Students benefit a lot by doing community service

With autumn around the corner, children across the nation are nervously settling into the classroom to face big challenges with new energy. As parents, educators and policymakers, we have a responsibility to help our kids translate that energy into new opportunities. One of the most effective ways is by strengthening students’ relationships with their community and helping them become more personally engaged in their education through national service.

Since the National and Community Service Act was enacted 15 years ago, we have gained a whole new understanding of what civic engagement can mean for our nation — the way it transforms participants and affects whole communities. Its impact grows everyday: This spring the AmeriCorps program swore in its 500,000th member. And Learn and Serve America continues to support “service-learning” for K-12 and college students, making a vital connection between their academic studies and real-world applications through service.

In Congress, we must also renew our commitment to provide federal funding and support for the Corporation for National & Community Service that guides many of these powerful initiatives. This year, House Democrats funded the corporation at $15.2 million above the president’s request. And with H.R. 2857, the Generations Invigorating Volunteering and Education (GIVE) Act, we have seized the opportunity to reauthorize those National Service programs, reinforcing the corporation’s foundation and reaffirming our faith in its mission.

The legislation would also provide a new opening to reach many young Americans we know it can benefit. Research suggests that kids who engage in volunteering are more likely to be successful at school and avoid risky behaviors such as drugs, alcohol use and crime. Today, an estimated 10.6 million students nationwide, or 38 percent of students between the ages of 12 and 18, have participated in school-based service.

Research shows that, among those students, teens from disadvantaged communities who serve hold more positive civic attitudes — discussing politics, believing they can make a difference, and planning to go to college at higher rates than their low-income peers who do not volunteer. Unfortunately, those disadvantaged teens, who have so much to gain from the experience, are less likely to volunteer than their peers from more advantaged backgrounds by a margin of 43 percent to 59 percent.

We can reach them, and anyone who wants to take part, no matter his or her income or background, by expanding the quality opportunities to serve. That is why I introduced the Summer of Service Act — with many of its provisions now included in this year’s possible national service reauthorization — to offer all young people the chance to spend a summer in service to their communities as a “rite of passage” before high school.

Through a competitive grant program we can enable states and localities to offer students making the transition from middle to high school an opportunity to participate in a structured community service program over the summer months. More specifically, the program grants educational awards of up to $500 to students who complete 100 hours of service in any given summer. By employing service-learning models to teach civic participation skills, the Summer of Service will help young people serve their communities, expand educational opportunities for themselves, and discourage what is commonly known as the “summer academic slide.”

When service is tied to what students are learning in school, young people make gains on achievement tests, complete their homework more often and increase their grade point average. Students who engage in service learning improve communication skills, grow more aware of career possibilities, and develop more positive workplace attitudes — the foundation for their place as America’s future leaders.
We must do everything we can to help every child reach his or her full potential. Connecting students to the world around them and making public service part of their lives should be driving forces behind any comprehensive education reform. We cannot teach our kids until we honestly help them become engaged in their communities and give them the power to actively participate in their own education.

DeLauro is a member of the House Appropriations and Budget committees.

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