Seniors will be donating twenty-four hours out of their last year in high school to help the surrounding community, and as a requirement to graduate. The requirement to have volunteer hours was implemented last year, when it was incorporated into senior English classes.

Students get the freedom to choose where they want to volunteer and are given a wide range of variety, from helping the elderly to volunteering at a local Humane Society to building Habitats for Humanities. With more choices, students are less reluctant to volunteer.

While some feel the graduation requirement is unfair, we feel that volunteering will not only make seniors feel better about themselves and give them more worldly experiences. Volunteering not only looks good applying for colleges, but on job applications, as well.

Community service is one of the few things in life that has no negative impacts; you are giving some time to make yourself a better person, helping others in need, and getting a whole new experience. Without community service, a lot of things would go undone, or take a lot longer to be completed.

Non-profit organizations are the main reason that most natural disasters get cleaned up; without them New Orleans might still be underwater and uninhabitable. Service there wasn’t just about cleaning up, but also getting stray animals off the streets and into proper homes.

Seniors who take the project to heart will learn to enjoy volunteer work. In the past, students have even continued to volunteer their time long after they’ve met the required number of hours. Students who choose a project they care about will always get more out of it.

Volunteer work is one of the most important things in life; the experience to work with others is a great feeling. Also, the feeling of knowing you helped someone is like none other. Along with that feeling is the balancing of karma; good things come back around in the end.

While some seniors moan and groan about having to give up their time to volunteer, most see the good it can do for themselves and their community. Instead of thinking that you are providing free labor, think about how you are helping others and bettering yourself.

The senior project is more than just working at some place, it’s about giving back to the community that shaped you into you. While most volunteer work doesn’t affect most of us directly, it affects the community, which in turn affects us.

When volunteering, the “it doesn’t effect me” attitude is not the way to go. Because it does. Just not directly. Helping others in need is so much more important.

If everyone gave just a few hours a month to volunteer in their community, it would make such a large impact and make the community not only better, but also closer.