Service Program
Why have a service program?
From the Bible: "But if I wash your feet - I who am teacher and Lord - then you must wash each other's feet. What I just did was to give you an example, as I have done, so you must do." John 13:13-15
From the Bishops: “More than any other program of education sponsored by the Church, the Catholic school has the opportunity and obligation to be unique, contemporary and oriented to Christian Service…because it helps students acquire skills, virtues and habits of heart and mind required for effective service to others.” To Teach as Jesus Did - #106
Community Service at Christian Brothers College High School is designed to open the hearts and minds of our students to the reality of other members of their community. This program often allows our students to become acquainted with disadvantaged and vulnerable members of our society – people that most of them do not usually associate with in their daily lives. In this way, our students will be able to understand and relate to the challenges and hopes of these people on a deeper, more personal level. As a result, it is our hope that they will recognize the holy presence of God in others while they develop empathy and compassion for these individuals, which will inform the personal and professional decisions that they make throughout their lives.
Freshman and Sophomore Service
sophomore students are required to do a minimum of sixteen (16) hours of Christian Service before April
17. A minimum of eight (8) of these hours must be completed with organizations listed as pre-approved
service partners available to view using the ‘Service Opportunities’ link posted to the Mission & Ministry
area of the Resources in Blackbaud. While at least eight (8) of a student’s sixteen (16) hours must be
completed through pre-approved opportunities, the remainder of a student’s requirement may be
completed with organizations not on that list, provided that they are not for a student’s parent/guardian or
immediate family, or for a for-profit business, unless it is in connection with a larger charitable
organization or event. Students are permitted to perform service hours beginning on June 1 of the
summer prior to their freshman or sophomore year. The Office of Mission and Ministry reserves the right
to reject any service hours entry that does not meet these criteria.
result in an F grade for his second semester Religion class of the year in which the student failed to meet
his requirement. Failure to meet the service requirement will also render a student ineligible to participate in co-curricular activities until the requirement is met. Both the student’s earned Religion grade and cocurricular eligibility will be restored upon requirement completion
CBC uses x2Vol to help students to track hours, and to post opportunities. Students have been introduced to how to use x2Vol to track hours as well as to find service opportunities. x2Vol will also be used to verify the hours students have done so they may meet the minimal service requirements. When students submit hours to be verified, they will also write a reflection. Here is a link with some tips on writing good reflections.
Junior Service Immersion
CBC’s Vision Statement reads: “Christian Brothers College High School will create positive change in our community and world through the lives of our graduates: young men who are guided by faith, strengthened by intellect, committed to justice, and prepared to lead and serve.” In light of this, the administration of CBC has granted all juniors a privileged time in May to demonstrate their faith and commitment to justice through servant leadership by releasing them from academic work three weeks prior to the conclusion of the school year. Please note, this does NOT mean that summer vacation simply starts three weeks earlier for juniors. Rather, it is the expectation at CBC that all juniors complete their junior year experience in direct service of others during this three week period so that they will grow in their awareness of the needs of those they serve, and, hopefully, become more committed to the service of others as they become "Men for Tomorrow." This service experience begins with a prayer service on the first Friday of May to commission the junior class for service. This prayer service is designed to promote the ideal of leadership that we envision for seniors at CBC - to be Servant Leaders.
The Junior Service Immersion Project will be completed as the capstone of the junior year. (Any hours performed by a junior student outside of this window may be entered into x2Vol as “above and beyond” hours, but they may not be applied to this project.) After completing final assessments for courses during the first week of May, juniors will be released from academic responsibility for the remaining weeks of May to complete a fifty-hour Service Immersion Project at an agency or organization working directly with people in need. Early in the spring
semester, the Office of Mission and Ministry will provide junior students and families with a range of
Junior Service Immersion experiences to choose from. Juniors will be provided information about partner
organizations and agencies and will be able to speak with organization representatives at a Junior
Service Fair. Students will then be placed with partner agencies or organizations based on their
expressed interest, as well as other factors such as proximity or transportation access. Students and
parents/guardians will be required to sign an acknowledgment form confirming their placement and
attesting that their student meets all stated criteria for his placement. A student’s Junior Service
Immersion is completed when the student satisfactorily completes all scheduled shifts of service. Failure
to complete this requirement, or dismissal from a service site, will result in an alternative 50-hour
remediation project being added to his senior requirement of 32 hours, totaling 82 hours of service to be
performed during his senior year. In such a case, the student would also be ineligible to participate in cocurricular activities until the remediation requirement has been completed.
Senior Service
Similar to the Junior Service Immersion, senior service must be direct and personal with people experiencing poverty (economic, social, physical, or emotional). To satisfy the Senior Service Requirement, all senior students must complete a 32-hour project of direct interpersonal service with people experiencing some form of poverty (economic, social, physical, or emotional) by no later than December 1. Unless otherwise approved by the Coordinator of Christian Service, all 32 hours are to be completed with the same agency or organization--the intention is for this to be a project that allows for relationships to be built, rather than merely an hourly total. A senior may begin his Senior Service Project immediately upon satisfactory completion of his Junior Service Immersion as described above. Senior students are highly encouraged to begin--and if possible, complete--their senior requirement in the summer prior to their senior year.
Any student or family who anticipates difficulty in completing their service by the deadline of December 1
will be provided the opportunity early in the fall semester to apply for an extension approval. Information
regarding this process will be provided upon the return to school in August.