Check out the following community engagement opportunities open to Illinois State students, faculty, and staff.
Trick Or Treat For Change
WHAT: Trick or Treat for Change is the annual fundraising event hosted by the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning, Habitat for Humanity of McLean County, and the collegiate chapters of Habitat for Humanity at Illinois State and Illinois Wesleyan universities. Each year, 300 to 400 students trick or treat in small groups around Bloomington-Normal asking for spare change. In 2018 the event raised over $10,000. All donations go toward funding a local Habitat for Humanity house being built by the student chapters.
WHEN: October 31, 2019
WHERE: Various neighborhoods in Bloomington-Normal
ELIGIBILITY: Illinois State students are eligible to volunteer. They can preregister from October 1–28. Walk-in registration will be accepted the day of the event. For more information, visit CommunityEngagement.IllinoisState.edu/Students/Community-Service/Trick-Or-Treat.
Holiday Helper
WHAT: The Holiday Helper program annually provides gifts and parties for over 250 children in Bloomington-Normal in partnership with the Boys and Girls Club, Western Avenue Community Center, the University of Illinois Extension’s Unity Community Center, and the Center for Youth and Family Solutions. Volunteers are needed to sponsor gifts, to wrap and pack gifts, and to help at parties.
WHEN: October to December 2019
WHERE: Various locations in Bloomington-Normal
ELIGIBILITY: Illinois State students are eligible to volunteer. Faculty, staff, and students can sponsor gifts. For more information, visit CommunityEngagement.IllinoisState.edu/Students/Community-Service/Holiday-Helper, or contact CommunityEngagement@IllinoisState.edu or (309) 438-1100.
Alternative Spring and Summer Breaks
WHAT: Alternative Breaks (AB), a student organization supported by the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning, provides students of Illinois State with opportunities to enact social change. During Illinois State University’s spring break, AB hosts a variety of nationwide service trips to help meet the needs of different communities. Students can volunteer to help build homes for the homeless, feed hungry families, tutor young children, and do much more. In the summer, AB sends a team to Kenya to work with Living Positive Kenya, a local organization empowering women with HIV/AIDS.
WHEN: Trips take place during spring and summer breaks; applications open in August.
WHERE: Spring break trips take place nationwide; the summer break trip goes to Kenya.
ELIGIBILITY: Illinois State students are eligible. Faculty and staff can apply for trip advisor positions. Students should apply between August 19–October 21 for first consideration, but applications are accepted on a rolling basis until the trips are full. For more information, visit CommunityEngagement.IllinoisState.edu/Students/Alternative-Breaks.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service
WHAT: The Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service is a National Day of Service to honor King’s commitment and contributions to the civil rights movement and social justice. Join the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning and people across the nation as we serve our local communities in King’s memory.
WHEN: January 2020
WHERE: To be determined
ELIGIBILITY: Illinois State students are eligible to volunteer. For more information, visit CommunityEngagement.IllinoisState.edu/Students/Community-Service/MLK, or contact CommunityEnagement@IllinoisState.edu or (309) 438-1100.
Bring It Back To Normal
WHAT: Since 2008, Bring It Back to Normal has provided opportunities for large groups of students to give back to the community that is home to Illinois State University. Students volunteer to work with local residents and nonprofit agencies to help meet the needs of the community through gardening, landscaping, housework, and other small tasks that make a big difference.
WHEN: April 2020
WHERE: Various locations in Bloomington-Normal
ELIGIBILITY: Community partner registration begins in mid-February and closes in mid-March. Students who would like to volunteer can begin registering in March. For more information, visit CommunityEngagement.IllinoisState.edu/Students/Community-Service/Bring-It-Back-To-Normal, or contact CommunityEngagement@IllinoisState.edu or (309) 438-1100.
