Lauren Garson, '07, a psychology and child development major, got involved through her coursework -- Dr. Jennifer Ahern Dodson's "Civic Engagement and the Duke-Durham Partnership." As a tutor at Crest Street Community Center, Lauren felt the exhilaration of making learning so fun that her students wanted to know even more.

"Enjoyment is an essential component of tutoring," she says. "When J.R. and Jamal became excited about learning and academics, I found that they retained more of the skills we addressed during sessions. Additionally, our relationships proved to be much more meaningful."

She found the experience so fulfilling that she went on to become a service learning assistant at West End Community Center

More than 75 percent of Duke students volunteer in the community at least once during their time at the university, and all of them should. Volunteering is a way to leave the stress of campus life behind, become part of your adopted community and make the world better.

We welcome you to look over the partnership's neighborhood priorities and suggest ways you'd like to help. Here are a few ready-made opportunities:

• Help Durham schoolchildren as an America Reads or America Counts tutor
• Help build and renovate affordable housing
• Help tutor/mentor a neighborhood child through Partners for Youth or Project HOPE

Get started: Duke's Community Service Center at the Office of Student Affairs registers volunteers for these opportunities and others outside the Neighborhood Partnership: http://csc.studentaffairs.duke.edu/index.html.

Also, check out service learning opportunities in the public schools: http://www.duke .edu/web/pfs/