Community Service Policy Debate

       The school committee has proposed a policy change which states that students must adhere to a minimum of 100 hours of community service before they are eligible for their high school diploma. In the suite of gaining valuable feedback on the policy change, and truly figuring out if it is effective, the district has opted for student input on the grounds of whether the system is beneficial, and ultimately if it should be adopted and be made mandatory for all students. The following persuasive speech will state why community service hours should be an integral part of any high school career and should be adopted as a policy by the district.

    First of all, a student should be required to complete at least 100 hours of community service because community service allows a student to reshape their perspective and outlook on life. Often, students who come from stable households take for granted the hardships some people face on a day-to-day basis, only struggling to survive. Volunteering for a place such as a soup kitchen will allow a student to interact with and help the less fortunate, while also changing their perspective by making them appreciate the opportunities and good fortune that has been given to them in life. This should ultimately also cause the student develop a yearning for success.

    This policy should also be integrated into the school board because requiring a student to commit to community service helps them get involved in the community. Getting involved in the community not only as aforementioned can contribute to changing a student's perspective, but also teaches valuable learning and working experience. The community and building connections within the community is one of the most valuable things a student can invest their time in, especially when planning on transitioning into college or university after high school. Community service may be hard work, but 100 hours of community service can be completed by volunteering 5 hours for only 20 days. Taking into account that the average student’s high school career is around 1460 days including the summer, 20 days is not the much. If anything, the requirement should be raised to 200 hours.

    Lastly, requiring students to complete 100 hours or even more of community service before receiving their high school diploma would be a beneficial policy to integrate into any school board because not enough extracurricular activities are required already. The district should require students to participate in many other extracurricular activities which get students involved in the community and with their peers because it builds character and self-esteem. So many school programs get cut, and not enough if any extracurricular activities are required, so requiring a student to complete 100 hours of community service should be seen as simply an extracurricular activity and not a chore or assignment.

    Therefore, honorable committee and school district, I propose that the policy in regards to students being required to complete 100 hours of community service before receiving their high school diploma should absolutely be adopted and made mandatory. Participating in community service at the teenage and even adult stage of one’s life changes perspective, builds learning and working experience, creates character, and self-esteem. With all this considered, schools also lack a set of mandatory extracurricular activities as it is so integrating mandatory community service hours should be seen as a blessing in disguise.