• MCDS Community Service

MCDS Community Service

Learning By Giving Back

At Miami Country Day School, we believe that it is our spiritual and civic duty to serve others in need. The service to others should be meaningful and personally relevant.
Our community service embodies our core values of purpose, honor, respect, wisdom and compassion.
We require each student to complete at least 100 hours of community service for a non-profit organization, as a graduation requirement.

One School Initiative

MCDS as a Pk3-12th grade school strives to include our entire community in one school initiatives throughout the year.
    • Learning By Giving Back

Key Facts and Figures

List of 3 items.

  • 484

    active participants
  • 32,540

    total service hours
  • $803,408

    Economic value
    • Supporting the Community

Jen Sennett
Director of Community Service Physical Education Department Chair
“I am inspired by the compassion of our students on a daily basis…they look outside themselves and realize they have a voice, a passion and the ability to make changes.”

Service Led by Students

Community Service is completely run by students; projects only start with their initiative. Community Service Board (CSB) is the Leadership group that vets all service projects that happen on campus each year.
Student-Led Community Service Board (CSB)
Students apply and are selected by the previous board with anonymity. Elections are in February and board members serve an 18-month term, overlapping with the next incoming group.

Students on the CSB for 2021-22

  • Sabrina Morato
  • Davis Lubetsky
  • Morgan Loeb
  • Simone Hart
  • Isabel Bravo-Contreras
  • Michael Puglise
  • Malini Kamlani

Walk the Walk

During the annual all-school Walk the Walk event, the entire MCDS community comes together to raise funds and awareness for the Heidi Hewes WCA and The Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
The Walk started in 1999, raising $6,000 during the first event and it has raised over $800,000 to date.
    • David Butter ’13, Service Scholar

      Florida State University (B.S., Political Science, 2017)

College Scholarship for the MCDS Service Winner

In 2013, David was invited to be a Service Scholar at Florida State University. The Service Scholar Program is designed to promote civic responsibility and to recognize students with an outstanding record of service and leadership.
Admission to the four-year program is reserved for first-year students who have demonstrated excellence in service and leadership in planning and promoting community involvement among their peers.
Service Scholars participate in individual and group service projects, engage in coursework, and promote community participation.
David focused his volunteer and coursework on eradicating hunger on college campuses. 

Service Groups on Campus

People

List of 17 frequently asked questions.

  • Why Not Teens (WNT)

    This is a youth-led non-profit organization that helps children in need by providing the resources they lack based on their location and raising money to fund humanitarian missions they organize.
    So far, WNT has had two successful missions: one in an orphanage in Mexico and another in an orphanage in Guatemala. It is now raising money for its third mission in the San Blas Islands.
    WNT’s motto is “The Youth For The Youth,” because together, teenagers can create positive change.
  • Girl Up 

    Advocates political, economic and social equality for women and raises awareness about the injustices women and girls face worldwide.
    Girl Up has been active at MCDS for almost 20 years – a true testament to the dedication and hard work of its members. 
    The club’s activities include organizing campaigns on campus, volunteering at Lotus House — a local women’s and children’s shelter — and raising funds for various local and national women’s organizations.
  • Young People of Distinction (Y.P.O.D.)

    A mentoring program for Black students at MCDS, founded in 2013 by Annette & Juliette Fulton.
    Y.P.O.D. focuses on fostering relationships and developing the minds of young Black men and women while encouraging each of them to accomplish their dreams and goals, one step at a time.
    This mentoring program aims to create an emotionally supportive environment through open dialogue, guided workshops and teaching leadership skills such as self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation and empathy.
  • Make Our Schools Safe (MOSS)

    The club’s mission is to create and maintain a culture of safety and vigilance in a secure school environment.
     
    MOSS’ key values are:
     
    Preparedness: Leaning how to recognize, plan for and respond to the threats and hazards schools face.
     
    Observation: Situational awareness and decision support.
     
    Willingness to act: Preparedness response training for school leaders and teachers.
     
    Education: Knowledge of response protocols and drills.
     
    Response: Responding and recovering from threats and hazards as trained and planned for; building campus resiliency.  
  • Public Health Initiative (PHI)

    The initiative was created to address the public health issues in our community.
     
    Traditionally, PHI has participated in book drives and charity walks, and focused most of their efforts on knitting hats for cancer patients.
     
    We are looking forward to the day when they will be able to hold a CPR class for students.
     
    PHI hopes to continue expanding and serving their community.
  • Study Buddies

    Great opportunity for high school students to relive their childhood by taking on a teacher role.
     
    MCDS Study Buddies devote some of their afterschool hours to aid Miami Shores Elementary students with their homework and help improve math skills and reading comprehension.
     
    Both parents and teachers have expressed their gratitude to the club after seeing an improvement in grades following these sessions.
     
    The Study Buddies team is never too full — students from all upper school grade levels are welcome to join at any time, build friendships and interconnect within the Miami Shores community!  
  • Black Student Union

    The BSU was founded to create a space for all Black students to support each other and educate one another on issues like diversity, acceptance and tolerance.
  • Achieve Miami

    The mission of the organization is to partner with educators, students and schools bridging disparities to provide meaningful educational experiences and to demonstrate the power of an integrated peer learning model.
     
    Together with partners from the public and private sector, Achieve Miami designs and manages extended learning programs for students, teachers and community leaders.
     
    Achieve Miami’s work has evolved to include four major programs – Saturdays, Summer, Music and High School Clubs – and has engaged thousands of students from diverse backgrounds in meaningful educational experiences at school sites in Little Haiti, Brownsville, Overtown, Liberty City and Homestead, as well as through virtual channels.
  • Walk The Walk

    During the annual all-school Walk the Walk event, the entire MCDS community comes together to raise funds and awareness for the Heidi Hewes WCA and The Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
     
    The Walk started in 1999, raising $6,000 during the first event and it has raised over $800,000 to date.
     
    The Walk is organized by the Upper School Student Chairs and Co-Chairs who volunteer to help educate their community about the devastating effects of cancer.
     
    This year, the 21st annual Walk the Walk will be celebrated on Saturday, April 17, 2021.
     
    Walk The Walk has pledged to donate 10% of the raised funds to the Spartan Relief Fund to support the families of the Country Day community during these unpredictable times.
  • Mental Health and Suicide Awareness Club (MHSA) 

    The MHSA club is comprised of a group of upper school students interested in providing information, education and resources in order to destigmatize mental health disorders, raise awareness about suicide prevention and broaden the conversation about mental health and well-being.
  • Best Buddies 

    Best Buddies International is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, leadership development, and inclusive living for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).  Our MCDS club raises awareness, funds and promotes friendships between our members and the residents of a local group home as well as the Marian Center School and Services.
  • Breakthrough Miami Club 

    Breakthrough Miami uses a unique “students-teaching-students” model to create a rigorous, vibrant learning community, where highly motivated, traditionally underrepresented 5th-12th grade students are supported to achieve post-secondary success and emerging leaders are inspired to become the next generation of educators and advocates.
  • Caring for Senior Citizens 

    Our Mission Statement is to give support and care for senior citizens, as well as making sure they always have a smile on their face! Also, we would like to make them feel at home and have a support group to talk to.
  • Ellies Army 

    Ellie’s Army Club raises funds and awareness for the Ellie’s Army Foundation, which provides financial assistance to children and young adults who are battling life-threatening illnesses. The Foundation is named after Ellie Levy, who is a graduate of Miami Country Day School as part of the class of the 2009. Ellie was a warrior in her battle with cystic fibrosis, and this Club motivates others to be warriors and help other children who are fighting for their lives.
  • Helping the Homeless 

    A great way to give back and change lives! We buy/collect supplies, pack the backpacks, and hand them out! Join us.
  • TASSEL

    We teach English to underprivileged Cambodian children through video calls and by grading their written work with the help of local Cambodian teachers.
  • Teens Tutoring Tots

    In response to the current academic transition, this was designed to link “teen” students with elementary students “tots” in mentoring/tutoring roles to provide much-needed support for home-based learning #COVID-19
Animals

List of 1 frequently asked questions.

  • ARF (Animals Rights Foundation)

    The foundation’s goal is to educate the community about the rights of all animals who have been abused, abandoned, mistreated or are in need of a home.
     
    ARF conducts fundraisers and drives to support various organizations and causes, such as Wings of Rescue, which flies animals to a safe place when disaster strikes, and no-kill shelters such as Dade Animal Services in Doral
     
    They encourage their members to volunteer their time to organizations that help protect animals and preserve their rights.
Environment

List of 1 frequently asked questions.

  • ECO Club

    An Upper School organization at MCDS that is dedicated to improving the environment and health of the community. 
     
    They are aiming to develop innovative solutions that will fix, clean up, take care of and, most importantly, to prevent the negative effects imposed on the environment. 
     
    The club promotes service or educational awareness in a variety of ways: 
    • conservation efforts for plants, animals, ecosystems and biodiversity
    • energy, water and land efficiency and conservation
    • materials efficiency and better waste management
    • cleanup and prevention of pollution
    • exploration of food production
     
    We are living in a time where the need for a sustainability revolution is growing, and the ECO Club needs your help.
    • Take Action

MCDS is an Equal Opportunity Employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, age, religion, color, sex, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by Federal, State, or local laws.
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