The Alumni Clubs need to arrange room and board for the SSLP students. Clubs have found many ways that have worked well for students in the program. The keys are to make sure that all meals are provided for students, either where they are living or at the site, and that they are not isolated where they live.
Housing has been with:
• The site, such as pregnancy home, Catholic Worker houses, homeless shelters, homes for the elderly, etc. Examples are Casa Teresa in Orange County, the Des Moines Catholic Worker, Hessed House in Aurora, IL and Sacred Heart in Mobile, AL.
• Host families, between one and four families for the 8 weeks. Examples are Philadelphia where students spend a month each with two families, and Greater Sarasota where students spend 2 weeks with 4 couples whose children have grown.
• Near or at the site with priests, sisters or brothers. Examples are Greater Naples where 2 students live near the site with Christian Brothers, and Chicago Corazon a Corazon where 2 students live and work with the sisters at the site.
• With a volunteer community of recent college graduates who are in a service program for a year or more, such as Bon Secour volunteers in Baltimore and CSJ Volunteers in Mission in Hartford, CT.
Note: We do not want students placed in a house-sitting situation because many students are uncomfortable with this arrangements and it goes against one of the goals of the program: interaction with alumni club members. We do not want students to be isolated. This arrangement can be considered this if two or more students live together and interaction with Alumni Club members is planned.
Challenges
Some SSLP students feel isolated when living on site by themselves. Club members should interact with the student each week, possibly for meals. One good outcome from housing on site is it eliminates transportation issues.
SSLP students really appreciate having contact with other SSLP students /volunteers their own age during the summer. Try to connect them to other young adults when possible. A list of Notre Dame students in your area can be obtained from the Alumni Association.
SSLP students find too many moves from family to family difficult. Arrange housing with no more than four families for the eight weeks, if at all possible. My impression is that students would prefer no more than two host families, but we realize that this is not always possible.
Food is a concern of SSLP students. Three meals need to be provided each day. Be sure students know if they can take food from the kitchen when needed. Ask students what types of food they like and include in the shopping, if possible.
Make students feel at home right away by having a drawer cleared out for their clothes, some hangers available, etc. Most students would like to have access to a computer if there is one available to them at the house. Please state ground rules on the computer use if applicable.
The ideal is one or two host families for the eight weeks who share dinner together often, invite students into the activities of their family life, and participate in any Alumni Club events in the summer. The challenge from the other side is when a student does not contribute to the tasks of the household and does not accept the invitations to participate in family activities. Students are told during their orientation that they are expected to help with household tasks and enter into family activities as their site commitments and course commitments allow. Ground rules should be clear regarding food, chores, curfews, visitors, and invitations to family activities.
Creative Ideas Currently in Clubs
Maryland – One student lives with the SumServe students at Loyola-Baltimore. This gives them a built in time of reflection with other students in Loyola’s service program, a chance to visit many sites throughout the city and room and board. The other student lives in community with year-long service volunteers in the Bon Secours Program. Thus there is built in community of peers for reflection and social activities. Room and board is provided.
Chicago-Port Ministries, Corazon a Corazon, Miseracordia; New York – St. Anthony’s; and other Clubs. Students live at or near the site with members of a religious community or lay community. Benefits are no transportation issues, built in community and room and board provided. The challenge is to make sure the students are not isolated from interaction with the Alumni Club.
Dayton – Host families are found and a grid of contact information is given to all partners, with contact information of the site and host families, dates of stays with each family and student information. Good communication with all parties involved is key!
Please contact Andrea Smith Shappell with any questions.
