Look for the Helpers

When current generations look around at the world, it might feel natural to be discouraged. But one thing remains constant — we continue to encounter people who hope to leave their cities, communities and the world better than they found it. As Mr. Rogers said, we can always look for the helpers.

            Choosing Baylor is choosing to be a part of making a better world; Baylor’s mission to educate men and women for worldwide leadership and service continues to be at the heart of its academics, its student organizations and the wider community. Below are just a few of the many ways the Baylor Family gives back: 

• Baylor Law School’s Adoption Day: Each year, McLennan County Adoption Day, hosted by Baylor Law School, brings together families, children and the legal community to celebrate the life-changing moment when adoptions are finalized. This heartwarming tradition not only marks the formation of new families but showcases the dedication of Baylor Law students, faculty, staff and local attorneys who help make this celebration possible. 
• Baylor Accounting Students Give Free Tax Assistance: Every tax season, undergraduate and graduate accounting students from the Hankamer School of Business partner with local high school students to provide free tax preparation through the student-led Waco Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. 
• Oso Musical: Oso Musical provides free, once-weekly music classes for children in the Waco area who have disabilities; participants range from kindergarten to 12th grade. Research has shown that children of all ability levels benefit from making music. Being immersed in a music enrichment class is a joyful and transformational experience, especially for children with disabilities who may encounter barriers to fully participating in traditional music instruction settings.
• Campus Kitchen & Community Gardens: Campus Kitchen is a volunteer-driven organization dedicated to nourishing the Baylor and Waco communities through tending the Baylor Community Garden and cooking nutritious meals. Students use service as a tool to strengthen bodies by using existing resources to meet hunger and nutritional needs, empower minds by providing leadership and service opportunities to students and the community, and build communities by fostering a new generation of community-minded adults. 
• Medical Service Organization: This student org offers weekly service opportunities at over 20 sites in the Waco community, clinical volunteering at the local Family Health Center Clinics, service engagement at Baylor Scott & White Hospital and an opportunity to obtain first aid and CPR training and use that training to provide care at high-intensity events with our first aid service team. 

Whether a student hopes to volunteer within a field related to their major or branch out into another personal interest, there is no shortage of ways that students can give back.