Frequently Asked Questions
What is the University-Wide Day of Service?
Who can volunteer in the Day of Service?
Do I have to attend the morning kick-off and the afternoon BBQ?
Where will the main on-campus activities take place?
Can I sign-up to volunteer on the day of the event?
I signed up online to volunteer. Do I still have to register on campus?
How will I get to the service agency?
Can I sign up with my friends or colleagues?
I’m a Harvard alumna/us. Can I participate?
How was the Day of Service planned?
Show me the money! Who helped fund the Day of Service?
Q: What is the University-Wide Day of Service?
A: The University-Wide Day of Service is a student-led initiative to bridge members of the Harvard community to service agencies in the Greater Boston area.
Q: Who can volunteer in the Day of Service?
A: All Harvard affiliates are invited to sign up for service projects. Volunteers may bring up to 2 guests.
Q: Do I have to attend the morning kick-off and the afternoon BBQ?
A: Not at all. Volunteers are invited to join both events, but attendance is completely optional.
Q: Where will the main on-campus activities take place?
A: The kick-off breakfast, on-campus registration and afternoon BBQ will all take place under a tent in the Yard. The exact location will be announced in the upcoming weeks
Q: Can I sign-up to volunteer on the day of the event?
A: Unfortunately, no. All volunteers must sign up through the website no later than Monday, September 24th.
Q: I signed up online to volunteer. Do I still have to register on campus?
A: All volunteers are strongly encouraged to report to our centralized, on-campus on registration site on the morning of the Day of Service. Registration will run between 9 AM and 12:00 PM and your specific check-in time will be emailed to you before the event. If this presents a problem, please contact DayofService.Harvard@gmail.com before September 29th.
Q: How will I get to the service agency?
A: Volunteers will meet on-campus with their project coordinator on the morning of September 29th. Transportation will be coordinated from there.
Q: Can I sign up with my friends or colleagues?
A: Yes! You can register a group of up to 10 individuals online. However, your friends and colleagues will be required to confirm their participation.
Q: I’m a Harvard alumna/us. Can I participate?
A: Of course. The Day of Service is partly sponsored by the Harvard Alumni Association and Harvard graduates in the Boston area are invited to join us!
Q: How was the Day of Service planned?
A: The idea for a University-Wide Day of Service (DOS) was first discussed by Crystal Fleming, a Ph.D. candidate in Sociology and the former president of the Graduate Student Council for the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and Jason Rafferty, an M.D. candidate at Harvard Medical School and the Vice President of Graduate & Professional Student Advocacy for the Harvard Graduate Council (HGC). Both Fleming and Rafferty attended the Ivy Leadership Conference in October of 2006 and came back to campus with the hope of building greater opportunities for student collaborations across the University. Open calls for the Day of Service Planning Committee were first advertised through the Harvard Graduate Council and an official partnership between the HGC, the Undergraduate Council (UC) and Phillip Brooks House Association (PBHA) was established in January of 2007. The DOS planning committee met throughout the fall semester and summer and its membership was comprised of graduate and undergraduate student representatives from every school at the University.
Q: Show me the money! Who helped fund the Day of Service?
A: The University-Wide Day of Service has been made possible due to the generosity of the following organizations: the Provost’s Office, the Graduate Student Council of GSAS, Phillip Brooks House Association and the Harvard Alumni Association.