After yet another infamous Halloween celebration, UW-Madison junior Nicki Oman was picking up trash as part of the annual event Keep the City Boo-tiful in November of 2007. As she worked her way up Frances Street, a man stepped out of Wando's, just to say thank you.
""It just goes to show that the time and effort you put into volunteering, no matter how small, does not go unnoticed,"" Oman said.
Every year countless UW-Madison students donate their time and talents to bettering their community through volunteering. But the number of activities outside of volunteering, like studying for classes and earning money for tuition, suggests a decrease in the importance students put on volunteering.
Getting involved
Some students volunteer for eligibility to enter the 10,000 Hours Show, a student organization that found its way to UW-Madison three years ago. The organization originated at the University of Iowa.
The concept is simple: students volunteer and log their hours on www.volunteeryourtime.org. After logging 10 volunteer hours, students receive a free ticket to a concert at the end of second semester.
This year the 10K Hours show is collaborating with WISPIRG's Big Red Go Green campaign, along with the WUD Community Service Committee, Morgridge Center for Public Service, United Way of Dane County and Edgewood College, to provide not only a volunteer celebration but also a green initiative.
The day's festivities will include an eco-village and a panel discussion featuring Adam Gardner, lead singer of Guster, and his wife Lauren Sullivan. Guster will perform in the Memorial Union Theatre April 29 as a part of Reverb's Campus Consciousness Tour.
Reverb, a non profit organization Sullivan founded, promotes environmental sustainability by helping artists and their fans reduce the carbon footprint of musical tours.
""A big thing is they provide opportunities for fans to basically purchase carbon credits so they can reduce the carbon footprint of the concert,"" said Matt Wessale, a coordinator of the Big Red Go Green campaign.
According to Mike Miesen, executive director of business for 10K, the 10K Hours Show provides an incentive for students to volunteer, as well as an invaluable connection with volunteering.
""Really the hope is to provide enough of an incentive for students to volunteer once ... enjoy it, find what they're passionate about, and then continue to be lifelong volunteers,"" Miesen said.
Han Zhong, a UW-Madison senior who volunteers for the UW Hospital and Clinics every week and for Savory Sundays twice a month, similarly views the 10K Hours Show as more than an incentive.
""I think that the 10,000 Hours Show is a good way of increasing awareness that a lot of people volunteer and that it's easy to get involved,"" Zhong said.
The organization's mission is essentially to encourage young people to volunteer and reward those who do in the hopes of creating a new generation of active community volunteers.
This year has seen a significant increase in hours logged, according to Miesen. He expects to see somewhere between 20-25,000 hours logged on their website by the April 1 deadline.
""It's great that they can have that many students putting in 10 hours of their time to help other people,"" said Mike Lasecki, director of the WUD Community Service Committee. ""So [the concert] is really a thank you. I wouldn't call it so much an incentive, but kind of a reward, a recognition.""
Beyond the perks
Although the 10K Hours Show has seen a tremendous amount of student interest, countless hours go unlogged every year. Students have numerous motives behind their volunteering.
""I volunteer for the experience, and for the feelings of fulfillment you get when you know you have done something good for someone else,"" Oman said.
Lasecki believes volunteering is an incredible education tool.
""The best thing about volunteering is you build a relationship with someone ... I feel like for students who do have that meaningful volunteer opportunity, it changes you,"" Lasecki said.
Driven by reward?
However, not all students have purely altruistic motives. Heavy volunteering may be what gives one job candidate the edge over another, making volunteering all the more important for future success. Others may volunteer simply as a requirement through a club.
But, according to Zhong, that does not appear to be the case. UW-Madison students count themselves among the more fortunate in the world, and he believes this is one of the many reasons students volunteer.
""I think students generally want to give back,"" Miesen said. ""I think they realize that they're lucky and realize that people need help, especially in these times we're in right now.""
But in the end does it really matter, as long as students get out there and volunteer?
""If you have that genuine experience of volunteering, and it can still change you, it doesn't matter what the reasons are,"" Lasecki says.
Whatever the varying motives of students may be, Miesen is optimistic about the student population's desire to give back.
""They actually get out there and do something, which is a really cool thing to see,"" Miesen said. ""I think a lot of students have that drive to make the world a better place, especially at Madison.""
And according to Wessale, there's always room for more involvement. ""I think we have quite a few people that could step up a little bit more,"" Wessale said. ""A lot of us are in a fortunate position. Let's try and return the favor.""
Although few would argue against volunteering, the idea of volunteering as a requirement to graduate incites controversy.
Zhong believes making volunteering a graduation requirement defeats its purpose.
""I've always thought mandatory volunteering is something similar to slavery,"" Zhong said.
On the other hand, Lasecki points out the importance of upholding this campus's ideals.
""People talk about the Wisconsin Idea ... and I think that if while you were here you are required to do some volunteer work, that goes along pretty well with that philosophy.""
The Wisconsin Idea is the general principle that education should influence people's lives beyond the boundaries of the classroom. The students attending the 10K Show on April 29 will have done exactly that.
