Living OUR MOTTO

A MEANINGFUL TRADITION: GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP THROUGH COMMUNITY SERVICE

Over the years, Taft has formed deep connections with a wide-range of agencies, organizations, support networks, and resource providers that work to keep the community around us vital and strong. Our partnerships with these groups are among the most important bonds students will experience during their time at Taft.

Each season, every Taft student is invited to engage with our service partners through their Afternoon Program activities, while working with them to meet the diverse needs of their constituents. By connecting community service initiatives to our Afternoon Program, students and faculty alike learn more about our neighbors and the challenges they face in their daily lives. This perspective and understanding not only allows members of the Taft community to make an impact through their dedication to service, it allows them to reflect more deeply on the role of service in their lives. By offering Taft students ongoing and meaningful opportunities to engage in service, we believe they will become stronger and more deeply connected global citizens.

Our Community Service Council (CSC) lies at the heart of our community service program. Every Taft student is a part of the Council; its 12-member board is charged with developing meaningful service opportunities and projects throughout the school year. Students may formally commit to service work as their afternoon activity during an academic term, or simply participate in the many service opportunities scheduled throughout the year, including blood drives, charity walks, and homework help sessions with local students. Our community service program is purposefully flexible, allowing athletes, actors, artists, and musicians to participate while also pursuing their extracurricular passions.

Many Taft students also commit to service initiatives through academic programs. Our Global Leadership Institute and Global Studies and Service programs include strong service and service learning components. (Learn more on page 12.) Other students may engage with hands-on sustained giving though our Red Rhino Fund, an endowed, charitable fund run by a nine-member student board. The group supports programs for children in the Greater Waterbury community by awarding monetary grants and promoting local organizations with a focus on education, literacy, and the arts.

Learn more about these

Programs

and fellowships at www.taftschool.org/living-ourmotto/community-service/ service-travel-and-fellowships