Service

Bishop Blanchet strives to inspire students to transform the world around them through a lifelong commitment to faith, scholarship and service. In giving of their time and talents, they will live the Gospel values of courage, community, hope, love, mercy, justice, humility, and discipleship by acting beyond their own self-interest and in solidarity with others. Through working with various nonprofit organizations, students will come to a greater understanding of the world in which they live and the injustices which need their courageous action.

Every school year, each Blanchet student will complete 20 hours of service under the direction of nonprofit organizations in any (or all) of the following focus areas: 

• Animals & the Environment

• Children (13 or younger)

• The Elderly or the Disabled

• People Experiencing Poverty

• School and Faith Communities
   

Ten service hours must be entered in  Mobile Serve by January 10, 2025. All 20 hours must be entered in MobileServe by May 2, 2025. Students will also need to respond to the grade-level reflection question(s) in Mobile Serve in order to receive credit for their hours each year.

Students may volunteer for a maximum of ten hours at Bishop Blanchet events, and/or their previous school communities, and/or their places of worship under the focus area School and Faith Communities. Examples of approved service include, but are not limited to, the Bishop Blanchet Freshmen Welcome, Open House, etc. regardless of who is served by that event. (Note: Service in this category is not required.) The remaining hours must be completed with an approved nonprofit organization in any of the other categories. Anyone who has questions about this new focus area are encouraged to contact the Service Coordinator.

Approved organizations must be 501(c)3 recognized by the State of Washington as a nonprofit. Students volunteering with an organization not listed on the approved list, will need to submit the Approval Request Form, and have it approved by the Service Coordinator before serving at the event. Students serving at an event that was not pre-approved may have their hours denied.

• Students may not miss school to earn service hours

• Students may not do more than 4 service hours on a school day or 8 hours on a non-school day

• Independently organized projects will not be accepted (i.e. making food at home and distributing it downtown, helping a neighbor).

• Family members cannot verify hours

Option 1: Once service hours have been entered in Mobile Serve, an email is sent to the supervisor for verification. After the supervisor verifies the hours, the hours will need to be approved by the Bishop Blanchet Service Coordinator. Students will receive email notifications from MobileServe when hours have been approved or denied.

Option 2: While doing service, students can utilize additional features via the MobileServe app to verify their service hours. In order to verify without email approval from a service provider, the student must provide all four of the following through the MobileServe app:

• An email address of the supervisor while doing the service 

• GeoTag verifying your location at the time of the service

• Signature from the supervisor at the service location

• Picture of you doing the service

After all four of these are done, the hours will need to be approved by the Bishop Blanchet Service Coordinator. Students will receive email notifications from MobileServe when hours have been approved or denied.