By Zaynab Zaman, Special Writer
“Welcome to Community Action!” the leaders say brightly, surveying the wide-eyed Princeton University freshmen standing before them.
Just minutes before, several hundred of those freshmen had bid farewell to their families, scrambling to find their appointed Community Action (CA) groups. Upperclassmen stand in various corners, yelling “Arts in Philly!” or “HomeFront!” Once each group is fully assembled, the beaming leaders enthusiastically begin describing the week of service ahead.
Many freshmen are still reeling from their families’ departure, so the bustle of CA provides a welcome distraction. After brief introductions and light-hearted icebreakers, each group discusses what that week’s theme will entail.
CA is not mandatory, rather it is one of two optional pre-college programs designed to help freshmen bond with each other and transition to Princeton. The other alternative is Outdoor Action (OA), where freshmen can participate in a week of hiking, climbing or canoeing in the wilderness with similar small groups.
The CA program offers freshmen more than 20 themes to focus on, ranging from homelessness to arts to literacy. Each group, located in the tri-state area, spends most of its waking hours learning about and tackling that issue in depth.
The two to three students who lead each group are rising sophomores, juniors and seniors. These leaders have gone through a rigorous application process, a lengthy driving test and significant training, so they are highly prepared to guide their groups through their week of service.
One leader described her group’s daily schedule, explaining that the students wake up around 7 a.m., work until around 6 p.m., and then typically debrief and reflect in the evening. After that, there is time for games and further bonding exercises, all designed to help the students form their first friends at Princeton.
“In theory, we go to bed by midnight. Realistically, maybe 1 or 2 a.m.,” one freshman chimed in, giggling alongside her co-leader.
For several groups, students spend their nights in church basements or even in the homes of various community partners. The goal for the CA participants is not comfort, but rather full community immersion.
One group, titled Interfaith Service, focuses on religious diversity within the United States. Students meet with leaders of different faiths, asking a variety of questions regarding spirituality. For example, they might discuss the rationale behind certain beliefs, co-habitation between differing faiths, or problems faced by certain groups.
Another group revolves around education, working with a local undergraduate-founded service center called Community House. Here, CA participants provide after-school tutoring to local underprivileged students from kindergarten through high school.
In this setting, younger students mingle with freshmen tutors and CA leaders, to the extent that it is hard to separate the groups. The atmosphere is happy, and as the tutoring progresses, there are frequent high-fives and bursts of laughter from both tutors and tutees.
One CA freshman described how much he was enjoying working with the children, pointing out how outgoing and excited they seemed to be. He added that he was benefiting from the CA program himself, noting his 14 new friends and their memories together.
Though these CA service projects are only a week long, some former participants remain involved throughout the year. One group leader noted that CA often introduces these students to different ways they can get involved in their community while at Princeton, giving them a chance to work with these organizations later on as well.
Whether students choose to remain active as volunteers or not, CA undeniably has a significant impact on each participant. Having spent a week tutoring children or volunteering at a soup kitchen, students typically approach Princeton from a different perspective than they ordinarily would have done, perhaps one that now has an understanding of critical social issues.
Giving this new knowledge to the incoming freshmen is the main goal of CA, and might even inspire further ideas and service possibilities in these students’ futures.
