[For countless years, sophomores have had to turn in 12 volunteer hours by the day of that year’s sophomore retreat. The Sophomore Class Leadership Council (SoCLC) is a selected group of students in the sophomore grade that are in charge of making sure their fellow peers complete all their volunteer hours, as well as planning a few of the class meetings and the sophomore retreat.

This year like past ones, all sophomore students have to finish the 12 hours of volunteer work by Thursday, January 31st. These hours are a graduation requirement. Why is volunteering such a high requirement? Talking to teachers, students that have volunteered in the past, and students who are volunteering now, there is a vast response of positivity towards it.

“Learning does not happen just in the classroom; learning happens through relationships. It is important to give as much as you get, and serving is not just about giving. Like giving your time, all good service should be an exchange. It is important to be in a position where you are giving and getting,” SoCLC advisor Ned Heckman said.

“I think it is extremely important to give back to your community. Volunteering expands our views on what we can do to positively impact others. It also just helps us for the future in general,” sophomore and SoCLC member Saffy Rindelaub said.

Past years have always as a class reached over 2,000 hours all together. The juniors this year reached 2,086.5 hours as sophomores; the seniors reached 2,482 hours their senior year. When students and faculty walk by the SoCLC board, anyone can look at the sophomore goal this year of 3,000 hours. Students can also see how many hours of volunteering they personally have completed.

“The SoCLC board is in the upper part of Schilling. It shows our class’s goal of 3,000 hours. I can go there and look at how many hours I’ve turned in, and it’s helpful because I can compare the work I have done with my classmates,” sophomore Eli Conrod-Wovcha said.

Now students are hopefully finishing the volunteer hours that are required of them, but the hope is that this service for the community continues to become more than just a requirement from the school.

“I have been volunteering for the hospital for a while at the hospital, and all my volunteer hours are turned in. But even though all the requirements are met, I want to continue to volunteer. It looks good on my college application, and it’s also just good to give back to the community,” sophomore Mia Schubert said.

Faculty wish for students to stay in contact with the people that they volunteered for and to continue volunteering throughout high school careers… and hopefully further. When volunteering, students can form a more significant connection to their community, and see how many hands are needed to see the changes that happen in our community.