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Due to COVID-19, the Ministry of Education has made temporary changes to the community involvement graduation policy for the 2020-21 school year. Students must complete 20 hours of community service to earn their Ontario Secondary School Diploma. Christian community service provides an opportunity for students to grow in their faith and develop an understanding of our role as followers of Christ.
Completing community service hours
Students can start earning their hours from July 1 (after they finish Grade 8) until the end of Grade 12. For the 2020-2021 school year these hours can be earned:
- during the time allotted for the instructional program on a school day;
- through duties normally performed in the home; and
- students aged 14 years and older can count up to a maximum of 10 hours from paid employment towards their earned hours. Students counting paid employment towards their graduation requirement will be required to complete a reflection exercise indicating how their work contributed to the service for others.
Benefits of community service
Students benefit from completing the hours by:
- developing moral and ethical responsibility to our community;
- understanding and accepting social and civic responsibility;
- accessing opportunities for intellectual development;
- developing peer leadership and mentoring skills;
- gaining a better understanding of multicultural and equity issues;
- building confidence in social situations; and
- gaining work experience and career awareness.
Acceptable activities for earning hours
The following list offers some examples of ‘flexible ways’ students could earn community involvement hours, while developing awareness and understanding of civic responsibility:
- Providing tutoring and mentorship supports through:
- Virtual tutoring to help students with reading, communication and/or other skills
- Teaching online music or dance lessons
- Hosting art classes for younger students
- Assisting siblings and/or younger students with online learning and schoolwork
- Connecting with and supporting seniors by:
- Conversing with seniors virtually, for example, acting as technology mentors or providing a regular check-in to address isolation and build cross-generational friendships
- Joining or creating a letter-writing campaign to seniors
- Delivering groceries to elderly/immunocompromised neighbours
- Supports for families, neighbourhoods and community initiatives:
- Supporting a family by walking a younger child to and from school
- Participating in donation pick-ups for not-for-profit organizations
- Coordinating a donation event with a local organization such as a shelter
- Facilitating discussions with newcomer youth or families to help them learn about their new community
- Sewing masks to donate to social agencies
- Shoveling snow and/or performing yard work for a family or neighbour’s family due to extenuating circumstances
- Taking part in neighbourhood litter-pick-up hour
- Utilizing social media to connect with their community by:
- Organizing a virtual reading or math activity for their feeder elementary schools
- Creating a transition support video for Grade 8 students
- Doing a musical performance that could provide entertainment for seniors
- Encouraging people to donate through various social media platforms to food banks or other not-for-profit organizations
- Creating a flyer for promotion on social media for a local cause
Resources
Check out the following resources to help you find Community Involvement opportunities.
- Spark Ontario
- Volunteer Durham website for Community Service opportunities;
Contact us
For questions regarding Community Involvement hours, visit Community Service guidelines.