Class of 2014 graduates from both Freedom and Liberty high schools volunteered a total of 120,984 hours as part of the Bethlehem Area School District's community service program. Since the early 1990s, BASD high school students have been required to accumulate 60 hours of community service in order to graduate. The program's goals include encouraging career exploration, fostering community participation and responsible citizenship, and the development of life skills.

Students must complete their community service hours with school board-approved agencies, including federal, state, and local level nonprofits. BASD is partnered with the majority of Lehigh Valley nonprofits, with students choosing from over 200 approved agencies dealing with a wide range of issues.

Samantha Kleinrock, Community Service and Service Learning coordinator, notes that the community service requirement promotes positive relationships between the BASD's 5,000 high school students and the larger community. Although BASD does recruit agencies for the program, most approved agencies have independently applied with ideas for how students can contribute to their organizations while also gaining valuable experience.

BASD employs a variety of different routes to connect students with opportunities that will provide meaningful experiences for both the organizations and students. Kleinrock communicates with parents about the program, utilizes guidance counselors to learn about students' individual strengths, and works with students independently to find agencies that meet their personal interests and career goals.

Every ninth grade student meets with Kleinrock in a classroom setting to learn about the different opportunities available. Kleinrock emphasizes that while some students choose to volunteer at events like Musikfest and others commit to weekly service, there is critical value in both options and it is important for students to find the model that best suits their distinct personalities.

For example, the Moravian Historical Society provides projects that can be completed on school grounds for students who prefer to work individually or for those who lack access to transportation. These projects include organizing artifact documents and recording the archives electronically, which also allows students to explore more of the city's local history.

Similarly, New Bethany Ministries brought part of the project for their seasonal Luminaria Night into Liberty's building, which provided service opportunities for students who depend on the BASD's bus system for transportation.

Another popular service opportunity is BASD's partnership with the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program. The program partners high school students as Big Brothers and Sisters with elementary students as the Little Brothers and Sisters. The "Bigs" spend an hour per week for the entire year with their "Littles" at their elementary schools and serve as mentors for homework help. An extensive application process matches the "Bigs" and "Littles" based on personal needs. This year marks the first year that students who began the program as "Littles" are entering high school and becoming "Bigs," coming full circle in a program that pushes students to grow as leaders and role models.

BASD recognizes students who go beyond the graduation requirement by awarding students that complete 135 hours or more with a silver cord at graduation. Freedom and Liberty high schools' combined Class of 2014 included 340 students who earned the silver cord, and 11 students who volunteered more than 500 hours.

Each school exceeded their required hours by at least 24,000 hours.

Looking to the future, Kleinrock hopes to expand the community service program through service learning, which is a teaching strategy that couples quality service and classroom learning and would allow students to complete hours towards the graduation requirement within the classroom.

BASD hopes to maintain great partnerships with nonprofits to provide opportunities for meaningful service that will be rewarding for students and agencies alike.