In 2010, the Kansas City Chinese American Association (KCCAA) established an annual KCCAA Community Service Award to encourage primary and secondary school students in the greater Kansas City area to develop stronger awareness of public service and to participate actively in community service. In the past several years we have seen an increasing number of young students engaging in volunteer work, particularly under the leadership of KCCAA Youth Hope Fund. More and more of our young people have come to understand the personal satisfaction of helping others. In order to honor the unselfish efforts of these young people and, in hopes of encouraging others to follow their examples, KCCAA will offer recognition to some of the most outstanding efforts by the young people in our community to help others. To emphasize the intrinsic rewards of community service, the awardees will be given plaques, scholarships (amount to be determined), and will be honored on stage at this year’s Spring Festival Gala.
This award may be offered to any primary or secondary school student in the greater Kansas City area and any qualified student may apply.
Requirements: an applicant must –
1. Be an elementary or secondary school student (grades 1 through 12).
2. Have participated in some form of voluntary work or community service (without compensation) during the past year.
Evaluation criteria for awards:
· Service activities that emphasize service to others in need will be valued over experiences that are designed primarily as learning experiences for the student. Quantity of hours of service will not necessarily be more highly valued than quality but consistent patterns of service to others will be valued by the judges.
· Initiative and (age-appropriate) leadership and organization in group efforts to serve others will also be noted. Fundraising activities to benefit others will be viewed as worthwhile but (age-appropriate) direct service to others may, in some cases, be viewed as having more enduring significance for the student applicants.
Application procedures: Submit a one to three page application letter by email to kccaa.award@gmail.com by January 20, 2018. The application statement should include the student’s name, school, and contact information for school; a list of the student’s community service experiences during 2017, with a description of each community service experience; the student’s perspective of the benefit of the service to those served, and the student’s reflections on lessons learned from his or her service experience(s). Please also …
