Service Hours

Service Hours are a graduation requirement for all Lake Orion High School students earning a diploma.

• In Order to Walk at Graduation: All Service Hours, along with a completed reflection for each event must be submitted through each student’s x2VOL account no later than the Friday after Spring Break of your Senior Year.
  
• In Order to Receive a Diploma, but not walk at graduation: All Service hours along with a completed reflection for each event must be submitted through each student’s x2VOL account no later than the last school day of May, of your senior year.

 

Requirements for Graduation
Students MUST choose one of the following two options:

Option 1. Basic Requirement:

• Complete 20 service hours at approved locations or activities throughout your 4 years as a student at Lake Orion High School.
• Submit activity information, contact information and reflection for each volunteer experience through your x2VOL account
• All hours must be verified by a supervisor or coordinator of the activity or event
• Hours will be applied to your account balance once your participation is verified

**Prorating of Service Hours: Students transferring to Lake Orion High School will have a prorated Service Learning requirement. Students must complete 10 hours for each year (or partial year) that they attend Lake Orion High School.

Option 2. Research Paper:

In lieu of completing 20 service hours, a student may elect to complete a research paper. If a student elects this option, a Service Learning Research Request must be submitted prior to the beginning of your senior year.  Visit the Career Center for more specific details about this option.

 

Alternative Assignment: Instructions for students electing this option

Requirements for completing / fulfilling any remaining service-learning hours with an essay / research paper: It is suggested that students wait until their Junior year before electing this option. However, the alternative assignment has always existed and will continue to be an option for our students to complete their graduation requirement. 

Students may write a research paper (rather than completing remaining service hours). For seniors, these essays are tentatively due on April 8, 2022. All essay submissions will be submitted via Turnitin (plagiarism detection software). Any incidents with plagiarism / academic misconduct will be subjected to the standards outlined in the LOHS Student Code of Conduct.

 

LOHS Service Learning Alternative Assignment
Number of Service Hours Remaining	Required Pages of Content
15 – 20.0	4 - 5 pages
10 – 14.9	3 - 4 pages
5.0 – 9.9	2 - 3 pages
0.1 – 4.9*	1 - 2 pages

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research Paper Instructions

1.      Students must select a topic(s) identified in this document.

2.      Research paper will follow MLA guidelines.

3.      Formatting will include standard 1” margins, double-spaced, 12-point Calibri or Times New Roman font.

4.      To submit your paper: Log into your Turnitin account

5.      Click on the “Enroll in a Class” tab.

·        Class/section ID:   26413264

·        Enrollment key:    dragons2021

6.      In the LOHS Service-Learning Essay 2021 class / assignment, enter your name, and upload your essay. For the submission title, use your last name followed by “SL Essay” (Example: Hawley SL Essay)

 

Guidance on writing your essay:

In general, students are instructed to write a research paper / essay relating to volunteerism, community engagement, philanthropy, etc.

Questions regarding the alternative assignment can be emailed to servicelearning@lok12.org

Students should spend some time organizing a topic and developing their essays. It is permissible for students to approach the research paper with a broad sense (incorporating a variety of the prompts identified below).

Below are some topics and / or guiding questions that might be helpful in organizing your research papers:

·        What are some benefits of volunteering in the local community?

·        Why is it important for schools (or colleges) to partner with the local community?

·        Give an example of an event (i.e. natural disaster) that relied upon or required community action.

Focus on an organization or non-profit entity that is involved with helping others in the community:

·        What is the history of this organization (How did it start? How did it grow?)

·        Describe their mission / purpose.

·        What sort of impact does the organization have on the community?

·        What sort of volunteer opportunities exist for people who are interested? How would one go about volunteering for this organization?

·        How has the organization been successful? What are some challenges?

For students who have completed some service learning – Write a more detailed reflection / essay:

·        What did you do?

·        What sort of impact did the work have? How was it beneficial?

·        Why was the work important?

·        What community service activity have you participated in that has meant the most to you? (Or had the greatest impact).

·        What is your favorite memory from performing community service?

·        Why did you choose this particular organization?

·        What made you decide to volunteer where you did?

·        How has your community service changed you?

·        How has your community service helped others?

·        How has your community service affected your plans for the future?

For students who are interested in a specific college or university (or have already been accepted):

·        What community service opportunities are available for students?

·        What are some student organizations on campus that are invested in the community?

·        As an incoming student, how might your involvement in volunteer opportunities benefit the community and how might volunteerism benefit you as an individual?

·        Describe some examples of ways that (insert name) partners with the local community.

·        How does the university support the community? How does the community support the school? 

• Student's volunteer hours MUST benefit the community - not a business.

• Service hours should focus on making a positive impact on others.

• Hours must be submitted through X2VOL within 30 days of when the event/activity takes place.

• If hours take place over multiple days, please list the days and times in the description area of the submission.

• Make sure to read the requirements for the reflection of your submission and complete it thoroughly for each entry.

• Once a student submits an entry, an email will be automatically generated and sent to the contact list.

• Hours that have been done for another organization's requirement (court mandated hours, NHS, Leadership, Boy Scouts Eagle Badge, etc.) cannot count towards your graduation requirement – No Double Dipping!

• Fundraising events for your group, team or organization do not count for Service Hours.

• All hours must be completed through non-profit organizations or events that benefit the community.

• Performances, practices and private lessons do not count for Service Hours.

• Volunteering for family members, friends, neighbors, etc. does not count towards the service hour requirement. Different than volunteering WITH someone – this can often make the experience more fun!

• Not getting paid does not automatically mean Service Hours. You can not volunteer for a company that is a profitable organization and refuse to be paid.

• Students can not verify the participation of other students.

• Don’t limit yourself to just 1 or 2 events or activities. A variety of service experiences allow you to give back to your community, grow as an individual and have a positive influence on others.

• If a denial of hours is received, please read the comments/notes on the entry to know why and what (if anything) can be corrected for approval.

X2VOL is the online platform used to track service hours. Each student will activate their own account, which will be used to submit and reflect on the service experience. 

In addition, X2VOL also has an option to post service opportunities.
Students can select FIND OPPORTUNITIES to see upcoming events and activities to volunteer at.

 

X2VOL can be accessed using this web address: www.x2vol.com

 

VERIFIED hours - your contact person has verified your participation.

APPROVED hours - your hours have been approved and accepted by the school.

DENIED hours - something is wrong with the submission. Please refer to comment section of your entry for an explanation.

 

PLEASE NOTE, YOU ARE REGISTERED WITH YOUR LOCS SCHOOL ID AND EMAIL ADDRESS

How To – Student Login

 1.       Go to www.x2VOL.com and click JOIN.

2.       Type in your School Name or zip code (48360) and select Search.

3.       Type in your Last Name and Student ID.

4.       Enter the remaining profile fields and click proceed.

5.       Set your interests and skills and click proceed.

6.       Set a password, select your group and check the required boxes to complete your registration.

7.       Log in and view your Dashboard.

A video on how to register to x2VOL.com as a student can be found here: https://sforce.co/2IcrCjV

 

Activity: Name of the organization that you volunteered with

Description: The event that you participated in and share/describe what you did during your time
**If you participated at the same organization for multiple times, you will list the date and
times in this section as well.

Contact: Name AND email address of the supervisor who will verify your time and participation.
**Make sure you have a valid email address, that you enter the email address correctly and that your contact knows they will be receiving an email from VOLUNTEER VERIFICATION.

Notes:
* If any of the above is incorrect or incomplete, your submission may be denied.
* If your submission is denied, please see the notes on the entry and/or the email that will be sent letting you know the submission has been denied, as well as the reason for the denial.
* If a denial is received, most of the time a correction needs to be made and then the submission can be resubmitted.
* Not getting paid for your time/work does not automatically mean the event qualifies for Service Hours. Make sure you are submitting hours for non-profit organizations and/or non-profit events.

Logging Hours

Once your account is established, you may begin logging any summer hours and any future service hours through this system.

A How To Log Hours video can be found on the x2VOL website, as well as by using this link:

https://sforce.co/2GkKRpD

 

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions can be found here:

https://myintellivol.desk.com/customer/en/portal/topics/427457-for-students/articles

Find Opportunities as a student: https://sforce.co/2USv9tC

Earning Elective Credit - Optional 
In addition to the graduation requirement of 20 hours of service, a student may choose to continue to complete additional hours to earn elective high school credit.

A student may choose to earn ½ elective high school credit by completing 90 hours of service, within a calendar year.  After ½ elective credit is earned, students may choose to complete this cycle one additional time to allow for a total of 1 elective high school credit to be earned. In addition, to be awarded credit, the student must fulfill the following requirements:

To Earn 1/2 Elective Credit

• Request to receive credit must be discussed with and approved by the Service Learning Coordinator and your counselor prior to starting the additional hours
• 90 service hours (All 90 hours must be completed within one calendar year from the date the first service hour is completed).
• Submit the required activity information and reflection(s) to your x2VOL account for all 90 hours (this can be done as the hours are completed).
• When all of your hours complete, submit a one page written reflection about your Service Learning experience to be reviewed by the LOHS Service Learning Board. You may be requested to meet with the members of the Service Learning Board if additional information is needed.
• After all of the above is completed and approved, the counseling office will be notified to award ½ credit for Service Learning to your transcript.

To Earn additional 1/2 Elective Credit (for a total of 1 Elective Credit)

• Once the initial 1/2 elective credit has been earned, students may apply to earn one additional ½ elective credit.  The process for the additional ½ credit will be the same process as the first ½ credit, with additional hours and an additional written reflection.

Students may earn a maximum of 1 elective credit with service hours throughout their Lake Orion High School career.

If your submission of hours is denied:

• Log in to your x2vol account and select Add Hours (this is where you will see all of your entries)
• Click Edit Entry of the submission that was denied.
• Scroll to the Notes section. Here will be there reason your submission was denied. Most of the time, only editing is needed.
• If editing is needed, make the changes, scroll down to the end of the form and click Submit again.

Most common reasons for a submission being denied:

• The reflection, or lack of a reflection (editing needs to take place and the entry can be resubmitted)
• Hours were verified by another student (can be resubmitted with an adult contact)
• Hours were submitted after the 30 day deadline (can not be resubmitted)
• Hours were done for a business/profitable organization (can not be resubmitted)
• Hours were done for a family member, friend, neighbor, etc. - something done for those listed above should be done out of compassion, not for service hours (can not be resubmitted)

Questions about submissions and/or denials can be sent to servicelearning@lok12.org