Volunteer UTSA: Serve UTSA and community

By James M. Benavides
Public Affairs Specialist

(Sept. 23, 2008)-- The new school year brings new opportunities to serve UTSA and the San Antonio community by volunteering.

The UTSA student organization VOICES (Volunteer Organization Involving Community, Education and Service) will sponsor the 15th Annual Babcock Road Clean-Up from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Friday, Sept. 26. Students, faculty and staff will rally at the Convocation Center before heading out to portions of Babcock Road and UTSA Boulevard for trash pick-up and area beautification. Lowe's hardware stores has donated gloves and water for this year's effort. For more information on the Babcock Road Clean-up, e-mail VOICES.

On Saturday, Sept. 27, the UTSA Downtown Campus will host the "Action Generation Youth Service Summit." The event begins at 7:30 a.m. with an expected 300 college and high school students working on nine "done-in-a-day" service projects in the downtown area. The American Humanics nonprofit management program in the UTSA College of Public Policy is coordinating the effort with partners from City Year, Firstmark Credit Union and others.

Firstmark's "Count Me In" service opportunity fair follows in the afternoon, showcasing more than 50 organizations that sponsor service opportunities throughout the year. For more information and to sign up for volunteer service projects, visit the City Year San Antonio Web site or call Francesca Rattray at (210) 458-2691.

UTSA will continue the "Your Time Counts" service and civic participation program for the 2008-2009 school year. The UT System's branch of the President's Volunteer Service Award recognizes individual efforts, along with the collective community impact of UTSA and the UT System. Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to register and log their volunteer service hours at the Presidential Service Awards Web site. For more information on "Your Time Counts," call Tammy Fernandez at (210) 458-5102.