Yale Day of Service

How much time you have, where you live or work, and what types of volunteerism interests you are some of the most common ways Yalies become involved in their communities.

Yalies wanting to give back for a few hours on a given day or even on multiple occasions can find a project and register through the YAA’s event calendar.

If you already have a relationship with a community or an organization that you’d like to recruit other volunteers for, you can talk with the Yale Day of Service regional director for your area or another Yale volunteer leader about starting a new project. Then, find the instructions for submitting a project and submit the details via the YAA’s event calendar.

Before 2020, Day of Service projects existed almost entirely as in-person events that brought Yalies in close geographic proximity even closer together. Now, the possibilities for service programs are endless.

Examples of virtual service projects:

• Card/letter writing to vulnerable communities (e.g., Love for our Elders)
  • Service members and veterans
  • Elderly/isolated communities
  • Hospitalized children
  • Individuals with physical and emotional disabilities
• Expertise sharing via video chat or webinar (e.g., Skype, Zoom, Facebook live, FaceTime) 
• Story or music time for children via recorded video or live platforms (e.g. Storytime Reader)
• Document preparation for historical, legal, medical, financial needs (e.g. Smithsonian digital volunteers)
• Visual storytelling similar to the TED talk format (e.g. Voices of Hope)

While in-person gatherings remain an option when public health guidelines allow, a great deal of goodwill and needed services can be delivered remotely in these changing times.

Volunteering with your fellow Yalies as part of Day of Service can be an enriching, meaningful, and fun experience. We encourage as many alums and their families and friends to participate as possible. Additionally, many community organizations have ongoing volunteer needs, and some Yalies find they would like to establish a more consistent relationship with their community (virtual or physical). Some regional clubs engage in a monthly volunteer activity, while others put a call out for volunteers on an as-needed basis.

No matter the level of commitment you take on, we hope for your Yale service experience to be meaningful, productive, and fun for you and the communities you’re working with. Find additional details about getting involved below.