Upper Division Service Day

On May 4th, all upper school advisories participated in a day of service. This Service Day is the culmination of our Field Studies program and took months of preparation and planning. It is another shining example of the hard work, dedication, and strength of our student body.

Since September students have been working with their advisors to create a service experience that would match their skills and interests. After researching and choosing a population in need or a global concern, students then discussed how to get involved. Many students wanted to participate in direct service, where they would have face-to-face interaction with their chosen community in need. Those students spent their Service Day helping children with learning disabilities at our very own Mary McDowell Friends elementary school, visiting and bonding with members of the Veteran’s Health Center of Brooklyn, supporting young students in a preschool setting who come from low socioeconomic backgrounds at the Graham School, and sorting food and serving various populations at the Bowery Mission, West Side Campaign Against Hunger, and St. John’s Bread of Life.

Other students chose to partake in indirect and research-based service. This type of service requires that students work behind the scenes with an organization whose mission is to support a particular population. These students helped fundraise and distribute pamphlets for refugees via rescue.org, packaged food at Food Bank NYC, organized clothing at Housing Works, created children’s costumes and jewelry for Only Make Believe, promoted proper recycling habits and sorting electronics at the Lower East Side Ecology Center, and cleaned up at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, the Battery Park Urban Farm, and the Bedford-Stuyvesant Campaign Against Hunger Urban Farm.

In the days that followed, students have been reflecting on their service experience and creating visuals to show the community how they became involved. We are excited about the connections we have made thus far and look forward to expanding our program and sharing our amazing experiences with the MMFS community.