You’ve heard it time and time again, having good grades and a high GPA just isn’t enough anymore. They want you to be involved. But, on top of the piles of homework sitting neglected on your desk at home, the hours after school that you dedicate to sports, the little time you have left that is dedicated to maintaining relationships with friends and family, who has the time? Getting involved in the community during your busy high school life can seem like a daunting, but necessary task. It may not be as scary and time consuming as you think. Many students are able to devote time to volunteering while still focusing time to the other things in their life. So, stacking up your college resume may be much more simple than you might think.
Whether you’re looking to get involved for the sake of your college applications or simply because you want to, KHS has a variety of opportunities and programs that you can volunteer for and take part in. Lilly Strickland, senior, is volunteering as an assistant swim coach for the Special Olympics.
“[I] come to the pool here every Sunday [to] help kids and adults with disabilities learn how to swim,” Strickland said. “My brother has autism so he started doing it, and then I ended up having to drop him off, so I started doing it with him.”
Strickalnd said her best advice to people looking to volunteer is looking at the National Honor Society, which she is a part of. They provide a variety of different activities.
NHS isn’t the only way to get involved. Evie Deckert, sophomore, got involved with the Math Alliance, a fun club that deals with young kids, and said she enjoys it.
“We go to elementary schools and we play math games with the fifth graders there,” Deckert said. “My math teacher, Mrs. Becker, told me about it and I signed up.”
KHS also offers resources to look for volunteer opportunities that might not be obvious to most students. Deckert finds that using social media is a good option.
“Follow all the clubs on Instagram so you can get a feel of what they’re like and then choose from there,” Deckert said. “Pay attention to your emails and the [announcements] because they talk about different clubs and stuff all the time.”
One of the more well known volunteer clubs at KHS is the Animal Volunteer club. They go to animal shelters to connect and socialize with dogs and other animals. Juliet Wegner, sophomore, joined this club her freshman year.
“It also just makes you feel good knowing you’re helping other people, and making a difference in their life.
— Lily Strickland
“They work to volunteer at animal shelters [by] walking the dogs and socializing [with] them,” Wegner said. “They’re also working to do things like a [toy drive] to donate [resources] to shelters.”
There are a variety of different opportunities at KHS, from working with animals, kids, people with disabilities, and much more. With these opportunities spanning a wide spectrum of interests, there is something here for everyone.
“I know that helps, [for college applications] having something,” Strickland said. “It’s consistent. I’ve done it for a couple of years now. It also just makes you feel good knowing you’re helping other people, and making a difference in their life.”
