Volunteer UGA

Posted on Feb 18, 2010 by Whistlebury Properties

UGA students have access to a plethora of volunteer and community service opportunities during their time in Athens to complement their academic learning and help prepare them for the business world. One great resource available to students is Volunteer UGA.

As originally known as Communiversity, Volunteer UGA was formed in 2004 with a new mission as the campus volunteer center for the University of Georgia. After the development of the Center for Leadership and Service, Volunteer UGA became student run umbrella organization which now provides knowledge and resources about both the University of Georgia campus and surrounding community areas. Volunteer UGA is dedicated to encouraging, shaping, and supporting a culture of service within the University of Georgia and Athens-Clarke County communities.

Getting involved on campus and in the community in a volunteer capacity will prove personally rewarding but also will improve your resume. When you are marketing your skills to prospective employers, the experience you can draw upon from volunteer opportunities proves invaluable. It gives you the chance to talk about the work you have done beyond your studies and gives the prospective employer an idea about your character.

In addition to on-campus resources for getting involved, spring break is is an opportunity to give of your time and make an impact. Groups such as Alternative Spring Break provides a week-long volunteer experience that is substance free and “encourages an understanding of pressing social issues in a significant way.”

The Alternative Spring Break program places teams of college school students in communities to engage in community service and experiential learning during their spring break. Students perform short term projects for community agencies and learn about issues such as poverty, racism, homelessness, healthcare, and the environment. Being completely immersed into diverse environments enables participants to experience, discuss, and understand social concerns in an impactful way.

Be sure to take advantage of the resources available to you as a UGA student and support the community that supports the University of Georgia.

Here is a list of the 2009-10 Volunteer UGA Sponsored Student Organizations:

AIDS Walk/Run Athens

Seeks to enhance the capacities of the greater Athens communities to care for those affected by AIDS and to prevent future cases of HIV and AIDS. The goals for the annual AIDS Walk/Run are (1) to raise funds for HIV and AIDS support organizations in Northeast Georgia; (2) to increase public awareness about HIV and AIDS, the impacts of HIV and AIDS on the people in our communities, and currently available local resources; (3) to unite the larger Athens and university communities in fighting stigma and promoting prevention.

Alpha Phi Omega

Alpha Phi Omega is a national coed service fraternity. The organization promotes the principles of Leadership, Friendship, and Service.

Alternative Spring Break

The mission of the Alternative Spring Break program is to engage University of Georgia students in an affordable weeklong substance free experiential service learning project that encourages an understanding of pressing social issues in a significant way.

Asha-UGA

Asha-UGA believes that education is the key to socio-economic change within any country. We, as a national organization, aim to achieve 100% literacy in India by 2020 and to that effect, raise funds for the education of underprivileged children in India. Asha-UGA strives to spread cultural awareness and to promote the “culture of service” within the UGA student body.

Autism UGA

AutismUGA is at the University of Georgia to increase awareness of autism and its effects, to participate in outreach in the community, and to raise money for autism research and treatment by donating to Autism Speaks as well as local organizations.

Best Buddies

Best Buddies is the world’s largest non-profit organization that provides one-to-one friendships and integrated employment opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities.. Best Buddies volunteers gain a greater understanding of themselves and those with special needs. Together, Best Buddies participants build a more inclusive world, one friendship at a time. Here at our UGA Best Buddies Branch we focus on one-to-one friendships between our buddies and you the college buddy.

Bulldawg Buddies

We serve as a channel for volunteers for two organizations in Athens: Oasis Catolico: Volunteers are needed to mentor/tutor Latino children who need homework help, a friend, compassion Classic City High School: Volunteers needed to mentor/tutor the non-traditional high school with homework help, a friend with compassion.

Bulldog Outreach to Nursing homes and Elderly (BONE)

Provides elders with entertainment and informative events in order to help them enjoy their life fully at the last stage of their journey. These activities may include a small choir, game nights, ballroom dance, scrapbook, and etc. In addition, we will host an informative lecture series on issues facing the elderly community through the Institute of Gerontology in the college of Public Health.

Catalyst for C.A.R.E at UGA

Our mission is to empower at-risk children, families, and communities and strengthen those who serve them through collaboration, assistance, research and education.

Circle K

The largest collegiate service organization in the world that emphasizes service, leadership, and fellowship. The club has both regular weekly service projects and short-term projects that involve a variety of different interests. There are opportunities for leadership with Circle K at the club, district, and international level. Circle K International is part of the Kiwanis and Key Club family.

Colleges Against Cancer

A nationwide collaboration of college students, faculty, and staff dedicated to eliminating cancer by initiating and supporting programs of the American Cancer Society in college communities.

Collegiate Candidates

Collegiate Candidates is a mentoring group who goes out to several different high schools focusing on young men of color. Our goal is provide support, inform on options of post secondary education and encourage positive relationship building.

Conscious Alliance

Conscious Alliance is a non-profit organization dedicated to feeding the hungry and making people aware of communities that are in need of food. With a Conscious Alliance chapter at UGA, we would hope to hold food drives and fund raisers at certain events such as concerts and sporting events allowing us to collect food for those in need. Please reference the website attached above for further information.

Designated Dawgs

The mission of Designated Dawgs is to make the city of Athens, GA safe by providing a safe, free, nonjudgmental ride home to University of Georgia students and others in need on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights between the hours of 10 P.M. and 3 A.M. The major goals of Designated Dawgs are to decrease the amount of drivers under the influence of alcohol in the community, to decrease the amount of abductions and kidnappings that can and do occur in college towns.

Forever Young Campaign

The purpose of the Forever Young Campaign shall be to provide the youth in the Athens Clarke County Public School System with a University of Georgia student mentor in order to decrease unequal education.

Forgotten Friends

This is a UGA organization dedicated to companion animals (dogs, cats, bunnies, guinea pigs, ferrets, and etc). We raise awareness and funds for local organizations like the Humane Society and also educate students on things like spaying and neutering and puppy mills.

Gamma Sigma Sigma

Gamma Sigma Sigma is a service based sorority who promotes a lifelong commitment to service and diversity, in an environment of unity and equality, while creating opportunities for growth.

Global Text Society

We are an autonomous student organization created to represent, complement, and advance the goals of the Global Text Project. Our goals include, promoting awareness of the project in universities in particular and the community in general, establishing a model student society to stimulate foundation of a similar society in other academic communities, providing opportunities for volunteers to assist with the project, and preparing UGA students to be directly involved in the project.

Go Green Alliance

The purpose is to encourage the UGA community to conserve energy and resources, promote recycling, and educate its community members on campus and within the Athens area, with an overarching goal of long-term sustainability. We also act as a liaison for student organizations and the student body as a whole to communicate ideas and opinions on sustainability and other environmental issues pertaining to the University of Georgia to faculty, administrators, and staff. Our final objective is to disseminate information about sustainability practices and environmental literacy to the community at UGA and the surrounding Athens Area.

Habitat for Humanity

Habitat is a nonprofit student organization dedicated to the ideal that all people deserve a simple, decent place to live on terms that they can afford to pay. UGA Habitat for Humanity strives to eliminate substandard housing through the use of our four pillars: building, education, advocacy and fund raising.

Hear My Hands

The purpose of “Hear My Hands” American Sign Language club is to explore, promote, and educate students and surrounding communities about American Sign Language and Deaf Culture.

International Justice Mission

International Justice Mission is a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. The purpose of this organization is to promote education, prayer, and student activism towards God’s call upon His people to fight injustice around the world.

Invisible Children

Invisible Children improves the quality of life for war-affected children by providing access for quality education, enhanced learning environments, and innovative economic opportunities for the community.

Promote Africa
The purpose of this organization shall be: (1) to solicit student support for the promotion of African art, music, and literature, as well as international development in Africa through microfinance and community-based projects; (2) to stimulate in young people an active interest in African affairs; (3) to recruit volunteers and interns for Promote Africa and (4) to assist students in finding international internships in countries throughout southern Africa.

Make-A-Wish at UGA

Is an organization that supports the mission of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Georgia and Alabama. We grant wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy. Make-A-Wish at UGA has a goal of raising enough money to grant at least one wish to a local wish kid every semester.

Males Advocating Change Collectively/ Females Advocating Change

Together @ UGA (M.A.C.C./F.A.C.T)
The purpose of this organization is to provide each youth with the essential skills and motivation to become successful and productive members of our global community and to aggressively and constructively counteract crime, violence, and drug use.

Special Olympics

The purpose of Special Olympics at UGA is to provide volunteers with information to support and assist Special Olympics programs in Athens, Georgia.

Manna Project International

Two are stronger than one. “Communities Serving Communities” is the foundation of MPI´s cooperative efforts between more than one group. Service connecting those communities might be meeting health and educational needs, developing durable friendships, raising awareness and challenging the status quo, or developing leadership within those communities.

MATHCOUNTS Outreach at UGA

Our goal is to help prepare local students for this competition while at the same time providing them an enjoyable, challenging, and supportive environment in which they can discover and further their love and understanding of mathematics. It is our belief that this experience will help prepare them for excellence in all academic areas by allowing them to explore and expand their abilities.

Students for the American Red Cross

An organization plans and organizes campus-wide blood drives. We are involved in every aspect of the drive including coming up with a theme, advertising for the event, recruiting blood donors, and volunteering on the day of the drive. SARC members are encouraged to promote the importance of giving blood.

The ONE Campagin to End Poverty

The ONE Campaign to End Poverty is a division of the national ONE Campaign. UGA’s chapter focuses on helping end poverty locally, nationally, and internationally, as well as fighting global AIDS and hunger.

Tutoring Our Tomorrows (TOTs)

Tutoring Our Tomorrows, partnered with the Clarke County School District, connects UGA students with K-12 students in need of tutoring in local schools for two hours a week.

ugaMiracle

Miracle is the largest student-run philanthropy in the Georgia. We unite the University community in an effort to save children’s lives through financial contributions to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. For The Kids, always.

Unite for Sight

A chapter who is eliminating preventable blindness by fundraising for sight-restoring surgeries worldwide. Every dollar that we fundraise is very important to Unite For Sight’s eye care programs to restore sight and prevent blindness. We also collect eyeglasses for those in developing countries who need them but cannot afford them.

Without Borders

To challenge today’s youth to serve the underserved. To educate tomorrow’s leaders to serve as catalysts for change. Without Borders is dedicated to engaging students as active members of the global community by connecting them with opportunities to serve both at home and abroad with the hope that their experiences will have a profound reflection upon the face of the world, transcending all borders.

Tagged: volunteer opportunities for uga students, university of georgia volunteer opportunities, volunteer uga, volunteer in athens ga, athens clarke county, university of georgia, alternative spring break, community service, college resume, campus resources, uga center for leadership and service

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