Gallaudet's Community Service Requirement - a forced, mandatory volunteer program?

Community service? It can be done while as a volunteer or it can be used to punished those who violate the law where judges dole out community service requirements to offenders. Community service punishment is also seen as the ideal sentence for those who commit misdemeanor crimes must do 80 hours of community service.

Juvenile court Judge Christopher Estes sentenced Pleajhai Mervin, Kenngela Lockett and her brother Joshua to at-home probation and community service, but spared them any jail time. Ms. Mervin, then 15, and Ms. Lockett were charged with the misdemeanors while Joshua Lockett was charged with felony counts of threatening a public officer and making criminal threats. He also faced misdemeanor charges for disturbing the peace.

The youths must perform 80 hours of community service and undergo anger management classes, but according to Atty. Carl Douglas, their lawyer, they could be entangled in the legal system until they are 23-years-old. He doubts that will happen because the teens “are good children,” he told The Final Call.

Now, Gallaudet University has a "community service program requirement" for new freshmen where it requires them to do 80 hours of community service in order to graduate.

Ironically, in Gallaudet University's Community Service Program Requirement, it states one of the things on what the program is about,

Understand first-hand obligation to contribute to the solution of societal problems.

Isn't one of societal problems also includes the forcing of a mandatory volunteer requirement on new undergraduate students in order for them to graduate?

The word "volunteer" means to do things on your own initiative and on your own time without anyone telling you when and what you must do in order to graduate from college? Volunteering comes from the heart when the person is ready to do so out of self-consciousness or realization. The words "community service program requirement" is simply an euphemism for mandatory volunteering requirement. The phrase "mandatory volunteerism" is an oxymoron. You cannot force people to volunteer. Mandatory volunteerism is the heart of Gallaudet's program could be seen as a stumbling block for those who want to graduate.

In a 2008 commentary letter about a North Carolina Senate bill that will add a community service requirement for graduation for almost every college in the state:

In 1999 and 2004 there were similar attempts on community service requirements at the University of California. Former system provost H.R.C. Greenwood reminded us that the university’s academic senate stated that "existing research on collegiate community service suggests that a graduation requirement impedes, rather than promotes, the fostering of an ethic of public service."

Indeed. I see that it does impedes the spirit of volunteering rather than promotes it.

So those of you thinking about going to Gallaudet University for the first time, maybe it's time to broaden your options first before deciding. It's time to develop your critical thinking skills on these matters.

UPDATE: See my recent blog, a continuation of this subject.

Obama's New Youth Corp Requirement?

Obama to set up a draft-like bill requiring 13 to 25 year olds to perform community service. Yes, REQUIRE.

The Obama Administration will call on Americans to serve in order to meet the nation’s challenges. President-Elect Obama will expand national service programs like AmeriCorps and Peace Corps and will create a new Classroom Corps to help teachers in underserved schools, as well as a new Health Corps, Clean Energy Corps, and Veterans Corps. Obama will call on citizens of all ages to serve America, by developing a plan to require 50 hours of community service in middle school and high school and 100 hours of community service in college every year. Obama will encourage retiring Americans to serve by improving programs available for individuals over age 55, while at the same time promoting youth programs such as Youth Build and Head Start.

So for each kid going through middle and high school will have to perform a total of 350 hours of community service over seven years (grades 6 - 12). Plus, if they decide to go to college they must perform an additional 400 hours of service for the four years they are in college. Or if you're a typical Gallaudet University student average length of stay would be 6 years which means Gallaudet University students MUST perform 600 hours of community service.

Now, let's look at the court system on how they punish offenders by sending them to do community work as a punishment.

eBay vote seller gets 50 hours of community service

Glenbrook teen gets 50 hours of community service in hazing

75 hours of community service for $1740.00 theft

Dutch court imposes 200 hours of community service for real-world punishment for virtual theft
Naomi Campbell to carry out 200 hours of community service after attacking police over a lost bag at Heathrow airport

O.J. Simpson's daughter was sentenced Wednesday to 50 hours of community service in a deal with prosecutors that stemmed from a confrontation with police during a fight outside a prep school basketball game.

The chair bounced off one spectator's head and then struck spectator Jennifer Bueno in the face, breaking her nose. Francisco was sentenced to 20 days in jail, 500 hours of community service..defense lawyer say hours "too much"..."highest I've ever seen". .

Requirement by New York University that a student found to have had illegal drugs in his room perform 500 hours of community service was deemed “draconian” by a state judge, who ordered the punishment reduced to 100 hours.

Two men who pleaded guilty to "tagging" buildings in Norfolk with spray paint have been sentenced to wear T-shirts identifying them as graffiti offenders while they perform 500 hours of community service.

Interesting. With an Obama administration he is going to force middle, high and college school kids to perform community service much like a judge who orders an offender many hours of community service. Also, where will the Obama administration get the money to run these programs which will rival that of our national defense budget that runs around $600 billion dollars a year. Where will the money come from? Why, from you guys. The middle class people who will see a tax increase when Obama promised there wouldn't be a tax increase on 95% of the working class.

You see, it's patriotric to pay higher taxes and it is also patriotic when the government basically drafts 13 to 25 year olds and force them to do required community service.

What will happen if one refuses to do community service as a requirement in school? Get punished by a judge and perform more community service?

Like I said and I will keep repeating this, this is just the beginning of what socialist and Marxist ideals are all about.

UPDATE: Obama also when he suggested this new youth program a few months back that he promised to boost the size of the military. With the new this program of Obama's where will he get the extra money? From you! The middle class people who will see a rise in taxes on their income.

UPDATE II: Oopsie. Change-O, Government-O drops the word "require" from their vocabulary in Obama's Change.gov website on "voluntary service" for Obama's new "Youth Corps" program.

Right.

UPDATE III: Obama forgot to remove "require" in one of his Change.gov website on service requirement,

Require 100 Hours of Service in College: Obama and Biden will establish a new American Opportunity Tax Credit that is worth $4,000 a year in exchange for 100 hours of public service a year.

Heck, I'd say that those that get their SSI do 100, 200 or even 500 hours of community service as an abled body person as part of the agreement in order to receive welfare help. Picking up trash might be a good start for some people.

UPDATE IV: Jeepers! Even my old high school, Berkley High, in a math tutoring forum did one person go off tangent and talked about how community requirement should be forced, er, required of students to do their community service as a "duty" and as part of their graduation requirement,

What I don't understand is why there isn't a general community service requirement for all students. All students, not just those in AP and Honors classes, need to learn that they can and should contribute to the community. They should be doing this community service, not just to get into college, but because it is their responsibility as a citizen in this society. This community service requirement ideally could be met even by helping to clean up and maintain vegetation on campus. I've been rather surprised that very few students currently participate in ongoing efforts to make the school a pleasant and attractive place. The students seem to be in an entitlement mode - it's someone else's job to provide for them. A community service requirement could help teach them that they have responsibilities to help themselves and the community.

No doubt by now that person is an Obama Koolaid drinker.

Even Maryland school system require community service as a requirement for graduation.

Maryland was the first state department of education to require community service...

UPDATE V: Looks like Gallaudet University once required "community service" in order to graduate back in 1997. But they changed that where it is no longer a requirement but there is a caveat in that,

22. What happened to the community service requirement?

Under the new curriculum, this has been replaced with the service learning requirement. Community service is no longer required for graduation under the new curriculum. Students following catalog requirements prior to 2007-08 will continue to follow the community service requirements.

Ok, Jim Jones, you have the floor. What flavor will they drink now?

UPDATE VI: Here's what Gallaudet University's requirement on community service in their 2006-2007 academic information handbook.

* Completion of the community service requirement. Every undergraduate student entering Gallaudet University will be required to contribute 80 hours of approved community service. The level of community service required will be adjusted for transfer and readmitted students. For transfer and readmitted Required community students entering with: service prior to graduation:
Senior standing 20 hours
Junior standing 40 hours
Sophomore standing 60 hours
Freshman standing 80 hours

Remember, it said "approved community service" and so it's like they didn't have much say on choosing. It's funny, you pay Gallaudet University the tuitions and fees and they say you must perform community service as a graduation requirement like picking up trash and do other unpaid work that a student actually had pay to get to learn about academics of their choice. I wonder why Gallaudet University dropped that requirement just last year?