May 13, 2008

Hundreds of students, faculty and staff signed up to volunteer with more than 70 community agencies at the 15th-annual Community Service Opportunities Fair at Fresno State on Wednesday. The event, sponsored by the Office of Civic Engagement and Service-Learning, provides the campus community the opportunity to gain information on local nonprofit organizations.

"Involvement in volunteer and community service-learning activities can provide substantial personal, professional and academic growth," said Renee Delport, special events and projects coordinator in the Office of Civic Engagement and Service-Learning. "Benefits include increased college retention rates, greater career and major satisfaction, improved self-esteem, increased value for civic engagement and much, much more," she said.

Volunteering is a longstanding tradition at Fresno State. In the past year, one of every three students volunteered in the community, logging more than 485,000 hours of service. The resulting economic impact, measured by national philanthropic standards, topped $10.4 million.