Orientation 2008
SEEDS Community Service Odyssey Information
Join other Reedies who are interested in addressing important social issues. The odysseys combine direct service, reflection, learning, and fun, and offer a powerful experience to launch into the school year, and a new understanding of our communities. They are also a great way to begin forming your circle of friends at Reed.
Odyssey descriptions
Odyssey costs
Registration
Gearing up
Arriving on campus
Once on campus
Returning to campus
Information for parents
Odyssey descriptions
This year, choose from among four venues. All groups will sleep and eat together within the community, but each group of students will have its own program of activities.
Hunger and housing
Immerse yourself in the realities of poverty, listen to the stories of people who have been there, and help to meet some basic needs for food, shelter, and community. You will learn some causes and effects of hunger and poverty, and how the lack of affordable housing affects different groups—veterans, mothers and their children, and teenagers—by working with agencies that address long-term goals including empowerment, housing, education, and employment.
Education and youth
During the academic year, many of Reed students volunteer or work at various nearby schools and youth organizations. Helping students with their reading, teaching them to play a musical instrument, or being there as a mentor can be as rewarding to you as it is beneficial to the student. This group will be working with youth-focused community organizations to provide service and learn about some of the factors that affect youth in Portland.
Community development
Do you ever wonder if your volunteer hours will be remembered? In this group, experience the satisfaction of having tangible results for your efforts after using your hands to improve your world. No experience is needed, but be prepared to use your body as well as your mind—several years ago we built a roof! You will also learn how local community development groups are working to improve the livability of their neighborhoods.
Cycling and sustainability: cycle to service!
Many Portlanders love their relatively unspoiled natural environment, urban bicycle culture, and emerging sustainability ethos. Participants in this group will have the opportunity to cycle to a variety of sites to support community efforts that foster the growth of a livable urban landscape. If you’re interested in these issues, this is a great chance to become familiar with some local projects, including bicycle advocacy and natural area preservation.
Students participating in this trip must be comfortable cycling in an urban environment of up to 15 miles per trip.
Ability to change a flat tire is a plus, but not required. SEEDS will borrow bicycles and helmets from the Reed bicycle co-op for this trip, but you are also encouraged to bring your own if logistically feasible and if it is in good condition. (We suggest a tune-up shortly before the trip.)
Odyssey costs
All SEEDS community service odysseys cost $130.
Once we receive your application, we will charge a $65 deposit to your Reed account to hold your space. The remaining $65 will be charged directly to your student account after the trip. Partial financial assistance is available and will be granted to those applicants with the greatest need as determined by the financial aid office.
Registration
To sign up for a SEEDS community service trip, complete the application, acknowledgement of risk, waiver and release, and medical information by registering online at IRIS. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis; materials must be received by June 29.
Gearing up
Student attending SEEDS community service odysseys will need to bring some personal items on the trip.
Arriving on campus
Please arrive on campus between 1 and 5 p.m., on Friday, August 22, as there is considerable organization and orientation that needs to take place before our early morning departure. Please check in at Kaul Auditorium.
Van shuttles from the airport will be available at 1, 3, and 4 p.m., on Friday, August 22. You must reserve a space with Justin Wickens, 503/777-7285, by 5 p.m. on August 15.
Once on campus
We will provide dinner the first night you arrive. The remainder of the evening will be invested in getting to know your group better, sorting and packing equipment, and making sure we are well organized for our departure early on Saturday. Orientation trip participants stay in dorm rooms the night before and after the trips.
Please arrive with the items that you will need for your trip packed separately from the items that you wish to leave at Reed. You are welcome to store the items in your room that you won’t need on your trip. We ask that you refrain from setting up your dorm space until you have the opportunity to negotiate room arrangements with your future roommate(s).
Returning to campus
You can anticipate arriving back from your SEEDS odyssey in the evening on Monday, August 25. (We anticipate that all SEEDS trips will have returned and completed clean-up by 6:30 p.m., so you should have some flexibility to go out for dinner with your parents, or enjoy some down time in your new environment.) On Tuesday, SEEDS odyssey participants will have the option to participate in the Peer Mentor Program retreat (pre-registration required).
Information for Parents
Parents are encouraged to attend a student services reception on Friday, August 22, at 4 p.m., and can plan on saying good-bye to their children late Friday afternoon. Find information on things to do and see in Oregon while your student is on his or her trip.
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