investigative report

Emily McClain

Ms. Seymour

English 103

12 September 2011

Investigative Report

            By observing the Community Service Center at the University of Alabama one would assume that it would have to be very effective.  But is it really? Motivated volunteers, organized, noticeable impact on the community, publicity, and worthy causes are what make a non-profit effective or not.  Even at this closer look with these criteria, the organization seems to be highly effective.

            Volunteers are one of the most important aspects of a non-profit.  Without volunteers, it would be like no furniture in a house. Pointless.  Volunteers are what make a non-profit function.  Since the CSC is located on a University there are thousands of students readily available.  Most of which have to have volunteer hours at some point or another within their college career.  Even though an organization may have several volunteers, the volunteers need to be motivated as well.  Since there are so many volunteer activities to choose from pretty much anyone can find something that they are interested in and would be motivated to do.

            Also, organization is another key factor within a non-profit.  Having good organization allows the non-profit to be effective with their fundraisers and how they use their volunteers.  Within the CSC there is a hierarchy.  The CSC is mainly run by students; each program has a student in charge of it.  Each of those students have assistant that help them organize everything within their program. 

            Furthermore, the community is one of the most important factors when dealing with a non-profit.  It is essential that the non-profit have an actual impact on the community or else they are pointless.  The CSC here on campus has that covered.  They have made a difference to so many not only within the Tuscaloosa community, but within communities all over the world and country due to the wide variety of projects.  Hands on Tuscaloosa has provided and is still providing Tornado relief to several families in need.

            In addition, a non-profit needs to have good publicity to be effective.  The publicity allows people in the community to know how they can volunteer and it gets people involved in their organization.  The CSC is extremely effective with this because there are flyers all over campus advertising where to sign up for different volunteering events.  On the UA website there is a link.  It is almost impossible not to know about how to volunteer on campus through the CSC.  Someone would probably have to be blind not to know.

            Lastly, a worthy cause is fundamental for a good non-profit.  Without this people won’t want to volunteer and if they do volunteer they won’t be motivated to help out.  At the CSC their causes are anything from helping with home renovation, to tutoring at a local homeless shelter.  All of the places are where they need volunteers and these volunteers make an impact on the community and people’s lives.

            Overall, the Community Service Center is a highly efficient non-profit.  They have all of the tools and meet all of the criteria to be deemed effective.  All of their volunteers are extremely motivated to make a difference, the non-profit itself has great organization, it makes a huge difference in the community, there is tons of publicity, and all of the causes are extremely worthy.

personal profile

Emily McClain

Ms. Seymour

English 103

12 September 2011

Personal Profile

            Interview someone about their job in a non-profit? What to ask? Are they even going to want to talk to me? Will I even ask the right questions?  These were the questions racing through my mind after I sent the cordial e-mail to the Director of the Community Service Center here at the University of Alabama.  Politely, I had asked to speak with her about the CSC for my English class and surprisingly she had emailed me back within the hour referring me to the assistant director, Rachel Edington to meet with.  Immediately I set up an appointment with Rachel for 1pm on Thursday.

            Soon enough it was 12:30pm on Thursday and I decided to head over to the Ferg since I’ve learned from my dad if you aren’t 10 minutes early, you’re late.  Approximately 10 minutes later I arrived in front of the spouting fountain and a small droplet of sweat presented itself across my forehead.  Luckily I was 20 minutes so I had time to run to wipe the droplets of sweat that had accumulated and make sure my black dress with pink flowers still looked as cute as it had in the morning.

            Now it was time for me to walk up the staircase to the third floor and try to find Rachel Edington’s office.  She said the room number was 346, so I find it but there is no one at either desk.  Then a man with a scruffy beard and untame hair peeked his head out at me and I just blurted out that I was looking for Rachel Edington.  He just nonchalantly pointed at the room across from his and then he disappeared back into his cubicle.  Briskly, I walked over and then slowly looked into the room to find a woman with curly blonde hair sitting at her desk.  As I introduced myself I put my hand out to shake hers.  Just from the handshake I could tell she is a bit more timid than myself.  Her hand was limp in mine.

            Next, the interview began.  I came prepared with my flowered spiral notebook and my black ball-point pen.  Awkwardly, I asked the first question about what programs they offer here.  As I did, I thought to myself, “Please let this awkward vibe go away.”  With this question she not so much answered it with her quiet, slightly monotone voice as she did by handing me papers and flyers about their various programs.  Then she began to talk about Hands on Tuscaloosa which is Tornado relief effort.  There are approximately four or five different locations for this particular project.  Also discussed was the Beat Auburn Beat Hunger event, sleep out on the quad event, their various alternative breaks, as well as their weekly service events.

            Beat Auburn beat Hunger is an event where we, the University of Alabama, try to collect more canned food than Auburn and it begins October 10^th.  Sleep out on the quad is designed to raise awareness of homelessness, where students camp out on the Quad for the night.  As we discussed this particular event, my mind was fixated on wanting to go and do that during the spring.  I have a personal interest in homelessness and have done a lot of volunteering with homeless programs.  I tried to make a connection with Rachel by providing my previous experiences with working with the homeless, but she did not provide me with much of a response.  Therefore, we moved on to the topic of the Alternative Breaks.  Alternative Breaks are service projects groups of students go on during their breaks, whether it be fall, winter, or spring break.  The downside to this is that the students have to pay to be involved in these volunteer efforts.

            Slowly, our conversation died down. More awkward pauses interjected themselves, leaving us staring at each other not sure what to say, so I shifted the conversation from the projects themselves to Rachel herself.  With this topic I felt we had more to talk about and she showed a bit more enthusiasm in her voice because it was something I couldn’t just read on one of the pamphlets she handed me.

            As the assistant director she helps plan the programs for the students and even goes on some of the Alternative Breaks.  Another thing she is just recently in charge of is Crimson Outreach.  In fact, she just created this organization this year.  One of the things I wanted to know about her is how she ended up in this position.  She even seemed a bit weary on how she ended up here in the office we were sitting in.  For a while she worked for Residence Life and Greek life.  Within that she helped with the organizations volunteering.  By helping them volunteer, she discovered that is what she wanted to do and then applied for the job she is currently doing.

            Since I gained a good understanding of both her and the community service center itself I waited for one of those notorious silences to creep up in our conversation.  I slid in a ‘thank you so much for your time’ and excused myself.

description of place

Emily McClain

Ms. Seymour

English 103

12 September 2011

Description of Place

                        The Ferguson Center, also more affectionately known as the Ferg, is the place to be on campus at the University of Alabama.  Located in between campus drive and 7^th avenue.  It is the hub of student activity, whether they are there to volunteer, eat at Fresh Foods, check their post office box, or just simply relax next to the soothing sounds of the infamous fountain shooting out of the middle of the ground like a geyser.  The site of the building itself is quite impressive with the 3 stories and curved shape of the building.  As you enter the second story from the outside you walk in to a lounge next to the quaint Starbucks.  Straight ahead, around the couches are the stairs that will bring you to one of the best places on campus.

The alcove of the Community Service Center is not what one would expect.  There is no welcome counter with pamphlets about volunteer activities.  Instead, it is just some offices for the staff in charge of organizing all of the meaningful events.  In fact, most people that walk up there probably aren’t even aware that is the community service center, especially because most people register for volunteering online.

However the Community Service Center is the Wal-Mart of non-profits, the one stop shopping for volunteering.  No matter what cause you feel most driven to volunteer for you will probably be able to find it at the CSC.  The Community Service Center at the Ferg is also wonderful for those who are not positive about what they would like to volunteer for. The CSC weekly service events allow you to try out different volunteer projects as if they are shirts you’re not sure you can pull off.  No matter what you’re schedule, there is bound to be a volunteer event for everyone.