Volunteerism embraced at St. Mary’s University
The President’s Volunteer Team provides a glimpse into the heart and soul of St. Mary’s University.
Each year, dozens of representatives from the school — both staff and students — head into the community to make meaningful contributions of time, energy and talent by partnering with organizations and initiatives such as the Mustard Seed, Habitat for Humanity, Feed the Hungry and Me to We.
“This initiative develops the most important kind of leadership — servant leadership,” says university president Gerry Turcotte.
“We learn by example. We succeed through a shared exchange of goodwill and caring. For individuals, for families, for society to grow, we need strong, positive examples of accountability and responsibility.”
St. Mary’s University prides itself on creating an environment that equips and inspires students to incorporate perspectives on ethics and social justice into their academic pursuits.
The university does this in an intimate setting with 875 full- and part-time students and an average class size of 25.
The school offers eight bachelor of arts degrees, a bachelor of science degree, a bachelor of education after-degree and transferable university courses in 35 academic disciplines.
The close-knit community allows the university to provide a cohesive and inclusive approach to community engagement, Turcotte says.
“I conceived the President’s Volunteer Team (PVT) as a way to focus the already incredible energy of our students and what is already a high rate of volunteering on campus,” says Turcotte.
“Combining our efforts is a more effective way to signal that the university speaks with one voice on the importance of giving back to the community.”
Students comprise the majority of participants, although it is also open to staff and faculty.
“What was inspiring for me about this initiative was that we launched this on the first day of the fall orientation, with the hope that we’d get a dozen or more student volunteers,” says Turcotte.
“By the end of the first day, however, almost 150 students had signed up. It was incredibly humbling and inspiring.
“Our lives are changed for the better when we recognize that we live in a space of privilege, and that sharing, supporting and giving back is itself a privilege,” Turcotte adds.