Why should I volunteer?

There are many good reasons to get involved in volunteer and service learning opportunities. Volunteering can be an opportunity to learn more about something you enjoy doing. If you like working with kids, help younger students with their homework. If you like to cook, make dinner for families at a soup kitchen or help out at a homeless shelter. Look for opportunities that allow you to really explore areas that already interest you. By volunteering in a group, you'll meet other people with the same interests you have. For example, by volunteering with an organization that helps refugees, you can meet people who have come here from other countries and learn about their culture as you help them adapt to life here. People who volunteer often say that they get more out of the experience than they give. Working with other volunteers also builds friendships, some may even be life-long friendships!

Sometimes we look at the way the world is and think, "What can I do to help?" By volunteering, you can help make a positive change in the world. Each of us wants to live in a community where families are healthy and strong, where children are given the help they need to succeed in school, where people with disabilities and the elderly are able to live as independently as possible, and where people live in safe, supportive neighborhoods. By volunteering, you help make a community a better place to live, and you can make a difference!

How do I become an official member of ASB?

To become an official member of ASB, you will have to attend TWO volunteer activities and TWO fundraising events per semester. You do not have to have that title in order to go on our Winter and Spring Break trips, but having that status will mean that ASB will be officially listed on your college transcript and you will also be elgible to apply for the trip awards which waive all or part of your Winter or Spring break trip.

What type of activities does ASB offer?

Service Trips

ASB will be providing 10 service-learning trips for this Winter break. The locations and issues we will be dealing with will be finalized within the next month. At our next General Meeting (date TBA), we will release information about our trips and go through the application and interview process in detail. However, until then, the only way to get involved with ASB is to volunteer with us at Chicago non-profits.

Volunteer Activities

ASB sends out a group of students to volunteer locally at different non-profit organizations in Chicago. You will have a site leader who will confirm your attendance which will count towards your volunteer activity with ASB. If you are interested in volunteering with ASB, please email us at info@asbuic.org and indicate the event that you would like to attend, your name, preferred email, and cellphone number. The site leader will contact you and provide you with the details of the event. A list of all the events are located in the upcoming events sidebar.

Fundraising Activities

ASB holds bake sales every other week and an Annual Silent Auction in mid-November. You can fulfill the Fundraising requirement by helping us out TWICE in our bake sales (either by helping us sell baked goods or donating pastries) and/or volunteering to assist us during our silent auction (or bringing items we can auction off).

You do not have to volunteer throughout the semester to participate in our Winter and Spring Volunteer Trips! However, we highly suggest that you do because then you'll be able to meet a lot of like-minded UIC students before you go on your trips as well as understanding the significance of the work ASB members do for our communities.