At Seminole County Public Schools (SCPS), we encourage students to develop a sense of responsibility for others within their community. Beginning with the 2016-17 school year, Seminole County Public Schools has revised its process for students to identify, document, and submit volunteer service hours. This process has been designed to comply with recent changes to Florida law regarding the type of service eligible for the award of Bright Futures scholarships. Please note the following information:
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Students can obtain a SCPS Volunteer Service Program Guidelines & Service Plan form from their high school. The new process gives students more flexibility with regards to the types of experiences and organizations where students can earn service hours. The student must identify a social or civic issue or a professional area that interests him or her and then complete hours related to this issue in a business or government internship, work for a nonprofit community service organization, activities on behalf of a candidate for public office, or similar work. All service must be unpaid, must not earn other academic credit, and meet other requirements explained on the volunteer service program form. All questions regarding the process should be directed to the student's school counselor.
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Current students who were already documenting service hours prior to 2016-17 may continue to do so without moving to the new form and process.
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Because there are more service options under the new procedure, there is no longer a centralized list of pre-approved service organizations. Students are strongly encouraged to get their service plan approved in advance to ensure that hours will be accepted and approved by the principal/designee. Organizations interested in student volunteers may send an email to [email protected] or contact school counselors directly at a high school of interest.