Hi all,
We hope you had a rejuvenating break and are enjoying spring-1 so far. This SOM Serves newsletter is inspired by the one and only, Mr. Rogers:
We know you all are helping your friends, family, and (hopefully) yourselves get through these "scary" times, in big and small ways, and you're doing a great job. We all need each other a little extra right now and even those quick masked hello's at Evans Hall are greatly appreciated. If you feel like you have the capacity to give a little more this semester, we have some suggestions for how you can help out, both in person and remotely. These are just a few examples -- see our website for a complete list!
HIGHLIGHTED OPPORTUNITIES
Read to Grow: Help compile literacy packets for this local organization that is committed to building literacy from birth. These packets are given to the families of every baby born in 15 hospitals around the State of Connecticut! Read to Grow is looking for two (2) volunteers to compile packets weekly, on Mondays this semester from 12:00-2:00pm, beginning Monday, March 1st. Each volunteer will receive training when they arrive, and will, of course, be expected to follow all COVID-related protocols while volunteering. If you want to participate, please let Amanda Martinez (amanda.martinez@yale.edu) know and she'll get back to you about next steps and any questions you may have.
Interfaith Volunteer Care Givers: Help a senior make their COVID-19 vaccine appointment! Volunteers will be assigned to work with seniors who live in New Haven County, to make sure they register for the vaccine and have a ride to their appointment. If you're interested in volunteering, you can call the Interfaith Volunteer Care Givers of Greater New Haven at (203) 230-8994 or visit their website to fill out a form here.
As always, let us know if you have any questions, ideas or feedback!
On behalf of the SOM Serves Committee,
Charlie and Amanda
SG Community Service Co-Chairs
ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES TO GET INVOLVED
Help New Haven's Black Business Alliance to design a podcast or manage its social media!
The Black Business Alliance (BBA) is looking for volunteers to help design a podcast that will highlight the Connecticut Black-owned businesses that it supports! If podcasts aren't your thing, they are also looking for help with social media (creation of IG and FB posts, drafting LinkedIn articles, and maintaining a social media calendar) and with writing blog posts. Let Amanda know if you're interested and she'll connect you.
Assist Engagement Solutions with the launch of its pilot program!
Engagement Solutions is a local startup that is launching a program to connect families with early intervention and pediatric providers through a multilingual, mobile-friendly platform. Founder Shay Cantner is looking for volunteers to help with the technical side of app development, with fundraising, and with helping new users to get comfortable with the platform post-launch.
Immediate needs:
- Support the Yale SIC intern group with customer discovery activities (over the next 2-3 weeks)
- Alpha test our product (app and web dashboard, coded in react native, Typescript, MySQL, and ember.js)
- Data compilation of former customer interviews
Other small research projects such as:
- research domain name, website hosting options
- research survey and landing page tools
Let Amanda know if you're interested in taking on any of these roles!
Identify corporate sponsors for DreamKit!
DreamKit is a web-based app that catalogues and amplifies the resilience of young adults experiencing homelessness in New Haven.
DreamKit offers gift cards to their youth to incentivize skill-building completion on the app and they are looking to partner with local food businesses, grocery markets, and retail stores to help offset the costs of these gift cards. If you are interested in this project (relevant experience not necessary), let Amanda know and she'll connect you with the Executive Director.
Get involved with the Community Place-Making Engagement Network (CPEN)!
Doreen Abubakar from CPEN is looking for volunteers to help her with a newsletter blitz to residents of Newhallville, and to help plan a walk/bike-a-thon for sometime this spring. Contact Amanda if you are interested and she can put you in touch with Doreen.
SHARE ABOUT YOUR EXISTING VOLUNTEER EFFORTS
We know that many of you are incredibly active with your own service initiatives. In an effort to gauge what types of volunteering SOM students are interested in, we invite you to share about what you're up to, and indicate whether additional MBA volunteers would be useful to your particular organization(s), using this editable Google Sheet.