YOUTH SERVICES · SERVICE & LEADERSHIP
Serve with purpose. Keep a record you can explain.
Choose a cause, confirm expectations, serve responsibly, document your own experience, and reflect on what you learned.
GMA does not certify service hours, assign school credit, approve a placement, or supervise third-party volunteer activity.
Service & leadership board
Choose → confirm → serve → document → reflect.
Name a cause
Choose a community need, not only a total number of hours.
Ask what is required
Verify age, training, supervision, time, safety, and documentation expectations.
Show up responsibly
Follow the organization’s instructions, privacy rules, and code of conduct.
Keep a personal log
Record what you did, learned, and must verify with the relevant school or program.
Personal service log
Keep your own date, organization, activity, time, supervisor contact, reflection, and school/program requirement in one place. The receiving school or program decides what it accepts.
Service is not always service-learning
Service-learning can have curriculum and reflection requirements beyond general volunteering. Ask the school or program what category applies before assuming credit.
Use official service resources
Youth.gov civic engagement explains how volunteering, civic engagement, and service-learning differ. AmeriCorps provides its own current program and volunteer information.