High School Community Service

 

 

Encouraging Columbus Torah Academy students to give to others, all high school students are required to fulfill 15 hours/year of community service. It is the hope of CTA that our students will learn to look for opportunities to help others and then follow through on offering their assistance.

Below is a link to the form for students to complete.

Community Service Form

Here is more information about Community Service Hours as taken from the 7-12th Grade Student Handbook.

COMMUNITY SERVICE HOURS

It is the responsibility of each student to submit signed forms to the Community Service Hours mailbox at the front desk in order to receive credit for having completed community service hours. The submission of the form is not the responsibility of the supervising adult; it is the responsibility of the student. Emails and phone calls do not substitute for completed and signed forms.

  • The Community Service Hours Form can be downloaded and printed from the CTA website.
  • Forms should be submitted in the Community Service Hours mailbox on the Front Desk at CTA.
  • Community Service hours will be recorded by Community Service Coordinator and available for viewing through Alma, so at any point in the year, students and parents can track progress.
  • Students may use their time in the summer to complete Community Service Hours.
  • If a student fails to complete 15 hours in a given year, the unfulfilled hours will be added to the following year’s requirement. Therefore, hours accrue.
  • Hours, above and beyond the required 15 in a year, do NOT satisfy future years’ obligations. We want students to make chesed a regular part of their lives every year.
  • In the senior year, a student who has not fulfilled all 60 of his/her community service hours will receive not receive his/her diploma and his/her final transcript will not be sent to their college.

What Qualifies as Community Service? – The overarching idea is that Community Service is focused on helping people in need and doing chesed for its own sake. The following list is aimed at achieving this. When in doubt, contact Community Service Coordinator for clarification on whether or not something will qualify.

  • All service hours must be unpaid.
  • CTA Peer Tutoring that follows the Peer Tutoring Guidelines qualifies but no more than 5 hours/year can be fulfilled this way.
  • Unpaid babysitting only qualifies in cases of a family’s special need. (Check with Community Service Coordinator before assuming that a particular case of unpaid babysitting will qualify.)
  • Some examples of Community Service include: Homeless Families Foundation, Jewish Family Services, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and the Mid-Ohio Food Bank, participating in Friendship Circle, building sukkot for families who need help, volunteering in local hospitals, helping with the Eruv, volunteering in synagogues with youth programming, volunteering in homeless shelters, volunteering at a food bank, tutoring, volunteering for Jewish communal agencies, and cooking meals for families with a special need.
  • CTA teachers may incorporate a class-wide community service project to enhance their curriculum. The hours spent will qualify.
  • Participating in CTA clubs and fundraising for class trips do NOT qualify as Community Service.
  • Planning youth group activities and shabbatonim does NOT qualify as Community Service.

We hope that CTA students will find reward in helping others and develop a generous spirit toward those in need.

UPPER SCHOOL PEER TUTOR PROGRAM

The peer tutoring program at CTA helps match students for the purpose of getting academic support from their fellow schoolmates. This program benefits both the student getting help and the tutor. Teaching is one the best ways of learning. The following guidelines outline the program.

  • If a student needs help, s/he can ask the teacher to assign a peer tutor. A teacher may also recommend it to a student who needs help.
    Peer tutoring sessions can be ongoing, or as needed, depending on the student’s need.
  • The teacher has to agree that this will help a struggling student- two students choosing to study together for a test does not count for peer tutoring – though it is still encouraged.
  • The peer tutor must be agreed upon by the teacher, tutor and student.
  • The peer tutor must meet the following requirements:
    • Not be a sibling.
    • Be in a different class
    • Cannot be an assignment that is common to both students
  • The peer tutoring session MUST be at school, such as during lunch or after-school, for at least 30 minutes per session.
  • Before the Session: Fill out the Pre-Approval section on the back of the Community Service Hours Form. Be sure to get the signature of the teacher.
  • After the Session(s): Write on the sheet what was accomplished and give back to teacher to sign for FINAL approval.
  • Up to 5 hours of peer tutoring can count for Community Service Hours for the tutor. The tutor should fill out a Community Service sheet and have the tutored student’s teacher sign it.