Getting Government Hours

By Arya Pindiprolu

If you’re like this senior you are probably wondering how you are going to fulfill your government hours requirement. According to Mr. Horton, “If you’re asking now and haven’t started, you should get to it!”

All government students must complete 20 hours of service, however, this doesn’t have to be a challenge, and we at the East Side Newspaper are here to help you complete your government hours.

Check the Participation in Government Bulletin Board:  This is a tab on your WITS sidebar that is frequently updated by teachers about opportunities for government hours.

Volunteer for a non-profit organization: you can receive government hours from volunteering at any non-profit organization.The hours from volunteering outside of school might be government hours as well. Just double check that you are volunteering for a non-profit organization instead of a for profit organization. Some nursing homes, like Elderwood at Amherst, are for profit, however, others such as Beechwood nursing home, are non for profit.

Join Amnesty International club: Amnesty writes letters on behalf of political prisoners throughout the world, and the club is dedicated to raising awareness of human rights violations, freeing political prisoners and gaining fair trials. For more information, see Mr. Dalessandro, and the club is open to all students.

Join Earthwise: Earthwise promotes reducing, reusing & recycling of materials. Members handle all of the school’s recycling bins. All students are welcome to join, and the club meets every Thursday in Room 220.

Run ideas by your teacher: Asking your teachers questions about opportunities for government hours, or asking if somewhere you are volunteering is considered government hours is an easy way to make sure you are on the right track of completing your government hours.

Government students must also complete four individual actions and attend one Williamsville Board of Education Meeting,and a Town Board Meeting. Individual actions could be tasks such as donating canned food, registering to vote, participating in a political rally, or making a donation to salvation army.

A tip from Mr. Horton is also to complete your government hours early. “There’s a season to gov hours, election season, the holidays, not January. January is the Death Valley of service hours. (Mr. Horton).

If you are a government student, I encourage you to find ways to fulfill your hours that interest you. For example, I performed at the Buffalo Arts Studio. I enjoy making music, and I had the opportunity to do that, and receive government hours at the same time. Completing government hours can be a valuable and fun experience that doesn’t have to be viewed as a burden or hard to complete.

Mr. Horton’s final words of wisdom for government students are “To those second semester kids – don’t wait. The best favor they can do themselves is to get it done early. You don’t want to be doing service hours on prom week.”