Senior Service Project

Marquette Catholic

Throughout your time at Marquette Catholic, you have taken part in a variety of service opportunities for your church, school, and community. We would like to take those opportunities and build on them, encouraging you to go out into the world as disciples and create meaningful experiences of service in an area that interests you the most. We want service to be thought of as a lifelong, ongoing goal, not something that ends with high school graduation.

Requirements for Senior Year

6 hours of general service to school, parish, or community per semester.
20 + hours of research/interviews/development/service to an organization of your choice

Project Details

Choose an organization to partner with for your project (see list below)
Make initial contact with potential adult supervisor
Complete initial research and interview(s) with the organization to better understand their needs and how you can help (should not exceed 5 hours of total time)

What is the organization?
What issues do they face?
How do they help members of the community?

Organization and adult supervisor are due to Ms. Timmerman by October 6th.
Contact the organization and request the opportunity to conduct interviews with those in charge as well as those affected by this topic. Contact options (Email, phone, facetime, zoom)
Complete monthly, in class journals about project progress. Ms. Timmerman will give guided prompts.
Complete actual service project. This could culminate in a one-time event or something that takes place over time depending on your organization’s needs.
Presentation and reflection paper guidelines distributed early 2nd semester.
Create a final presentation detailing your service project and your chosen organization.
Senior service projects will be presented during theology class in early May.
Senior service projects will be presented to the administration and board of education during May.
Final reflection paper due at the time of presentation

Possible Organizations to partner with:

Animal Rescue (Humane Society)
The Unborn (Dubuque County Right to Life, Clarity Clinic)
Poverty (ServeHAITi, Maquoketa Community Services, Operation New View, ResourcesUnite, Dubuque Rescue Mission, Theresa Shelter, St. Vincent DePaul, Bellevue Bread Basket, Food Share, Catholic Charities, Sleep in Heavenly Peace, St. Mark Youth Enrichment, St. Stephen’s Food Bank)
Teenage Pregnancy (Mary’s Inn, Clarity Clinic)
Elderly (Mill Valley, Homebound within our Parishes, Stonehill)
Domestic Abuse (Maria House)
Aged Priests/Sisters (Sisters of the Presentation, Sisters of Saint Francis, archdiocesan retired priests)
Disabled (Mill Valley, Imagine the Possibilities, Area Residential Care, The Villa, Hills and Dales, Camp Courageous)
End of Life (Hospice)
Historical Preservation (Jackson or Dubuque County Historical Society)
Veterans (American Legion, Veterans Freedom Center)
Environment (Jackson County Conservation, DNR, Friends of Bellevue State Park, Convivum Urban Farmstead, Habitat for Humanity)
Bullying (Two by Two Character Development)
Non-profit businesses (Make It Yours Upcycle Center, etc.)
Literacy (Presentation Lantern Center, Bellevue Public Library)
Initiatives within your parish or school community (see Fr. Gross, Mr. Kaiser, or Mrs. Sturm)

Senior Service Project Journal Prompts and Due Dates:

Directions: All journal entries should be typed, 12 pt font, double spaced, 1 page long. Turned in on Google Classroom by midnight on the due date.

Journal, February 16th: Explain why you chose to work with the organization that you chose? Does their mission mean something to you? Have you or someone you know been impacted by this organization or cause? How can you see yourself continuing to contribute to the mission of this organization in the future?

Journal, March 15th: Tell me about the work that you’re doing on your project. What have you accomplished so far? How far into your project are you? What work do you continue to have on the horizon?

Journal, April 19th: Are you having any challenges or bumps in the road while working on your project? Has there been any unanticipated points of difficulty as you work to complete your project? If everything is going great, you can choose to tell me about that.

Final Reflection Paper (25 pts), Friday, May 10th, 2024

Directions: Write a typed, 12 pt font, double spaced, 2 page long reflection paper. You may take this final reflection paper in any direction of your choosing. Ultimately, let your previous journals be your guide and tell me about why you chose this organization, any trials throughout your project, your successes, and how you plan to incorporate service into your life as you go forth into the world.

Senior Service Project Presentation (50 pts), (in class) Wednesday, May 8th, 2024 (publicly present) Wednesday, May 15th, 2024

Directions: Create a final presentation detailing your service project to your chosen organization. Use Google Slides to create this presentation. Your presentation should include the following elements:

A description and the mission of your organization
Why you chose to serve this organization
Detail the process you went through, your research, responsibilities, and service completed.
Any challenges you overcame as you sought to serve your organization.
What serving others means to you and how you intend to incorporate active Christian stewardship into your life.
Lasts between 3-5 minutes
Any resources should be listed on a work cited page
Be prepared to answer questions