Current Opportunities

This summer, Southern will be hosting a local summer camp on our campus for 2 weeks. Our cafeteria needs daily help restocking paper goods, wiping tables, straightening chairs, plus light-duty kitchen tasks with repetition or standing, no heavy lifting. Clean-up could take 30 minutes to 2 hours, but any amount of help is welcome. Help is needed every day from June 8-12 and June 15-19, beginning at 8:35 a.m. If you are available to help some or all of these days, please email Laurie Worth at lworth@southern.edu.
A free meal from our cafeteria is provided each day a volunteer helps with this opportunity

This summer, Southern will be hosting a local summer camp on our campus for 2 weeks. Between weeks 1 and 2, we will need to clean dorm rooms for new campers. Our guest lodging team needs your help! This will include sweeping, mopping, trash removal, bathroom cleaning, and other similar tasks. This project will start at 10 a.m. and go until 2-3 p.m. If you are available to help some or all of this time, please email Sandy James at sjames@southern.edu.
Snacks and drinks will be provided.

Cheryl Craven needs help hosting Southern Serves Day for Southern's incoming freshmen. This is a day when students and professors serve together in the community. Volunteers will be needed on Wednesday, August 19 & Thursday, August 20. Below are the areas Cheryl needs volunteers:
 
Wednesday, August 19
 
1. Day Before Prep – Move Vehicles | Wednesday, 2 p.m.
 Help move 30 vehicles from Transportation to the Iles PE Center.
 *Free t-shirt will be provided

Requests 10 Volunteers | Est. 2 hours

2. Day Before Prep – Set up Sign Stands | Wednesday, 2 p.m.
   Help set up 35 sign holders for directing student groups in the Iles PE Center for Southern Serves Day.
   *Free t-shirt will be provided

Requests 10 Volunteers | Est. 2 hours

3. Day Before Prep – Assemble Supplies | Wednesday, 2 p.m.
   Help gather and bag up gloves and supplies for 35 projects in the Iles PE Center for Southern Serves Day.
   *Free t-shirt will be provided

Requests 5 Volunteers | Est. 2 hours

Thursday, August 20

4. Table Staff | Thursday, 11:30 a.m.
   Run one of three tables to help students sign up for the event, pass out keys to drivers, or pass out supplies to project coordinators. Help take down tables & sign stands as service groups leave the gym.

 * Lunch and a free t-shirt will be provided

Requests 5 Volunteers | Est. 2 hours

5. Project Drivers | Thursday, 12:00 p.m.
   Drive a group of students to a project; serve with them (or wait in the car) and drive them back to campus. Drivers will be in a university 12 passenger van, 7 passenger minivan, or 5 passenger car.
   *Lunch and a free t-shirt will be provided
    Requests 10 Volunteers | Est. 4-5 hours

6. Lunch & T-shirts | Thursday, 11:30 a.m.
   Receive food from vendors, pass out t-shirts & serve lunch to students as they enter the gym, clean up the leftovers and deliver them to the Feed My Sheep Food Pantry on campus, take down tables & sign stands, empty trash bins, sweep floor, take leftover t-shirts to the Bietz Center, drive a golf cart to pick up signs across campus.

 * Lunch and a free t-shirt will be provided

Requests 12 Volunteers | Est. 2 hours

7. Shuttle Drivers | Thursday, 4:00 p.m.
   Receive project drivers at Transportation; shuttle them back down to the gym (or their car). Drivers will be in a university 12 passenger van, 7 passenger minivan, or 5 passenger car.
   *Lunch and a free t-shirt will be provided
   Requests 2 Volunteers | Est. 2 hours

If you are interested in volunteering for 1 or both days, please reach out to Cheryl at cravenc@southern.edu and let her know the day(s) and times you are available.

The McKee Library, supervised by Deyse Bravo, is looking for a volunteer to assist with their plant caretaking. Tasks include watering, pruning, and re-potting the 40 plants when needed (once or twice a year). This requires someone who is skilled at taking care of plants. 

This opportunity starts at the earliest convenience, and will take one hour a week. If you are interested in helping with this volunteer opportunity, please email Deyse at dbravo@southern.edu.

The Physics Department, supervised by Ken Caviness, is looking for a volunteer to assist with their monthly Star Watch event. Tasks include helping set up telescopes, assisting guests during the viewing, and packing up the equipment afterward. This includes activities such as walking, carrying equipment, and prolonged standing.

This opportunity starts on Friday, February 27, from 6:30 PM–8:30 p.m. and will last the rest of the semester on the Friday closest to the first quarter moon (times vary). You can find all days/times on this online calendar. If you are interested in helping with this volunteer opportunity, please email Ken at caviness@southern.edu.

Perks: Volunteers will receive training on telescope use and may borrow the telescopes.

The Transportation Department at Southern drives students for a variety of reasons. Most often, rides are to/from the Chattanooga airport or Groom shuttles, but trips can also be for appointments such as passport renewals. 

Any volunteer opportunity for Transportation would be in one of their vehicles, not a personal vehicle. Because of this and for the safety of our students, you will be asked to go through a short process to become a verified Southern driver.

The Transportation Department would like to have a list of volunteers who are willing to drive, then when a need arises, they can reach out to volunteers on the list to ask if someone is available. If you are able and willing to be a driver for tasks like this, please reach out to Christina Hall at christinahall@southern.edu.

NOTE: Please only continue with this opportunity if you are very comfortable driving a larger 12-passenger van and navigating to various destinations. If you are uncomfortable driving, please consider some of our other volunteer opportunities.

Task: Recruiter for Southern at various SDA academies in the Southern Union. We need individual(s) who are passionate about languages, preferable having studies abroad but not required.
We need individual(s) who can go on each one of the recruiting trips, to the various academies, requiring in some cases, an overnight stay. We need to have individual(s) who have a background in languages; because, that individual needs to be able to speak to the importance, meaning and impact of an abroad experience. The Modern Languages Department will provide the promotional materials, and any necessary/relevant training for the individual/s.

Frequency: 5-6 times a year between January & June. Trips can be half a day to as long as 4 days depending on the location.
Perks: Travel expenses will be covered, and gift cards will be given based on the length of the trip.
Desired # of Volunteers: 2

As you can imagine, this volunteer position will need the right fit. Adrienne Royo will interview any volunteer who is interested in this position. Please reach out to her to set up an interview or to ask any questions you may have.

Contact
Adrienne Royo | aroyo@southern.edu | 423.236.2395

We need an internet-savvy and detail-oriented volunteer to help us occasionally with alumni research to keep our alumni information and database up to date - births, deaths, address changes, etc. For privacy and security, this does need to be done in our office and using our computer.

Frequency: Flexible
Desired # of Volunteers: 2

Contact
Cheryl Torres | ctorres@southern.edu