Behrend hosts annual Volunteer Fair
On Wednesday, August 30th, 2017, Penn State Behrend held a Volunteer Fair that occurs every semester in order to expose students to volunteer opportunities in the area and in surrounding regions. Many different organizations were present, like the Crime Victim Center of Erie County, a non-profit organization that provides services to victims of all crimes, and the Anna Shelter, a local humane society.
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One organization that utilizes student help on campus is the AmeriCorps VISTA program. Beginning in 1965, AmeriCorps VISTA tackles civic issues at hand in communities all across the country. Here at Behrend, VISTA focuses on food security and utilization of leftover food resources. Will Taylor, an AmeriCorps VISTA member, was at the Volunteer Fair representing his position as Food Security Liaison. Taylor works to resolve food issues in Erie, and helps with general civic engagement activities, but he centers his efforts at Penn State Behrend.
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According to Taylor, “AmeriCorps is a federal program and they have a lot of different individual programs within that, but VISTA, which is what I am, stands for Volunteers in Service to America and it’s a postgraduate program… it’s sort of like the domestic version of the Peace Corps. It’s aimed at eliminating poverty domestically here in America.” He touched on how, as a VISTA member, one is assigned to a community agency with a specific focus in a specific area. He explained that the purpose of this program, as a VISTA member, is to build capacity for the organization and enhance what the organization is able to accomplish so that as time goes on, the organization can continue these programs sustainably.
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Taylor, a graduate of Allegheny College, got involved with VISTA after a professor of his sent him to the VISTA coordinator on his campus. He believes that giving back to his hometown in important in his life: “I’m from Erie originally and a lot of young people my age when they graduate kind of get out somewhere else and I feel like it’s important when your community is struggling to be there and give back to it, so I wanted to stay in the area.”
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Opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students on campus are far and wide. On campus, Taylor said that he and his colleagues are working toward gaining more engagement from students at Behrend: “We are trying to find students who are interested in creating a student-run food pantry on campus that would be volunteer run and student initiated sort of to give students access to cheap and affordable food because food here can be expensive, and textbooks can be expensive, and tuition is expensive. As a student, you shouldn’t have to worry about feeding yourself.” Additionally, Behrend has implemented The Waste Not program, which is the food recovery program donating leftovers to Erie City Mission. Waste Not is currently up and running on campus. The purpose of this program is “to reduce waste here on campus and help feed hungry people.”
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When asked the importance of his position with AmeriCorps, he explained that his motivation comes from a place of compassion for others: “I don’t want to do something that’s just about making money or self-interested, but I want to do something that has a greater impact on a community and can change people’s lives in some way.”
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As a student at Behrend, the opportunities to volunteer are endless. To find more information on how and where to volunteer, visit the Academic and Career Planning Center in the Reed Union Building for more information.