Opinion

Opinion Roundup: how many hours of community service makes the most sense for honors requirements?

Leslie Linzan, Amaya De Lorenzo, Angelina Pierantoni, and Diana Saidi • April 8, 2025

Upperclassmen Volunteering at Townsend Harris Open House

At Townsend Harris High School, students are required to complete 40 hours of community service annually to earn the Townsend Harris Honor Certificate, with only 10 of those hours permitted to be in school hours. While this is not a requirement for students to receive their high school diploma under NYC guidelines, this requirement is part of the criteria to receive the Townsend Harris Honors Certificate at graduation. According to the “Handbook on Community Service,” students who “did not perform 40 hours of service during one year…can make that time up in another year. If [students] need to make up hours, [they] will have to do an additional 20 hours as a penalty.” However, with the rigorous course load at THHS has the required 40 hours become too much for students?

Last week, The Classic published an op-ed on this requirement. Below, students were interviewed to see their opinion on the topic.

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“As a student athlete, it’s hard to find free time on the weekends and even more difficult during the week. I’m already behind in hours, and since I play a sport every season as well as a sport year round outside of school, I’ve found it difficult to fulfill the [community service] requirement. The 40+ hours of service you put into helping your community shows your dedication and teaches you to balance your time. It’s also important to give back to your community. [Although] I think that the amount of hours is adequate, more in-school hours should be allowed.”

— Freshman Faye Simmons

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“I believe that the 40 hours a year requirement is not only fair but also beneficial as it pushes students to get involved in things outside of school. I know that a lot of students view hours as a chore and don’t want to get them done, but I actually believe that it would be better if we actually had more hours required to graduate. While the 20+ hour penalty is fair to me, I can still speak on behalf of a lot of students at THHS and say it does cause a lot of stress. So, our volunteering requirements are fair, but they can still have their cons.”

— Sophomore Lillian Parrella

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“I definitely think that it’s reasonable and very important to have service hours incorporated into the school because I think it’s crucial to have the students engage in hours outside of school. I would either suggest keeping the requirement as it is or, possibly, lowering the requirement because it does get very busy during the school year. I think [volunteering] is very important especially volunteer work outside of school because it can help us learn a lot of things especially when we start getting jobs. It’s important to talk to new people and help out in our community. [However,] I don’t fully think it’s fair for students to get a 20 hour penalty.”

— Junior Jazlyn Febles

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“I think it’s very useful for high school students to donate some of their time. Unless there’s some extenuating circumstance students should face consequences for not completing the required amount of hours. I think we can look at these situations on a case to case basis, but otherwise, if you don’t finish things by a deadline, there should be a consequence. The service hours requirement is about right, and is absolutely helpful to a student’s education. Working for an organization helps build character, empathy, responsibility, and lets you look at life through different lenses. While a student might not see the immediate benefit of it, I think the long-term benefits of it are clear.”

— Social Studies Teacher Blayne Gelbman

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About the Contributors

Bella Chen, Sports Photography Editor

Bella is a senior at Townsend Harris High School who hopes to pursue a career that gives her the opportunity to help people. Outside of journalism, she enjoys playing volleyball and cooking. Her favorite Classic piece she worked on is Scenes from Prom 2024, where she remembers the seniors’ happy faces and the delicious ice cream. Her favorite Classic piece made by others is an article titled “Mr. Wang Retires After Ten Years Serving as a THHS Guidance Counselor,” by Intishar Chinho. Mr. Wang was her guidance counselor and she agreed with all the kind things said about him.

Tabassum Ahmed, Photography Editor

Tabassum Ahmed is a junior at Townsend Harris High School. She aspires to pursue a career in sonography or pediatric health. In her free time, you can find her on the track leading her team as captain or listening to all kinds of music (mainly Malcolm Todd). Tabassum has always had a passion for photography being able to capture moments, tell stories, and express emotions without words. Her favorite Classic piece she has worked on has been creating and taking photos for FON 2025. In general, she always loves watching the College Videos for the seniors at the end of the school year.