Mississippi State University’s volunteering work has received national recognition with the university named a finalist in the 2015 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll’s Economic Opportunity category.
According to nationalservice.gov, volunteers in the Economic Opportunity category seek to “create economic independence, increase family stability and create more sustainable and resilient communities.” 
For a university or college, the Honor Roll is the highest federal recognition for volunteering. In order to make the roll, an institution must show outstanding dedication to their community, service-learning and civic engagement. 
Among the thousands of universities across the nation, only 20 universities made the Honor Roll’s cut. This year marks the sixth straight year MSU has made the list. MSU received nominations in all four possible categories: General Community Service, Interfaith Service, Education and Economic Opportunity.
Awards are under the direction of the Corporation for National and Community Service, along with the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, American Council on Education, Campus Compact and the Interfaith Youth Core.
Meggan Franks, the assistant director of MSU’s Volunteer Center for Student Leadership and Community Engagement, who applied the university for the Honor Roll, said volunteering at the university has become natural for students.
“There’s a culture of service at our institution, and students have really bought into it,” Franks said.
MSU has 160 different programs in which 6,100 students participate. Some of the many projects and events students participate through the university include: the Maroon Edition Habitat for Humanity Home, Service DAWGS Day, 9/11 National Day of Service, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, National Volunteer Week and Make a Difference Day.
Among cities in Mississippi, Starkville ranks first with the highest number of volunteers. A big part of the success belongs to the university’s students. MSU’s Volunteer Center partners with Volunteer Starkville for many events throughout the city.
One of the biggest challenges Franks faces is ensuring students properly document their service hours. Many students often do not count their efforts because they forget or do not think of it as volunteering. Franks said something as simple and mundane as picking up trash qualifies as volunteering.
Students volunteer for a variety of reasons. Many want to improve how their resume looks while others look to helping others.
Benefits for students who choose to volunteer develop a passion for volunteering which may lead them to join AmeriCorps, the Peace Corps or work for non-profits in the future.
Meghan Hodge, the president of MSU’s Service Dawgs, said volunteering as a student at the university has enabled her to grow, form networks and meet nearly the entire campus. 
Hodge said volunteering has given her invaluable lessons she could not have learned elsewhere.
“It’s taught me lessons that classrooms can’t teach me,” Hodge said.
When Hodge visits nursing homes, she said she is humbled. She said she does whatever she can to help because she realizes that one day she too may need help from others.
Hodge said half her service hours go unnoticed because she forgets to document them. As president of the Service Dawgs, Hodge said she tries to remind others who volunteer to log their hours. It is not for awards they may receive, but for the acknowledgement on paper they can use for future reference to show others what they did.
After Hodge graduates from MSU in December with her bachelor degree in food nutrition, she said she plans to pursue a masters in food science and minor in administration. 
Beyond her education, Hodges wants to incorporate what she has learned through volunteering into her future endeavors, like creating food trucks to cater to rural areas where few if any grocery stores exist. 
Jennifer Darce, a junior psychology major and participant in the Montgomery Leadership program, said volunteering has had a profound affect on her academically and her overall well-being.
“[Volunteering has] pushed me to do better knowing what advantage I have, and knowing I have the power to help someone else,” Darce said.
Many of the skills Darce has learned in the Montgomery Leadership program will carry over to the workforce where she hopes to work either in counseling or behavioral therapy.
Darce said her experience volunteering with the university’s alternative spring break program to the Mississippi Delta is both educational and fun. 
One of the initiatives offered through the alternative spring break gives disadvantaged children opportunities to improve their reading skills. Programs, like the reading program, have made Darce see that opportunities available to her, like going to college, may not be true for others.
At times, students may be discouraged from volunteering because they think their time volunteering will not be appreciated. Darce admits sometimes people may seem ungrateful which makes the time someone spent volunteering feel unrewarding, and that is understandable. On the other hand, if someone receiving help was bettered in someway, it ends up becoming beneficial to both parties. 
Darce said she encourages other students to volunteer,  but not for the sole reason of making their resumes appearance look better. Students who only think about a resumes appearance will easily tire of volunteering. Volunteering out of kindness can make a world of difference to a person.
“If you spend an hour and someone’s day is brightened, that hour was well spent,” Darce said.