Students’ Service

Re “Shrugging Off Community Service,” May 6: As a parent who has actively role-modeled community volunteering for years to my children, I used to think that requiring community service in schools was a terrific idea, until I found out how schools define community service. Some high schools decide for the student the charity or project he or she must work on to receive credit. Shouldn’t volunteering reflect a student’s own interests and values? Some schools give community service credit to students who do jobs around the school that are the responsibility of paid employees.

The high school my daughter attends conducts blood drives during the school day. Students who donate blood receive five hours of community service credit for an activity that takes less than one hour and also allows them to miss class. Is it appropriate for school employees to encourage students to miss instructional time for community service? What values are these employees teaching, when students are allowed to count one hour of their time as five?

HELEN FALLON

Venice