March 1, 2010 – Dear incoming freshman,
Now that you have been admitted to Virginia Tech, it is important for you to start looking into the many opportunities for involvement that Virginia Tech and the student body offers you. One of the top things on your priority list should be housing. As a first year, you are required to live on campus.
If you are interested in community service (with some leadership sprinkled in), I strongly encourage you to consider the theme housing program, SERVE. SERVE stands for Students Engaging and Responding Through Volunteer Experiences and next year will be its second year running.
Before shying away from this pilot program, you should know that SERVE works closely with the Residential Leadership Community, a very popular theme housing program. As a matter of fact, the director of SERVE, Jake Grohs, was a member of the RLC throughout his undergraduate career at Virginia Tech.
Now that you understand the quality of the program a little better, let me tell you about our experience as freshmen in SERVE. I asked a few of my fellow servers what they wanted incoming freshman to know about the program and their experiences. This is what they said:
“It is so worth it! It introduces you to a huge school in a small way, and also the local (and your community) and forces you to look beyond the Virginia Tech bubble.” – Megan Murray
Virginia Tech is large and most incoming freshman worry about being just another number. SERVE is a great way to transition from any sized high school to a huge college campus because of its emphasis on community service in the entire New River Valley. The program begins by establishing a smaller community with other SERVE members and later grows to include residents of the surrounding areas such as Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Roanoke, and Radford.
“It is a great program where you can make wonderful friends and also find your niche in service in this great community. I definitely wouldn’t have had the same freshman experience without SERVE.” – Amy Godby
One of the things we discovered on our SERVE retreat last fall was that many of us had chosen to be in SERVE because we wanted to room with nice people. Yes, a little silly, but wise. We had our rough times here and there, just like any two strangers rooming together for an entire year would, but we are all very close friends. I believe learning together about community and leadership, in addition to having the same interest in service, made our relationships that much stronger.
If you’re interested in living our Hokie motto Ut Prosim, That I May Serve, consider being a part of SERVE. This Co-Ed theme housing program takes volunteering to another level!
Still have questions? Please don’t hesitate to contact any of the SERVE members listed below (many of which will be second year facilitators next year). We’d love to get to know you and help make your transition to college more enjoyable!
Gabriela Carrillo
Briana Apgar
Amy Godby