Experiential School
At Shorecrest, instilling a sense of social responsibility in all of our students, from our youngest three-year-olds in The Experiential School through our seniors in the Upper School, is a priority.
The school’s commitment to community service is facilitated through staff who connect students with on- and off-campus service opportunities and outside organizations, and work with faculty and parent volunteers to plan and implement a year-round Service Learning program.
Students receive mentoring to choose and engage in service efforts, to find their potential as leaders through civic engagement, and to extend their learning beyond the classroom to discover the intrinsic value of serving others.
Meeting the needs of local service organizations, participating in traditional annual service events, and responding to national and global demands brought on by natural disasters and community needs provide Shorecrest students countless opportunities to be of service.
Upper School students commit hundreds of hours each year of service, far surpassing any requirements for college applications or scholarships. While most of their time is spent on student-led projects or club involvement, many give numerous hours outside of school, during weekends and vacations, serving alone or alongside their families, in their own communities or in places outside of Tampa Bay.
Because Shorecrest students learn at an early age the importance of giving their time and talent, they discover the intrinsic value of service. This character education becomes a natural extension of their lives.
Students of The Experiential School of Tampa Bay are regular beneficiaries of on-campus service efforts by older students through Reading Buddies, Lunch Buddies, and Campus Pals mentoring. The youngest of the Shorecrest students also have opportunities to participate in service to our outside community throughout the year. Students also take part in the annual, all-school Holiday Gift Drive, fulfilling gift wish lists for foster-care children served through the Guardian ad Litem program.
Preschool students share what they learn in art and music with the school's neighbors at Winston Park apartments. Each December, the retirees living next door enjoy holiday cheer delivered by the 3-5 year-old students with handmade cards as well as a program of songs.
The Experiential School students learn about recycling, reducing and reusing. They regularly use unwanted and discarded materials for art projects and building activities. They also help beautify the campus by taking "trash walks" to pick up litter. One of their greatest learning experiences regarding the environmental impact of trash happens during the Waste-free Lunch Challenge for Earth Day. They compare the difference in the amount of waste created from their lunches when packed in reusable containers instead of disposables.
In conjunction with their unit on pets, our youngest students bake dog biscuits for a local animal shelter. They have also held pet supplies drives which have benefited Pet Pal Rescue and SPCA of Tampa Bay.
Much of Lower School students' efforts to serve others take place within our campus community. Many fourth graders get hands-on experience working as Safety Patrols, escorting their classmates and younger students from and to cars during morning drop-off or afternoon pick-up times. Several classes devote their time as Reading Buddies to younger students, including our 3- and 4-year-old classrooms.
Lower School students are some of the most enthusiastic participants in the all-school efforts such as the Holiday Gift Drive and annual food drives.
For the past few years, our Lower School students have been the leaders of our Fall Food Drive for The Kind Mouse, leading the way for collecting donations and connecting the drive to their learning in the classroom in one of our strongest Service Learning programs.
Middle School students are active participants and leaders for our annual Food Drives for both The Kind Mouse and St. Pete Free Food Clinic.
The seventh grade has been active in creating a partnership with the Sunshine Center in downtown St. Pete, researching health topics relevant to seniors and making presentations to inform and connect with elderly residents.
Eighth graders are encouraged to research and take on service projects which they can continue in their Upper School years.
Many Middle School students take part in a week-long Community Service Camp offered through Shorecrest Summer Programs. Each day, the students get hands-on experience working with one of Shorecrest’s Service Partner organizations. The activities vary each summer providing the students a sampling of local opportunities to be of service. Summer program participants have served the local food bank operated by the St. Petersburg Free Clinic, Southeastern Guide Dogs, Salvation Army and Keeping Pinellas Beautiful.
By the time Shorecrest students reach the Upper School, serving others has become a way of life. Students in grades 9-12 commit hundreds of hours to community service and have countless opportunities to be of service during their high school years both in and out of school. Whether through service clubs such as the Key Club or Interact, or through special interest clubs such as Spanish or the Beach Cleanup Society, students work year-round on projects that benefit our outside community. Upper School students may also serve as classroom helpers to teachers and as mentors to younger students or peer tutors in The Learning Center and through the National Honor Society.
One week of second semester is dedicated as Service Week, where most of the projects involve serving those in need in our local, national and global communities. The week-long effort has taken Shorecrest students as far away as a coffee plantation in Guatemala, a ranch in Arkansas, a school in Louisiana, conservation efforts in Cuba, an orphanage in Haiti and the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Locally they have helped to construct a house with Habitat for Humanity, cooked and served meals at the Ronald McDonald House and the Beacon House, helped with coastal restoration efforts through Tampa Bay Watch, and took part in Empty Bowls to raise money for the St. Petersburg Free Clinic's Food Bank.
Upper School students also get involved in school-wide efforts such as the Holiday Gift Drive and food drives for both Kind Mouse and St. Pete Free Food Clinic. They also serve as camp assistants and coaches for our Summer Programs.
Students also have opportunities to create their own service clubs and programs for Service Week, honoring the history of Service Week as a program that was created by and for students in 2010. More information on this can be found under Service Policies.
Service Learning is a priority to help fulfill the School's mission of educating and graduating socially responsible citizens. The ability to take pressing community needs and combine it with curricular instruction leads to both effective learning outcomes and quality contributions to our communities. We believe that high quality service learning allows us to teach “the head” and “the heart.” Both are important in developing compassionate citizens and developing social responsibility in our students.
Service Learning is defined by the National Youth Leadership Council as “an approach to teaching and learning in which students use academic knowledge and skills to address genuine community needs.”
Picking up trash on a river bank is service.
Studying water samples under a microscope is learning.
When science students collect and analyze water samples, document their results, and present findings to a local pollution control agency to advocate for new laws -– that is service learning!
Put another way, service learning is about the real world application of taking what is happening in the classroom and meeting a real world need in society, so that students can apply and practice classroom learning and our community can both benefit from and contribute to what is being learned by our students. Shorecrest works with our partners and values their knowledge as equal partners in service and learning.
With info from https://www.nylc.org/page/WhatisService-Learning
Creating a high quality service learning project involves close consultation with community partners and our highly qualified teachers.
This involves three steps:
This work is often led by the US Office in close consultation with community partners and Shorecrest faculty.
Students are encouraged to engage in year-round service. Upper School students can earn hours towards their annual requirement beginning on June 1 each year. The summer serves as a time to catch up or get ahead of the service-hours requirement. Students are encouraged to complete all of their hours by the first day of school, usually around mid-August.
Upper School students are required to earn and report 25 hours annually as a graduation requirement. Out of the 25 hours per year, up to 10 may be earned within Shorecrest with approval from the US Office. The limit of 10 hours also applies to Shorecrest Summer Programs - where students often serve as camp counselors, the theatre program, and student ambassadors/tour-guides for Admissions. Other programs may be approved on a case-by-case basis. The 100 community service hours required for graduation also count towards the requirement for the Florida Bright Futures scholarship program. Any questions about student hours and the requirement will be addressed by the US Office. Any arrangements for missing or make-up hours are made by the students with the US Office.
Students should report their service hours on shorecrest.org at the bottom of the For Students Page using their school login, and should provide complete information on the organization served, dates and hours worked, description of work done, as well as contact information for the supervisor at the beneficiary organization.
The Assistant Dean of Student Life reviews and approves reported hours. Shorecrest faculty or staff may certify hours with approval from the Assistant Dean of Student Life. Service hours cannot be approved/certified by parents or immediate family members. Household chores (like babysitting) are not to be counted for service hours towards the requirement. Service done must benefit someone beyond immediate family and be certified by someone outside of the family. Students are also encouraged to seek out opportunities with local or national nonprofit organizations or with local government institutions (libraries, parks and recreation, etc.).
Any questions about service should be directed to Dean Alexander.
Information about opportunities to serve is shared with students through announcements, flyer postings, service club meetings and online. Service Clubs recruit new members at the Club Fair Sign-Up Day at the beginning of each school year. Service clubs meet twice a month and service activities are planned for weekends.
As part of the student activity and extracurricular experience at Shorecrest, on occasion, the school may charge a specific club fee for participating in a club or school activity in order to meet expenses associated with the work and mission of a club, organization or activity. Many times, these fees are mandated and set by the parent/charter national organization.
There are also fees associated with participating in the required Service Week. Every effort will be made to communicate verbally and in writing to the students and families before fees are charged to the student account, including the month of charge and fee amount.
Any student wanting to fundraise for charity or philanthropy should first have the idea cleared by the US Office and the Head of Upper School. If necessary, the Head of School or Director of Advancement may also be consulted.
Fundraising within the Upper School is limited to students working through student clubs or organizations and should not interfere with schoolwide fundraising efforts while also being mindful of multiple requests of families and community members. No student may solicit donations from the Shorecrest community for individual causes. This applies to both in person and digital campaigns.
Once approved, they may proceed either with an existing organization or create a new organization based on club guidelines and procedures. Either way, all student organizations are limited to two fundraisers per year and/or one per semester. When fundraising, due diligence should be performed to make sure funds are handled in a responsible manner with transparency, and all fundraising efforts must be supervised by the faculty member in charge of the student club/organization.
Service Week is held each spring. Annual participation is mandatory and satisfactory completion each year is a graduation requirement. Students can expect to fulfill “most” (at least 15 hours) of their service requirement through participation in Service Week, but not all programs will fulfill the full 25-hour requirement. We expect students to find meaningful service opportunities during the school year. Failure to participate or satisfactorily complete the program will result in an additional 40 pre-approved community service hours to be completed by the student during the academic year.
Service Week programs are planned and shared with students in the fall. Students sign up for programs online in October. The required paperwork should be completed and families will be billed for applicable fees in November/December. International programs may have earlier deadlines for deposits, travel documents and other paperwork.
Ideas for Service Week are welcome from the community, especially students. It is important to maintain the integrity of the program and work to ensure the safety of the Shorecrest community during Service Week. As such, the following policies will be set in place for suggesting a program for Service Week:
Families can expect to be billed for Service Week in early fall for international trips and November/December for local/national trips. All trips and local experiences will have specific deadlines and deposit/payment procedures. It is up to families and students to be aware of these deadlines. Some programs may require forfeiture of deposits or payments upon cancellation or changes.
Students should report their service hours on shorecrest.org at the bottom of the Students Area using their school login, and should provide complete information on the organization served, dates and hours worked, description of work done, as well as contact information for the supervisor at the beneficiary organization.
The Assistant Dean of Student Life reviews and approves reported hours. Shorecrest faculty or staff may certify hours with approval from the Assistant Dean of Student Life. Service hours cannot be approved/certified by parents or immediate family members. Household chores (like babysitting) are not to be counted for service hours towards the requirement. Service done must benefit someone beyond immediate family and be certified by someone outside of the family. Students are also encouraged to seek out opportunities with local or national nonprofit organizations or with local government institutions (libraries, parks and recreation, etc.).
Any questions about service should be directed to Dean Alexander.
The 1st of June prior to the school year start date.
You are required to earn and report 25 approved hours each year of Upper School, earned June 1 - May 31 (after freshman year, the summer may be used to catch up if necessary. Prior arrangements should be made with the US Office.)
The 100 community service hours required for graduation also count towards the requirement for the Florida Bright Futures scholarship program.
Students are required to earn a minimum 100 hours to graduate, with a minimum of 25 hours each year. The 100 community service hours required for graduation also count towards the requirement for the Florida Bright Futures scholarship program.
The hours earned for the Shorecrest annual and graduation requirement also meet the required hours for the Bright Futures scholarship. (This is secured by College Counseling for all qualifying graduates even if they are matriculating out of state, so that the money is available should the student need to return to Florida to continue college).
The hours served must be for not-for-profit organizations serving the needs of underserved populations. (If you have questions, please ask. For example, the NFL is a not-for-profit but it doesn’t qualify as “serving the needs of underserved populations”.)
Information about opportunities to serve is shared with Upper School students through announcements, flyer postings, service club meetings and online. Service Clubs recruit new members at the Club Fair Sign-Up Day at the beginning of each school year. Service clubs meet twice a month and service activities are planned for weekends.
Out of the 25 hours required each year, up to 10 may be earned within Shorecrest with approval from the Director. The limit of 10 hours also applies to Shorecrest Summer Programs - where students often serve as camp counselors, the theatre program, and student ambassadors/tour-guides for Admissions. Other programs may be approved on a case-by-case basis.
All hours that a student earns will be counted and recorded, but the above stated policy is what will be followed in terms of the graduation requirement. Our hope is to encourage students to serve the Tampa Bay area and our global community while expanding their service experiences beyond Shorecrest.
Upper School students are required to earn and report 25 hours annually as a graduation requirement. Out of the 25 hours per year, up to 10 may be earned within Shorecrest with approval from the Director. The limit of 10 hours also applies to Shorecrest Summer Programs - where students often serve as camp counselors, the theatre program, and student ambassadors/tour-guides for Admissions. Other programs may be approved on a case-by-case basis.
All hours that a student earns will be counted and recorded, but the above stated policy is what will be followed in terms of the graduation requirement. Our hope is to encourage students to serve the Tampa Bay area and our global community while expanding their service experiences beyond Shorecrest.
Shorecrest faculty or staff may certify hours with approval from the US Office. Service hours cannot be approved/certified by parents or immediate family members. Household chores are not to be counted for service hours towards the requirement. Service done must benefit someone beyond immediate family and be certified by someone outside of the family.
Once you know whom you want to serve, try to earn at least 2 hours per month year-round or 3 hours per month during the school year. The goal is year-round engagement so that serving others becomes a way of life.
The hours you earn during a school year stays with that year, so excess hours earned during a year cannot be counted for the next year.
Service Week (typically in spring for grades 9, 10 and 12) is a great time to earn some of your service hours! There are no classes this week, and students dedicate themselves to a service project selected from a provided list. Do not count on earning all of your hours during that time. Most programs offer at least 10 hours, so you’ll have to plan for other opportunities to earn hours.
The US Office is available to help with choosing and planning for service hours. Students should choose with the goal of creating a portfolio that tells a story of developing interest, passion, initiative, leadership and year-round engagement in a cause they care about. Ninth graders will also learn more from Senior Mentors and during Ninth Grade Orientation.
We love input from the community on making Service Week better and reaching new communities for service, but not all good ideas make for a good Service Week program. We are especially excited when students or faculty suggest new programs and take the lead in organizing Service Week offerings.
The three main principles of Service Week are:
If you are a student or faculty member interested in exploring an idea for Service Week, great! You are encouraged to first work with the organization on your own time through volunteering for community service hours or simply to help. If you have a positive experience, feel free to pass along the contact information to the US Office. They may conduct a site visit and begin a dialogue to see if it would be a beneficial partnership for Service Week.
No individual service project proposals will be accepted for Service Week, as it would not meet one of the guiding principles for Service Week. Individual service should be done through the community service program.
For Service Week ideas involving group travel, either nationally or abroad, the service must be done with an established and reputable organization that focuses on service and learning. They should have experience working with youth and schools, and there is a preference for non-profit organizations over for-profit travel agencies and organizations that can also help with the travel logistics and ensure the safety of our students and faculty members through a risk prevention plan.
New Service Week ideas should be submitted in the spring of each school year after Service Week and through the summer up until the beginning of school (post-Spring Break through August) for the following Service Week year (ideas submitted in 2021 are for Service Week 2022). This allows for sufficient time to reach out and establish a relationship in order to present new programs in early Fall for signups.
As part of the student activity and extracurricular experience at Shorecrest, on occasion the school may charge a specific club fee for participating in a club or school activity in order to meet expenses associated with the work and mission of a club, organization or activity. Many times, these fees are mandated and set by the parent/charter national organization.
There are also fees associated with participating in the required Service Week. Every effort will be made to communicate verbally and in writing to the students and families before fees are charged to the student account, including the month of charge and fee amount
Do you have a question that was not covered here? Please contact the US Office.
Shorecrest builds and maintains partnerships with local organizations that provide opportunities for our students to be of service. Through student efforts year round, these organizations come to rely on the time and talent of our students. While a core group of the Service Partners remains the same from year to year, new partnerships are formed each year through student interest and initiative.
Outside of the service work to meet ongoing needs in the Tampa Bay area, Shorecrest students respond to changing needs nationally and internationally. These include natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, the Haitian earthquake, and the oil devastation in the Gulf of Mexico.
