Viewpoint School Community Service Initiative
Viewpoint School believes it is as important to create good citizenship and ethical leaders in our students, as it is to challenge them intellectually and academically. Volunteering on-and-off campus helps students by awakening concern for those coping with hardship and encouraging a sense of responsibility for our environment. Through their philanthropic pursuits, students will develop their talents and skills, as well as learn from others with experiences different from their own.
In the Primary and Lower Schools
Our youngest children in Primary and Lower Schools, we seek to instill a spirit of community service through age-appropriate activities on campus. Students sponsor and participate in activities that support such organizations as the West Valley Food Pantry, UNICEF, Book Ends, and School on Wheels, as well as natural disaster relief. The discussions and lessons that correspond with these activities enable our youngest students to understand the needs of others while learning to contribute to their community.
In the Middle School
Caring for our school community and giving one’s time and energy to make a positive impact on the world are fundamental values at Viewpoint. By volunteering on and off campus, students can explore their particular talents and skills and to learn from others with experiences different from their own. The primary goal of service learning is to help others by contributing to a purpose greater than oneself. Through our Middle School service learning activities, our students will also:
- Learn the value of compassion and caring.
- Learn how to put ideas into action.
- Become more aware of society's needs and of an individual's civic responsibility.
- Learn how one individual can be important to others.
- Gain personal experience and skills.
- Build self-esteem and self-reliance.
Some of our annual service projects include our Thanksgiving Day Food Drive for the West Valley Food Pantry, letter writing to U.S. service people through Operation Gratitude, Student Council-sponsored fundraisers, including the Pink for a Purpose t-shirt drive for breast cancer research, social events with Activities, Recreation & Care for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities (ARC), and the Eighth Grade Advisory World Citizenship Project. Students in the Service and Advocacy elective also design and execute community service projects.
The Upper School
Students at Viewpoint initiate and execute community service activities throughout the year, in which there is a rich exchange between diverse groups of people. Our community exchanges enhance learning and awareness, and inspire an understanding of the world in which we live while fostering ethics, leadership and understanding. By doing so, we as a School are enriched and students learn the value of noble and generous actions.
Community outreach will occur through a combination of individually approved service projects as well as Viewpoint-sponsored projects throughout the year, including our annual Community Service Day the day before Thanksgiving. Because one of the goals of this program is to expand perspectives for our students, they are encouraged to volunteer with non-profits outside of their immediate circles. It remains a Graduation Requirement
for Upper School students to complete and record a minimum of 45 hours of community service by the end of the first semester of their senior year.
CORE, Viewpoint's Community Service Honor Society
Community Outreach for Everyone (CORE) is the community service honor society at in the Upper School, that provides leadership opportunities for students to foster volunteerism in others. Based on the belief that all people have an obligation to share their knowledge and expertise with those in need, each member of CORE initiates and executes community service activities throughout the year in which other students may participate.