Community Service

Mary Baldwin College strives to serve our local community through volunteerism, community service, service-learning, and civic engagement. We encourage all students, in all disciplines, to invest time into making Staunton and Augusta County a better place. In the past, students have volunteered at schools, churches, the food bank, the homeless shelter, childcare centers, senior centers, nursing homes, hospitals, and many other local non-profits and social service organizations. Over 25% of the student body took a service-learning class during the 2007-08 academic year, with many more students volunteering in the community through their involvement with clubs and organizations.

In addition to serving the local community, we also encourage service trips throughout the United States and the world. Students have taken trips to New Orleans, Kentucky, India, and Nepal. We welcome all ideas for service trips and will do everything we can to make them happen!

If you are interested in volunteering in the community or have an idea for a service trip, contact the director of civic engagement at 540-887-7111 or civicengagement@mbc.edu. You can also check out the Community Partner Directory for local opportunities to help out!

Here are some of the ways that Mary Baldwin College is civically engaged:

Service Learning:
Service-learning at MBC allows students to apply their academic knowledge to real life situations while helping the surrounding community. Student learning is enhanced through the experiential, as the community becomes the classroom. These experiences help students grow to become engaged citizens in their communities, nations, and world.
Alternative Spring Break and May Term Service Trips:
Students at MBC have the opportunity to spend a week during spring break or three weeks during May Term participating in a variety of service-learning and community service based trips—anything from working at a girls’ home in central Kentucky to doing hurricane relief in the gulf coast. Some spring break trips and all May Term trips offer credit for service-learning experiences.
Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week:
Students participate in events to raise awareness about hunger and homelessness—and collect food to donate to the local food bank or homeless shelter. In November 2007 the week included a “Faces of Homelessness” panel, involving Dr. John Wells, employees, a former resident of the local homeless shelter, and MBC student Stephanie Ferguson who herself was homeless for a period of time; a Hunger Banquet, in which over 80 students participated; and a canned food drive in which student groups collected close to 600 cans that were donated to the local homeless shelter.

Community Partner Directory 2009-10 (PDF)

For Faculty

Community Service and Service Learning (PPT presentation)

For Students

Alternative Spring Break Trip Leader Application (MSWord)
Expectations and Committments for Service Learning (MSWord)
Service Learning Student Information Form (MSWord)
TIPS for Community Service (MSWord)
TIPS for Successful Service Learning (MSWord)

For Community Partners

Community Partner Volunteer Request Form (MSWord)
Community Service Fair Participation Form (MSWord)
MBC and the Community Together (PPT presentation)