For many Ohio University students, community service is another way of saying, “I got caught.”
But for those who would like to get involved in their community without a court mandate, Athens Student Action is a new organization aiming to help college students find local charities.
The idea to create a service organization that benefited both college students and the community was developed in a meeting of non-profit organizations in the area and on the Ohio University campus, said Psyche Castro, who co-developed the organization with Ben Hastil.
Service projects are listed on the organization’s website, athensstudentaction.org. The database helps potential volunteers connect with the organizations involved in Athens Student Action.
There are currently 23 community organizations listed on the web page, and new organizations are joining every week, according to the site.
These organizations include Habitat for Humanity, the Girl Scouts and Keep Southeast Ohio Beautiful.
So far, OU and Hocking College are two of the schools on board with the project, Castro said, who added that OU professors were also supportive of the idea of students giving back.
Students who live on campus often forget about the bigger community in which they live, said junior exchange student Teresa Lauterberg.
“It’s important that students get to know the community and to give back. Campus isn’t everything,” Lauterberg said.
Lauterberg said she was promoting a fundraiser for Athens Student Action on the campuses of OU and Hocking College and is planning to visit classrooms to encourage students to get involved.
As an exchange student from Germany and an American studies major, getting to know the community she lives in is invaluable, Lauterberg said.
ap352311@ohiou.edu
