Out of the 300+ student organizations housed within the Office of Student Life, Student Voluntary Services is one of the largest. Established in 1965, SVS sends more than 2,000 Ball State students into the community to serve others. These students come from all academic disciplines and majors. Some students serve through SVS to complete service-learning requirements for their classes while others sign up with us just for fun!
Funds given to Student Voluntary Services may be used in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to: purchasing supplies for days of service, purchasing gifts for children in Delaware County who have been removed from their homes during the holidays (this project is done in partnership with the Department of Child Services), travel expenses for student leaders to attend conferences and professional development opportunities, just to provide a few examples.
Last year, a staggering 4,428 student participated in 80,074 community service hours to the community. Student logged service hours to a total of 169 community agencies.
Examples of our ongoing service opportunities include:
Coordinated volunteer programs are scheduled weekly community service opportunities. Volunteers in coordinated programs make a 12-week commitment while SVS staff members log your volunteer hours in our online database.
Independent volunteer programs are more flexible than coordinated programs. Volunteers in these programs arrange the days and times they will volunteer with the nonprofit agency in which they will serve. Volunteers track their service hours and submit their impacts using GivePulse, our volunteer management system.
One-Time Event programs are community service opportunities that begin and end on the same day. These programs are great for those students who want to give back and contribute to the community in a positive way but can not make a long-term commitment.
