Tzu Chi Northwest Region (TCNW)
Tzu Chi High School Team (TCHS)
Tzu Chi Youth (Tzu Shao)

PURPOSE OF THE GUIDELINES

TCHS Tzu Shao has quite a long history of practicing the “virtue of giving” by incorporating community service in its curriculum. To further extend the scope of service, under Advisor’s supervision, students are given an opportunity to develop a community service project on their own and this project should be positive and meaningful to the students and the recipients they are trying to serve. TCHS provides this guideline for Group Advisors and Students to reference. This additional service event does not apply to TCHS full attendance, which only accounts for scheduled community service for the whole group.

EXPECTED IMPACTS

Involvement is one of the best ways to learn about community, by moving one step further, we can find where we need to and could make a difference. 

We are looking for Tzu Shao leaders to take on responsibilities that he/she has not taken on before. Most importantly, this responsibility must not be limited to a personal level. It must benefit others and make a difference in improving the lives of others, the society, living creatures, the environment, or an underserved group/organization. The responsibilities involved in completing a service includes: 

• Getting to know your local communities better in order to discover a need that has not been met or not met properly. 
• Assembling a team and defining roles for each member 
• Coming up with a service / solution to meet the need you’ve identified 
• Doing the “good deed” 
• Refining and repeating your efforts until you’ve made a difference 
• Completing your project, document your process, and summarize your learning 

SERVICE EVENT PLANNING 

1. Collect detailed information about the service event
2. Find at least two Advisors as mentors, who will provide supervisions at service event 
3. Recruit 5 or more team members
4. Complete application form 30 days before service event date and send a notification to tcnw.tchs@tzuchi.us (Please follow up with TCHS if you don’t receive responses within one week).
5. Populate job roster for each member
6. Send reminder one week before service event
7. Prepare sign-in and sign-out sheet (refer to appendix I)

REVIEW SERVICE EVENT PLAN

The event proposal will be able to answer the following questions.

1. Who is the target community? 
2. What are the needs of the community? 
3. How will you connect to the target community? 
4. What is the service you are going to provide? 
5. What is the assigned responsibility for each group member? 
6. What’s the length of the service event? 
7. What are some necessary materials for a service event? 
8. What is the budget for this service event? 
9. Will there be any transportation to and from the service event? 
10. Will there be meals provided during the event? 
11. Do you need any training and orientation to finish the service? 
12. What are the age requirements for the service event? 
13. Are volunteers covered by liability insurance, which is provided by the event host/initiative organization? 
14. What are some potential hazards or risks of this service event? 
15. How will you prepare for those hazards or risks? 

SERVICE EVENT PROPOSAL EVALUATION

Please complete Service Event Proposal online at TCNW TCHS Service Event  Proposal (login first).

SERVICE EVENT APPROVAL 

TCHS will call a meeting to review and approve the proposal based on how this service event complies with Tzu Chi’s Four Missions and Eight Footprints. Student applicants and advisors in charge will be invited to present the proposal. Advisor’s role and responsibility (refer to Appendix I)  will be walked through during the meeting.

Note: Tzu Chi Foundation’s “Four Major Missions” consist of Charity, Medicine, Education, and Humanity. Adding the efforts in Bone Marrow Donation, Environmental Protection, Community Volunteerism, and International Relief, the undertakings are now collectively known as “Tzu Chi’s Eight Footprints”.

EXPECTATIONS AT SERVICE EVENT 

1. Service groups (TCHS Students and Advisors) should wear Tzu Chi uniforms and behave properly as representing part of Tzu Chi Foundation.
2. Comply and associate the guidelines/requirements of initiating/hosting organizations.
3. Safety is the number one rule, report to Advisors when any assistance is required.
4. Due to liability concern, transportation must be provided by the student's parents.
5. Advisors should meet Students at services event location and pay attention to safety and security of the student group, such that the main role should not be neglected while possibly participating in a service event.
6. Each student participant fill in the TCHS Service Record and has both Advisors sign on the sheet.
7. Parents can participate in the service event at their own wishes. 
8. This service event does not cover any other students who are not registered in TCHS program, 

AFTER THE SERVICE EVENT 

Send service report to  tcnw.tchs@tzuchi.us no later than one week after service event, ,(ty: if it’s for 1:1 online service, every time a TCHS student who performs the service will need to submit the report? )report should include self reflection about any issue/concern/lesson learned/experience/future improvement, and also Service Record with few pictures from the event (link of cloud storage is acceptable)..Ty: how to do so if it’s for on-line tutoring services)

APPENDIX I  Advisor’s Role and Responsibility

1. Give guidance

   1. Discuss with students and provide guidance during planning process
   2. Assist and support student groups, not taking over their job; this learning opportunity meant to be given to students.
   3. If you have a concern, try to ask questions first and let students find the right answers by thinking through it; then followed by hints/suggestions. Don’t give out straight answer, as this will be less effective on their learning experience.

2. Safety and protection

   1. Uniform is mandatory, no service hour is earned without wearing uniform
   2. Closed toe shoes for protection
   3. No power tool usage, no climbing, no running.
   4. Youth protection
      1. Buddy system 
         No youth is allowed to do things ,(ty: how to apply this to 1:1 tutoring services) alone, even going to the restroom. Pre-assign buddy for each event. 
      2. Preventing sexual harassment
         Remind students to keep arm-distance away from others, if any unpleasant situation occurred, report to Advisor right away. Advisor should report to the event  host/initiating organization at the moment, and feedback to TCHS as soon as possible.
      3. Supervision/consultation to youth must be in open area with witnesses
         Two leadership is recommended when needed, this is to prevent any emotional accident.(ty :how to apply this to 1:1 tutoring services? 
      4. Never be alone with a youth other than your own child  without third person accompany, this policy applies even when you offer a ride to a youth no matter which gender is.
   5. Walk away if any of safety is under risk
   6. At the end of service event, make sure every youth has a ride back home.

3. Brief and Reflection

   Always reserve 10-15 minutes at beginning to brief safety and goal/assignments, then gather to reflect learning experience at the end 

4. Tzu Chi representation

   Gratitude, Respect and Love is common practice for representing Tzu Chi

5. Final feedback

   Provide the final feedback and suggestion when students provided service report

APPENDIX II  TCHS Service Record

TCHS Service Event Title: ________________________________                       Date:____/____/________

Group of TCHS: ___________________

APPENDIX III References of volunteer opportunity 

• City of San Jose Volunteer Opportunities
• Tule Ponds at Tyson Lagoon
• Canopy
• Ulistac Natural Area
• http://www.ulistac.org/volunteer