By Bianca Zaharescu

Gargoyle senior editor


Posted Tuesday, April 24, 2007, The OG, news

YOU MAY HAVE seen the signs or read the e-mails, or simply heard rumors of a King School volunteer program that will be set in place for next year, courtesy of this year's Social Advocacy II class.

You may also have wondered what this is all about.

For any and all who are interested in this new program, an informational meeting will be held Wednesday during lunch in Room 211.

Every year, Uni's Social Advocacy II class comes up with a new, creative, and socially conscious project to work on.

Two years ago, the class converted a car to run on corn oil rather than gasoline. Last year, the class worked on two documentaries, one about military recruiting and one about sweatshop labor.

This year, the group has set its sights high: implementing a new and official volunteer program at Uni, which would enable interested students to commute to Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School, which is located at 1108 W. Fairview Ave. in Urbana, during their daily free periods next year.

The Social Advocacy group is composed of a small but dedicated membership, featuring seniors Emma Anselin, Alex Cahill, Nicole Gong, Nicole Helregel, and junior Angela Jin.

“Basically, we're trying to make volunteer opportunities more accessible for Uni students,” Helregel commented, “because these opportunities exist, but they are after school, so many students can't participate because they have other activities and homework and what not.”

The idea for such a program was initially conceived by Anselin after her positive experiences working with kids during this year's Agora Days Habitat for Humanity trip to the Mississippi Delta.

Anselin explained her vision and the motivation behind her idea: “The upshot was, this was about helping King School and its resources and developing relationships with the kids, but this program was also a lot about how Uni students could learn from the community at King School, and what they would get out of the experience of volunteering there daily for a prolonged period of time.”

Planning and organizing this volunteer program, which will be up and running for the beginning of next year, is already well under way. The Social Ad class, advised by Suzanne Linder, has already sorted out some major details, such as transportation.

“We will be using bikes that have been donated by Uni people, since this will be a cheaper and easier way to transport volunteers back and forth from King School,” Cahill said. “So far we've only received one, but lots of other people have also said they want to donate.”

However, many other aspects of the program — such as the exact number of volunteers that will participate in this program — still need to be solidified.

Right now, the Social Ad class is finalizing the application, which will be available for students who attend Wednesday's meeting. More information about the program will be offered then, and applications and instructions will be handed out.

The Social Ad class urges all students to come to the meeting.

Explained Gong: “This program is a way for Uni kids to get out into the community, because we really tend to isolate ourselves a lot, so just getting out there and associating with a different group of people I think will make a big difference.”

RELATED

— 2006 Gargoyle coverage: Social Advocacy II class to turn spotlight on military recruiting and sweatshop labor