Community Service Requirement

Social Responsibility is one of the “Core Values” contained in the Mission of Mount Carmel College of Nursing. In accordance with the College Mission and Catholic Identity, the Community Service requirement is the application of one’s skills and time, to meet identified community needs of vulnerable and at-risk populations (e.g., children, elderly, homeless, poor and underserved, and organizations that support these populations). This activity leads to learning and developing through active participation in thoughtfully organized service that:

• is conducted in and meets the needs of the community;
• involves reflection and analysis of the experience; and
• promotes the development of leadership skills, citizenship skills, and social responsibility.

After completing the community service requirement, students will identify personal growth in meeting the program objectives which include: valuing the spirituality and dignity of persons, service to others, social justice, altruism, autonomy, and integrity.

Students must satisfactorily complete the required hours of community service by the deadline. This is a requirement for graduation. See procedure #9 below for important information regarding the completion deadlines.

Procedure

1. Students will be oriented to the Community Service Program during New Student Orientation.
2. Onsite traditional program students select a project(s) from the list of pre-approved agencies which are posted on CARMELink (Student tab > Community Service).
3. Onsite students who wish to volunteer in an agency that is not on the pre-approved list must submit a written proposal to the Community Service Committee Chairperson (listed on CARMELink, Student tab > Community Service).
4. Online students should confer with the RN-BSN Program Advisor (tsnively@mccn.edu, 614-234-3362) regarding approved agencies.
5. A Community Service Verification Record must be completed by the onsite student for each volunteer session (see information for online RN-BSN students in #8 below). The form is available on CARMELink (Student tab > Community Service). Record information must include:
   • student name
   • service site
   • date and type of service
   • number of hours completed
   • comments and signature of an agency representative
   • student’s reflection on the experience
6. Once all required hours have been completed, onsite students submit the Community Service Verification Record to the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs (bbarta@mccn.edu).
7. The Community Service Committee will review the Verification Record(s) and forward them to the Office of Records and Registration for inclusion in the student’s academic file.
8. The process for reporting Community Service hours is different for online RN-BSN students. These students log their hours into an online form after each volunteer session. The process is entirely online, and no paper forms are submitted. Following approval, the Office of Records and Registration is notified regarding inclusion in the student’s academic file.
9. All 20 hours (10 for RN-BSN Program students) of required community service must be completed and submitted for approval prior to the beginning of the final semester before graduation. Students who fail to meet the deadline will be required to submit verification of 10 additional hours of community service (5 hours for RN-BSN Program students) in order to graduate. If the student is unable to complete the total required hours prior to the date of graduation, he/she may participate in Commencement activities but will not receive a diploma or be eligible for NCLEX-RN testing until this requirement is met.