Avery Hai

40 hours of community service should not be required.

Students must complete 40 hours of community service a year to graduate with a Townsend Harris High School honors certificate. The “Handbook on Community Service”  says that service learning is “an integral part in the school’s philosophy.” However, a key issue regarding community service is its impact on students. These required hours place additional stress on students as they manage all of their other extracurriculars. They also take away the sincerity  of giving back to one’s community because it is no longer students’ decision to do so. In addition, students may even struggle to find transportation to obtain these hours. In the end, we must begin to consider if the requirement for community service hours diminishes the ultimate goal of service, to make an impact.

Throughout the school almost every student is a part of a team, club, or program that counts as an extracurricular. If a student gets out of school 4 days a week at 3 pm, leaves school after extracurriculars, then takes the MTA, and spends an average of 11.4  hours a week on homework alone on top of studying, when could they possibly have time for community service? It is nearly impossible for students to do all these things and focus on their mental well-being simultaneously. Knowing the pressure students face and certain expectations, it is likely that students’ mental well-being is not being prioritized, and because community service hours are necessary to graduate with a THHS honors diploma that certainly does not relieve the pressure. Students may be forced to give up study time, time spent on homework, and social life just to complete their hours. 

Secondly, being obligated to complete these hours takes the genuine passion out of giving back to the community of one’s own accord. When community service is required it becomes mindless work for students as they do not reflect on what they did or why, defeating the purpose as it simply becomes another assignment. This impacts students as they will fail to learn about their community and real world issues (lessons that come with willing community service). 

Finally, every high school student is simply a teenager who, if they don’t rely on parents/guardians for transportation, will depend on public transit. But what about the students who can’t take public transportation or whose parents/guardians don’t have a vehicle? Suppose the student has limitations on how far they can go, or they cannot find transport to community service opportunities. This is a large issue that the administration does not seem to consider, especially when it comes down to the fact that only 10 of the 40 hours a year can be completed on school grounds. This means that the other 30 will come from service that requires students to travel. On top of the stress from day-to-day life, students must now worry about finding transportation to community service opportunities which impedes certain students.

While the administration may argue that required community service is the most ethical and beneficial way for students to grow and understand giving back to their community, there are so many other ways for the administration to ensure their students know the value of service without overloading students. THHS can change the rules and regulations regarding community service to be more attainable for students, such as reducing the number of  hours required or allowing more in school service hours. However, THHS still focuses on mandating volunteer hours for graduates with the THHS honors diploma. Even reducing the requirement by twenty hours would have a positive impact on students. 

Correction: An earlier version of this article featured an opening sentence that read “Students must complete 40 hours of community service a year to graduate with a Townsend Harris High School diploma.” Though the writer meant a THHS honors diploma, the sentence might have suggested that students can’t graduate at all without community service, which is incorrect. We have updated the article to correct the error.