By: Karleen Reynolds, Althea Landrum, Deandra Peirroz, and Aminat Ayinla

Service project reflection

Title: Student volunteers

Place: Windsor Water World- SOAR After School Program.
Time: Every Thursday January 8th 29th from 3:30pm- 6:00pm
Some of the issues surrounding our service work were children from: single parent
homes, low SES, poverty stricken, disadvantaged neighbourhoods, immigration issues, ESL, lack
of academic support at home, and child welfare issues.
One of the programs at Windsor Water World is called SOAR After School Program,
which provides afterschool homework help for students from low-income homes. The homework
club, which is called the Community University Program (CUP), is ran by University of Windsor
Faculty of Social Work. The social work students from the CUP program provide after school
homework support for students that come to the SOAR program, this would include educational
activities, games, and homework help. As a group we felt that the issues surrounding the
homework club was that the program was not structured enough to help students with their
individualized needs, as well as most of the children didnt take the initiative to ask the
facilitators for help for the reasons that at home they are not used to individualized attention.
This is problematic because the homework club is created to help students succeed in their
academics, however, the students who pick the option to either receive homework help, or
participate in an activity usually end up picking the option of participating in the activity, and
consequently homework gets overlooked. Unfortunately this program is at risk for being shut
down because of the lack of funding, community support, and enrollment. While we were
volunteering the facilitators shared with us their uphill battle and back and forth communication
with city officials with pleading there case to have the SOAR program remain running. Some of
the children from the SOAR program also gave speeches in court with the hopes that it could
shed light on how beneficial the program has been for their lives and the impact it has had on
their community. Unfortunately, this is the kind of politics that surround community programs,
sadly, the only ones effected are the children who were impacted positively from these kinds of
program. As educators this saddens us because when children have no community safe spaces to
attend they are left to the streets, and in situations that do not contribute to their well-being. As
educators some of the things that we can already establish in schools are: safe place programs,
emphasis on after school clubs, and designated days for homework help.
PROS
The program possesses clear positive impacts for the students. This is evidenced in part
by the length of time that many students stay in the program. Many of the older students had
been in the program since they were young, and many had siblings also attending. The main
attraction of the program was that it provided meaningful social interactions for students who
might otherwise spend long periods of time at home alone due to parent work schedules. The
facilitators emphasised the importance of mutual respect, inter and intra personal skills. The
students engaged in character building activities that encouraged discipline, teamwork, and
physical well-being. By participating in this program, students are given a safe and caring

By: Karleen Reynolds, Althea Landrum, Deandra Peirroz, and Aminat Ayinla
Service project reflection

environment where they can learn about themselves and others. Over-all it an eye-opening,
insightful experience. We came away from the program desiring to do more to benefit students
in all communities.

Questions
2. Your insights/thoughts on the issues that surrounded the work.
For example, why is help needed? What population is being served? Are there inequities that
appear to exist? How, as teachers, can we help/make change?