Frequently Asked Question for Parents (and Students)
Hours
How many hours are required for the Global Studies Concentration?
Can my child do his/her hours at the same place?
What happens if my child does more than 50 hours of global service and reflections?
What happens if my child does not complete the 50 hours of global service and reflections?
Can my child count his/her job towards their Global Service Project hours?
Can my child count his/her participation in a service-oriented Year End Studies towards global service hours?
Can family trips count towards Global Service?
What about if my child goes on the Experiment for International Living?
- Each student must participate in at least 50 hours of globally focused service over his/her four years at RHS. Students can choose how to complete these hours, including using their time over the summer. The hours must be complete by the end of May of the student’s senior year.
- After completing 25 service hours, students should complete a Service Recognition Form so that this achievement can be recognized and celebrated. The form should be submitted to the Global Studies coordinator.
Can my child do his/her hours at the same place?
- Yes. Students are encouraged to participate in service with more than one organization to experience different types of service and what different organizations do. However, students may decide what they are most interested and passionate about, which may mean they do all of their hours with one organization
What happens if my child does more than 50 hours of global service and reflections?
- We anticipate that a number of students will do more than the required 50 hours of service and the accompanying reflections. Students completing more than 50 hours of Global Service Project hours should submit the Service Recognition Form before May of their senior year to be recognized at the Senior Awards night.
What happens if my child does not complete the 50 hours of global service and reflections?
- This is a requirement to graduate with the Global Studies concentration. If the student does not complete the 50 hours of global service, he/she will still graduate, but will not receive recognition on his/her transcript or at graduation as completing the concentration.
Can my child count his/her job towards their Global Service Project hours?
- If a student is being paid for a job, this is not service. The idea behind the service is that the person completing it benefits, as does the organization he/she is volunteering for. No paid work can count towards the Global Service Project.
Can my child count his/her participation in a service-oriented Year End Studies towards global service hours?
- If the Year End Studies (YES) plan course is doing a service project that is global in nature that can count towards Global Service Project hours, however not all of the hours.
- A full day Global Studies YES plan course can count for up to 20 of the required hours. A half-day Global Studies YES plan course can count for up to 10 of the required hours.
- All of the hours must be done in service – not in learning about the area, etc. – and as with all service, the student must write a reflection on the service done.
Can family trips count towards Global Service?
- Only trips that involve service count. For instance, a trip to Peru to see Machu Picchu is wonderful, but it would not count for service. If the student also spent a few days helping to build a school while there, those days and hours building the school would count toward service.
- As with any service, it would need to be documented and reflected upon.
What about if my child goes on the Experiment for International Living?
- If your child is doing service on that trip, those hours can count towards the Global Service requirement.
- As with any service, it would need to be documented and reflected upon.
Logistics
What service events “count”?
Does the service have to be school-sponsored?
Can my child count his/her participation in co-curricular service towards global service hours?
How can my child find Global Service Project events?
Who is checking my child’s service hours and documentation?
How can I monitor my child’s progress on this service?
Can my child work together with other students to organize and/or perform his/her global service?
Can my child miss school to participate in global service?
What are the transportation options for students participating in global service projects?
Who is teaching my child how to complete the forms and reflections?
What kind of documentation of service does my child need?
- We hope that students consider service options and their interests before choosing their service opportunities. We want students to make good judgments about what is global service and what is not. If a student has questions about whether an option is global service, he/she can approach the Global Studies coordinator for guidance.
- In most cases, if the student has the necessary documentation, reflections, and can clearly describe his/her learning, and then the service will count towards his/her service hours. Ultimately, the Global Service coordinator will approve all hours and service. Students may appeal any decisions.
Does the service have to be school-sponsored?
- No
Can my child count his/her participation in co-curricular service towards global service hours?
- Yes. If the co-curricular group is doing a service project that is global in nature, then that experience can certainly count towards Global Service Project hours.
How can my child find Global Service Project events?
- Look at Global Service Ideas page or contact RHS global co-curriculars for events that RHS knows about already.
- Students can also contact the Global Service coordinator to brainstorm ideas or check their own ideas about arranging a service opportunity.
Who is checking my child’s service hours and documentation?
- At a minimum, at the end of each year, the Global Studies coordinator is checking in with the student on his/her hours, as is the student’s guidance counselor.
How can I monitor my child’s progress on this service?
- Ask your child to show you his/her document log on his/her Google Docs account. The student is responsible for completing all of these hours and reflections, so all of his/her work should be there.
- Each year, the year’s hours are recorded in Infinite Campus, so this is another place to see total hours accumulated.
Can my child work together with other students to organize and/or perform his/her global service?
- Yes. We encourage students to collaborate on events and in their work. It is important, though, that each student document his/her own hours and work as well as complete his/her own reflection on the service.
Can my child miss school to participate in global service?
- If your child misses school for his/her global service, it will count as an excused absence, as long as you call in his/her absence. The absence will not be waived.
- If the global service is part of an RHS-sponsored function, the absence will count as a field trip.
What are the transportation options for students participating in global service projects?
- Unless otherwise stated by the service opportunity, students are responsible for their own transportation to and from service events.
Who is teaching my child how to complete the forms and reflections?
- Students will learn about the service forms in groups of students who are in the Global Studies concentration. There will be sessions in the fall, winter, and spring to review how the process works. Students may attend one or more of these sessions. The Global Studies coordinator will teach the sessions.
What kind of documentation of service does my child need?
- Students must complete the service documentation form as well as a reflection on each of the global service opportunities. The service documentation form includes: organization, project, number of hours spent in the work, contact at the organization, work done, and explanation of how the work is global. In the reflection, students choose 2 of the 4 sets of reflection questions to answer about their experience.
