A trend among universities is to give incoming freshmen the option of doing community service, as one of many welcoming activities.
 
This year, Georgia College takes that one step further: All first-year students will participate in community service.
 
On GC GIVES Day – Saturday, Aug. 18, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. – 1,450 new students will simultaneously perform good works at 40 project sites throughout Millegeville and Baldwin County. The donated labor has an expected economic impact of $111,000. It will give students early insight beyond the classroom and introduce them to an integral part of Georgia College life: volunteerism and civic engagement.

The university teamed up with officials at Keep Milledgeville/Baldwin Beautiful (KMBB) to find job locations, supplies and transportation for so many at once. Students will interact with children and elderly, clean, pressure-wash, paint, do repairs, clear debris, pull weeds and mulch.
 
“This is probably the largest day of service that Baldwin County has ever seen,” said Kendall Stiles, director of community engagement at Georgia College’s GIVE Center. “If we make this happen and are successful, this is going to be a very unique thing that many schools have not tackled. We’re making history here.”
 
The idea for “GC GIVES Day” came from Georgia College’s new Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Shawn Brooks, who wanted students to learn the importance of volunteering. One third of all students currently track service hours at Gerogia College. Administrators hope that number will increase as students who’ve never volunteered discover the satisfaction of helping others.

Brooks will speak at 8:30 a.m. on Front Campus, along with Georgia College President Steve Dorman, KMBB Executive Director Ashley Bacon and Milledgeville Mayor Mary Parham-Copelan. Each student will get a “GC GIVES” t-shirt, grab-n-go breakfast, snacks and water. They’ll load onto 30 GC transit and Baldwin County school buses, then spread throughout the community and be working around 9:30 a.m.
 
The entire county has gotten involved – from government and civic organizations like parks and recreation and the local Boys and Girls Clubs to area churches and retail stores.

Some projects will be as small as 30 volunteers. Others will be larger – with the biggest group of 330 going door-to-door with KMBB, educating residents about the importance of recycling. Students will also be at retail outlets like Walmart, Lowes and Kroger in Milledgeville to educate shoppers about recycling.
 
Other projects include:

Georgia War Veteran’s Home – 120 students will lay straw, garden, paint, play bingo and interact with veterans.

Comfort Farms – 30 students will put up signs, pull weeds, mulch and remove debris.

HorseDreams Youth Ranch – 30 students will mend fencing and clean horse stalls.

Brave Meadows Therapeutic Riding Center – 30 students will assist with riding, feed horses and clean stalls.

Lockerly Arboretum – 120 students will clean the amphitheater, mulch and build raised planting beds.

Northside Baptist Church – 30 students will pressure wash, paint parking bumpers, pull weeds and trim lawn.

Parks and recreation – 30 students will paint a gazebo at Walter B. Williams Park, lay straw and mulch.

Baldwin County Animal Shelter – 30 students will clear out an old jail on Linda Drive for the city’s new shelter.

Oconee Center – 30 students will repair a wheelchair ramp at Oconee CSB Center off Orchard Hill Road.

Chaplinwood Health and Rehabilitation – students will read to the bed-bound and play bingo with the elderly.

Downtown clean up – 30 students will clean the streets of Milledgeville.

Habitat for Humanity – 30 students will paint signage, clean outside and pick up litter along the road.

“This initiative could not happen without the overwhelming support we have received from the entire Georgia College community. Many of the departments on campus are onboard with us and are helping in so many ways. GC Gives is definitely a collaborative effort,” said Kristy Johnson, assistant director of community engagement.
 
The GC in “GC GIVES” doesn’t only mean Georgia College, said KMBB’s Ashley Bacon. “It can also be morphed into “Great Community."

"We’re trying not to leave any stones unturned," Bacon said. "There will be long-term ripple effects from this. We’re putting Millegeville on the map.”