Service Learning

Each member of the Bay School community recognizes a personal and social responsibility topromote a better world. Our service learning program grows directly from the Bay School mission—recognizing that the health of our school community is strengthened by our ability to look outward as well as inward.

Service learning at the Bay School occurs in several dimensions: curricular, extracurricular, and
institutional. For example, all sophomores take Research and the Community, a one-trimester
course focused on opening students’ eyes to the needs and issues of our regional community.
Working with local agencies and companies, students strive to produce work that responds to the
needs of specific neighborhoods. All seniors pursue individual senior projects, a two-trimester
graduation requirement, and these projects often incorporate service objectives in their work plans.

Outside of the classroom, many Bay School students identify and respond to local and regional
needs through participation in the Community Service Club and the Eco Club, both of which are
student-driven under the supervision of faculty advisors. In addition, the entire school engages
periodically in projects designed to enhance and protect the resources of the Presidio.

Service learning projects at the Bay School are intentionally planned to enhance the academic
curriculum and to offer students structured opportunities to learn about, and to directly experience,
the realities of important social issues. Built into these activities are opportunities for personal
reflection—the process of thinking, talking, and writing about their service—that enable students
to process and to learn from their experiences.