSTICE WORKSHOPS

The Service & Justice Office is working with the Freshmen Counseling Team to schedule in person formation meetings/workshops throughout the spring semester which will occur on campus during your son's regularly scheduled required guidance time. For students who are attending classes virtually in the spring, there will be an asynchronous online version available to them. There are 5 required workshops, each of which will introduce your son to one of the sectors of service represented in our service and justice formation program. Students should plan for one workshop a month. 

SPRING ON-SITE SERVICE

Students will complete in-person (on-site) service as one part of their required formation. While we have cultivated meaningful virtual opportunities for grades 10 - 12, they are very limited. Therefore, in the spring semester we will work to provide on-site/in-person service experiences initially to freshmen who are learning in-person. We are in conversation with our agency partners to structure experiences which are relationally based, but that are also safe and COVID compliant. We have learned a lot over the fall semester at the other grade levels which are easily transferable to the freshman experience. We anticipate offering those in-person, on-site, opportunities beginning in February (in consultation with our administrative team and local health officials). 

The outlines and structure of this modified experience, including specifics about your son's requirements for the spring semester, will be relayed to freshmen parents in mid-late January. We recognize that compressing a 9-month program into 4 months creates logistical and scheduling challenges. The information we plan to share with you in January will provide numerous options available to freshmen for the completion of their freshman year service formation. Options will include deferring on-site/in-person service until the summer months or selecting an enhanced sophomore service experience which will include their freshman year on-site/in-person requirements. We also anticipate that options will increase throughout the months of February, March, and April as local health conditions improve. 

We will continue to work on cultivating meaningful virtual options, we just may not have information about those options to share with you until later into the spring semester.

REMINDERS

As a reminder, the Jesuit Service & Justice Experience is an intentionally structured personal and spiritual formation program, facilitated through encounters with marginalized communities, reflection, direct service, and dialogue. It is not a customary volunteer program where students record and report hours for credit. Therefore, students are required to complete the program at each grade level as presented to them by our office. Of course, should they desire to, students are encouraged to engage in service with their local communities, parishes, associations, etc. but those involvements should be viewed as separate from the formation offered to them at Jesuit. 

Should you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us (rperry@jesuitcp.org, mriemer@jesuitcp.org). We will do our best to respond promptly. 

In the meantime, if you would like to keep up with what's happening in Jesuit Service & Justice (and what your son has to look forward to in the months and years ahead), feel free to follow us on our Jesuit Serves Instagram account.