Service Learning Opportunities

These organizations have programs that will earn you service-learning hours toward your 60 required for graduation. Some programs will allow you to earn ALL of your required hours by the end of the Summer.

At the fair, the following symbol will appear at each table where service learning programs are being offered:

Birds Connect Seattle*

Birds Connect Seattle advocates and organizes for cities where people and birds thrive.

Opportunity 1: Junior Naturalist – Since 1982, Nature Camp has provided fun, educational summer programs for children and teens, focusing on outdoor hands-on experiences that get kids outside to see, hear, touch, and learn about nature. We rely on smart, caring teens to assist with the day-to-day operations of Nature Camp, which will provide these volunteers with opportunities to build their skillset while earning service learning credits.

Opportunity 2: Young Birders (during the school year) – Young Birders brings together teens—rising 8th grade through 12th grade/between the ages of 13-18—who have an interest in birding and conservation. Join us for a fun series of meetings, bird watching trips, and conservation projects—including restoration work and community science. The Young Birder program runs from October–June each year, usually during the first full week of the month. Additional field experiences vary in time and location, and are held once or twice a month on weekends or school holidays.

Girls Rock Math*

Girls Rock Math is a summer camp for girls meant to reinforce that math is fun and imaginative. They aim to boost interest and confidence in mathematics. Learning at Girls Rock Math allows for collaboration, emphasizing persistence, strategy building and mathematical thinking.

Opportunity: Teen Leadership Program (Camp Counselor) – Girls Rock Math summer camps has opportunities for high school youth to be camp counselors during the summer to earn service learning hours. In this role, volunteers support elementary age campers with camp activities, be a good role model, and take on responsibilities and tasks to help everything run smoothly and be as fun as possible.

Interim CDA

Interim CDA provides multilingual, culturally competent housing and community building services to those disenfranchised due to lack of English, low acculturation and poverty.

Opportunity: WILD Program – This service opportunity fosters confident, informed, compassionate, civically-engaged refugee and immigrant youth leaders. Annually, WILD primarily serves approximately 100 low-income Asian and Pacific Islanders ages 14-19, through this award-winning, year-round environmental justice leadership development program. Students can earn all SPS-required service learning hours.

Mountaineers*

The Mountaineers offer outdoor opportunities for all and are committed to building a community where everyone feels belonging. Through their summer camp programs they introduce young people to the benefits of outdoor experience: a healthy lifestyle, outdoor recreation skills, perseverance, self-confidence, self-reliance, an appreciation for the natural world, and a commitment to protecting the outdoor experience.

Opportunity: Seattle Day Counselor in Training Positions – join The Mountaineers at their summer day camps and spend your days teaching kids to rock climb, be safe in the outdoors, swim, and have lots of fun while earning service-learning hours! Programs are located in Magnuson Park in North Seattle. No outdoors or climbing experience is necessary.

Sawhorse Revolution*

Sawhorse Revolution fosters confident, community-oriented youth through the power of carpentry and craft. They are inspired to create equitable change within a framework of “feet-on-the-ground” education, empowerment, and leadership, in and for our community. Participants use the carpentry skills they develop to build projects for people and organizations in need.

Opportunity: Boat Build Camp – more information to come. Click the link to see a wide variety of projects participants have created over the years.

Seattle Parks and Recreation*

Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) supports healthy people, a thriving environment and vibrant community by providing safe and accessible spaces for residents and visitors to work, recreate, rejuvenate and enhance quality of life. SPR also manages many facilities, including 25 community centers, eight indoor swimming pools, two outdoor (summer) swimming pools, two environmental education centers, two small craft centers, four golf courses, an outdoor stadium, and much more.

Opportunity 1: Youth Engaged in Service (YES) – a service-learning project-based summer program for young people ages 13-15. Open to Seattle residents or students attending Seattle school district.

Opportunity 2: Lifeguard Training Team – A free summer program for teens age 15-18, although primarily targeted at 15 year olds who are not eligible for employment with SPR due to age. This program is like a summer day camp + lifeguard training course all in one, and also includes a few opportunities for extra volunteer or service learning components.

Seattle’s LGBTQ+ Center Youth Programs*

Seattle’s LGBTQ+ Center (Formerly Gay City) promotes protective factors that support the development and self-determination of LGBTQ youth. The intent is to help dismantle inequitable systems and practices, especially those that disproportionately impact LGBTQ Black and Indigenous youth communities.

Opportunity: Peer Mentorship Program – for young people ages 14-24 in Washington State! The program connects QTBIPOC youth with peer mentors to add to the safety net of people they can rely on to affirm their identities, give advice, and guide them through challenges they may be facing as a result of intersecting oppressions. Mentors will be assigned to 3 mentees and will meet with them in-person or virtually once a week for at least one hour.

Skate Like A Girl*

Skate Like a Girl’s mission is to create an inclusive community by promoting confidence, leadership, and social justice through skateboarding. They empower skaters, especially young women and/or trans people, to grow into strong, confident leaders who promote and implement social equity.

Opportunity: Youth Employment through Skateboarding (Y.E.S. Program): A free, skate-centric youth leadership cohort for middle school/high school students aged 13-18 that runs from late spring through early fall. YES members have the opportunity to gain work experience, earn 50 volunteer hours, attend workshops/trainings, build community and make friends, as well as contribute to the local skate scene!

The Service Board*

Through sports like snowboarding, the Service Board is committed to increasing diversity in the outdoors and building confidence in youth. In combination with community service projects, adult mentoring, social and environmental justice education, tSB creates courageous communities of young change-makers, athletes, and future environmentalists.

Opportunity: Summer Leadership Impact Program – a leadership focused, 6-week summer program. SLIP aims to develop the next generation of tSB Peer Leaders, local civic leaders, and advocates alike. In this experience-based program, you’ll do on-site visits to organizations that make design decisions impacting our everyday activities. These behind-the-scenes opportunities expose you to a broad range of career opportunities.

The Vera Project*

The Vera Project is an all-ages space dedicated to fostering personal and community transformation through collaborative, youth-driven engagement in music and art. A music venue, screen print shop, recording studio, art gallery, and safe space for radical self-expression, VERA is a home to Seattle’s creative community.

Opportunity: Summer Volunteer Program – gain service-learning hours by running shows, helping out in the silkscreen and recording studios, organizing grassroots social movements, curating gallery exhibitions, launching new programs– anything you want, really.

Tilth Alliance

Tilth Alliance manages several community learning gardens in and around Seattle — including the city’s largest urban farm! They use these gardens, fields, farms and kitchens to provide hands-on educational experiences where people can get their hands in the dirt and shift their understanding of how food is grown.

Opportunity: Summer Volunteer – Spend time working at the Rainier Beach Urban Farm & Wetlands for service hours. Get your hands dirty in the gardens, farm, wetlands, and forests. Volunteers can also help improve access to fresh produce in our community, celebrate community meals and support family and senior nutrition programs, and help make the organization’s annual events successful.

UW Botanical Gardens

The University of Washington Botanic Gardens are places for plant research, display, and education. There are two sites: the Washington Park Arboretum and the Center for Urban Horticulture. Both offer excellent opportunities for exercise, exploration, and wildlife viewing.

Opportunity: Junior Naturalists – teens volunteering with UW Botanic Gardens Summer Camp are enthusiastic about working with kids, playing outside, and gaining leadership skills.  Junior Naturalists will be paired with a Summer Camp Naturalist and assist them in their responsibilities for a small group of campers. Junior Naturalists will have the opportunity to lead games and activities with the guidance of their Naturalist.

You Grow Girl*

You Grow Girl! is a behavioral health non-profit providing programming and services designed to meet the developmental and psychological needs of Black, African American, African Diaspora and Afro-ethnic youth and their families. They welcome all youth of color and those from vulnerable populations.

Opportunity: Youth Leadership Board – comprised of high school aged youth, members work together to develop strategies and plan activities to dismantle flawed community norms, and advocate for, and with, their community to ensure basic needs resources are accessible to all.