Community Service Day Lends Poignant Perspective to Summer Intensive

475 students. 1,183 student hours volunteered. 14 organizations served.

While the numbers are impressive, they only hint at the depth and breadth of the experience. 

The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School’s 2018 Summer Intensive program’s Community Service Day is one of the highlights of the two-week-long annual acculturation program to welcome incoming international students. A unique opportunity to gain valuable knowledge and experience to navigate academic, professional, and personal life as a student at Carey through classroom experiences and community activities, Summer Intensive participants learn about their new academic environment and the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., areas in the process. 

Community Service Day is an integral part of that process, providing a personal, hands-on opportunity for incoming students to experience the school’s philosophy of “Teaching Business with Humanity in Mind” in action. On Friday, August 3, nearly 500 students, under the supervision of 15 volunteer group leaders, fanned out across both Baltimore and Washington, D.C., in addition to Easton, Maryland, on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, to assist in a myriad of projects at a broad swath of organizations, including community centers, health care concerns, food pantries, and other local nonprofits. 

Student activities were many and varied; a few examples: Meals for the homebound and homeless were prepared at Meals on Wheels and Moveable Feast. Classrooms were cleaned and painted at City Springs Elementary School. Furniture was assembled and recycled building materials prepared for re-use at Second Chance. Donated books were sorted (and a new, more efficient system to do so was created in the process) at the Maryland Book Bank. Storage rooms were reorganized, windows washed, and gardens landscaped at the Peale Center for Baltimore History & Architecture. Donated clothes, including business attire, and furniture were assessed and sorted at A Wider Circle.

“The Community Service component [of Summer Intensive] is a powerful firsthand experience for students to engage in their new communities, work as a team to accomplish goals that benefit others, and learn about and practice Business with Humanity in Mind,” said Priscilla Mint, associate director of Student Services for Carey. “For many students, it’s the first time they have volunteered or worked hands-on to combat larger social issues.”

Students’ reactions to the day’s events were as personal and intriguing as the diverse range of volunteer activities in which they took part. A common denominator was the feeling of surprise at being able to generate positive change, even though individual effort alone. Several students expressed the desire to stay in touch with their organizations, and continue to volunteer during the course of their studies at Carey. 

“Community service gave us the opportunity to engage in the community, to talk to people doing volunteer work, and to learn about the experiences of running such associations,” observed incoming Master of Finance student Jin Sun. “It demonstrates the issues the community cares about and how people work together to solve those issues.” 

“The Community Service Day … made me realize how each move and every decision that we make impacts society,” added Sameena Jaggi, MSF 2019.  “Little did I know that I would have such a holistic experience in the very first week of Summer Intensive.”