By Greta Easthom
Terps For Change is a weekly community service program that gives students the opportunity to travel locally and due good, according to the group’s marketing and recruitment intern, junior bioengineering major Viswanath Gorti.
Terps For Change focuses on social issues like poverty, immigration, education, environment, food insecurity and ageism. It’s among one of three groups housed within TerpService, a Leadership and Community Service Learning Program on campus.
“[TerpService tries] to address different issues across the PG County region, and it’s up to students to decide which projects to work on,” said senior community health major Ajay Mahesh, a social change education intern for TerpService.
Outside partners include A Wider Circle, Advancement Via Individual Determination, Campus Pantry, the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, and other programs in Prince George’s County.
As the spring semester application process concludes, Gorti gives insight into what makes a perfect Terps For Change candidate.
“We not only look for motivation to volunteer and serve the community, but also an interest in the service learning aspect of community service,” Gorti said.
Junior hearing and speech sciences major Emily Kimberl, the program’s logistics intern, said Terps For Change received more than 150 applications this semester.
“It’s a shame that we have to sometimes turn students down because there simply aren’t enough spots for everyone to volunteer,” Kimberl said. “In future semesters, we hope to continue to grow [by partnering] with more non-profits, so that more students will be able to volunteer.”
According to Gorti, Terps For Change volunteers aren’t just helping their surrounding community, they’re helping themselves.
“We are most proud of the change that we’ve been able to instill in each and every volunteer participant that has gone through our program,” Gorti said. “We like to consider the impact that this program has had on both our volunteers and our community partners.”
Students hold discussions to address new issues to concentrate on each semester.
“Along with the service of two to three hours each week, the volunteers participate in weekly dialogues where they relate their service issue to the social issue as a whole,” Kimberl said. “They can gain new perspectives from this by listening to others and learning more about the social issue.”
Photos courtesy of Terps for Change.