On a recent Friday afternoon at Poly Prep Country Day School, students, staff and faculty gathered in the cafeteria, packaging surplus food for local community fridges.
This weekly effort, launched in December by junior Miles Frank, partners with Fresh Opportunities and One Love Community Fridge to reduce waste and provide food for those in need.
These acts are more than altruistic gestures. They are part of the school’s Service Learning program, which challenges students to step outside their routines and engage the world through the lens of community service. This reflects Poly’s mission to prepare and inspire the next diverse generation of leaders and global citizens to act with intelligence, imagination, and above all, character.
After more than three decades in education, I see service learning as much more than a good deed. It is a meaningful response to some of the most pressing challenges facing our schools and our society. Students today contend with high levels of depression, disengagement and anxiety. It may seem paradoxical, but for many students the best way to ease these burdens for themselves is by serving others.
I didn’t come to service learning through lifelong volunteerism. I’m a history teacher, and I saw the emotional weight our curricula place on students. I taught about slavery and the Holocaust, about war and climate change. These subjects are essential, but they’re heavy. I watched my students’ pessimism harden into cynicism when tragic events were reduced to terms on study guides or options on multiple-choice quizzes.
That approach sends an implicit message: “See these huge problems? I cannot help you address them, but I will test you on them.” That troubled me.
But we can help students move from analysis to action, and from pessimism to possibility. This matters. When students address serious issues in active ways, they change. I’ve seen students who were distracted in class become empathetic and focused, for example, when working with disabled peers. Whether they’re tutoring, coaching, or rescuing food, they leave with greater confidence and a new sense of potential. They learn that change is achievable because they make it happen themselves.
That transformation deepens when students take leadership roles in addressing real world problems. Before a single container of food was packed in our cafeteria, Miles Frank had to coordinate emails, meetings, and logistics to bring his vision to life. When guided through these processes, I’ve seen students grow in tangible ways as they navigate obstacles.
Another Poly junior, Stevie Ziff, wanted to work with senior citizens. After discovering the GlamourGals Foundation, she used Poly’s Service Learning Team structure to educate a group of students about ageism and best practices with older adults. The group then visited the Fort Hamilton Senior Recreation Center for conversation, bingo and makeovers. Afterwards, the pride on their faces spoke for itself.
In an era shaped by social media, AI, and constant screen exposure, such experiences stand out. Many teens acknowledge social media’s harm yet feel unable to disengage. Institutions often respond with restrictions. Limitations seem necessary, but students often find them punitive. Providing meaningful alternatives is more effective. Service invites students to move their bodies and collaborate face-to-face, away from screens. The benefits are real.
Sadly, volunteerism in America has declined. At Poly, however, we have given service a developmental structure. Many students begin as members of eight-week Service Learning Teams. Some stop there, but others apply to future teams, and demand for those roles has grown.
Students use service not only as outreach, but as a way to improve their school. Service Learning Teams launch mentorship initiatives, support underrepresented groups, and advance sustainability efforts.
For those seeking deeper involvement, our Student Service Board meets regularly to develop ideas and initiatives. Board members educate voters, lead drives for food, clothing, books and electronics. They even helped create “Poly for Good,” a mini-grant program directing funds to nonprofits they believe in. Service becomes part of who they are, not simply a resumé point.
Service at Poly begins early. Lower School students participate in clothing drives and park cleanups. Recently, the Middle School introduced “Day Zero,” pausing the academic schedule to address food insecurity and health needs. Students packed meals, designed food drive promotions, and prepared sandwiches for One Love Community Fridge.
Research consistently shows that service learning fosters empathy and commitment to others. And I’ve seen for myself that when students work to improve the lives of others, they often benefit themselves the most.
N. Elijah Sivin is the director of Service Learning at Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn.
