Students of Service (SOS) - Changemaker Kits

Research shows the link between extracurricular activities and beneficial academic, psychological, social and behavioral outcomes is stronger for disadvantaged children compared to their more privileged peers. Service learning (and especially service learning with a social justice emphasis) also has a positive impact with strong outcomes in students’ cognitive development, awareness of unconscious bias, tolerance and belief in the value of diversity. Yet, disadvantaged and vulnerable students are far less likely to have access to these types of experiences of any kind – much less opportunities designed around our increasingly diverse, interconnected world and workforce.

Studies show disadvantaged and vulnerable students are more likely to engage in such opportunities if they were offered by schools. But data supports the fact that schools with high concentrations of students from low-income homes have fewer resources (financial, human, infrastructural and time) to put towards providing these experiences. So, not only are such opportunities are far less likely to be offered in disadvantaged schools, students from disadvantaged families are far less likely to participate than their more advantaged peers in any school. This inequity can lead to educational and economic disparities expanding beyond high school, to college and beyond.

The 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment notes educational performance and attainment as a major community need. Through SOS's unique programs, we help to close the gap for students that are typically not able to access programs that foster educational attainment. All San Antonio area students in 6th-12th grade are eligible to join SOS for free. Lack of access to out-of-school learning opportunities like service-learning, international programs and travel disproportionately affects low-income students, a gap SOS seeks to address.

The inequities in our educational system increased during the COVID-19 pandemic; McKinsey & Company recently reported that the pandemic increased “preexisting opportunity and achievement gaps, hitting historically disadvantaged students hardest,” creating academic gaps. Texas’s Expanded Learning Opportunities Council (ELOC), has concluded that youth benefit from opportunities for structured educational experiences outside the traditional classroom. In addition to improvements in core skills, test performance, and graduation rates, students also gain socio-emotional benefits. 

Students of Service (SOS) has demonstrated that when youth are given the opportunities, guidance, and resources, they can change their communities for the better.  Internally, past surveys showed that 91% of students agreed that SOS had a major impact on their goals on and after high school graduation, as well as playing a role in their acceptance to college. We want to help scale this model around the world, so that young people everywhere can rise and make change. 

We will need this movement of kindness and compassion, that is driven by youth, serving their own communities and reaching out to build bonds of friendship around the world. We will help create a generation of youth leaders in action who will build a better world. We will empower young people with hearts of service, to better their communities through volunteering and living out the concept of global citizenship.

Our solution is to take the various pieces of the SOS machine that have worked so well here in San Antonio, and combine them into an SOS App! The app would combine the various technologies that SOS has currently patchwork together, to create its own platform that allows local communities to create their own in-person service-learning and volunteer opportunities. The app will let students sign up for volunteer opportunities, track hours, measure impact, and generate volunteers resumes. It will help students align the skills they have acquired through volunteering with workforce skills, so that when they apply for their first job, they will have valuable experience to show. The app will also allow for students to connect and collaborate globally, by allowing teachers to partner with classes around the world in a "digital pen pal" virtual exchange.

The SOS App will have Common Core-aligned curriculum covering the areas of service learning, civic engagement, global learning and leadership. Schools will be able to license content to be presented by teachers in the classroom or in an after-school format, or individual teachers may purchase content for their classrooms through Teachers Pay Teachers. As an additional mode of revenue, SOS also plans to use the curriculum as part of a fee for service package to schools abroad wishing to engage in virtual exchange with students in the United States. Finally, SOS will be able to utilize this platform to enrich current in-house programming for participating students.  

We will be able to supply every teacher who wants to help their students make positive social change with kits, both physical and for digital download, with the resources and tools needed to engage their communities, serve their communities and connect with the world.  

SOS is committed to serving all students 12-18 years old in the San Antonio metropolitan area, regardless of their background. We focus on students from disadvantaged backgrounds with a novel approach: including students with advantages so that the cross-demographic connections lift up the disadvantaged students through increased social capital, and unifying our community by building relationships throughout the city.

In 2022 we directly served 645 students through our Learn, Serve, and Explore programs, though many more benefited from the resources shared in our newsletter and website. Our students come from 159 schools across 20 school districts in the San Antonio service area, including students from 7 counties. 45% of our students attend Title I schools. In 2022, about 62% of our students were female, and 35% male. Around 72% of students identified as people of color. Regardless of where they come from, many students come to us with mental health concerns, family difficulties, and a deep need for community and belonging.

This solution will allow the SOS model to be used and adapted to students all over the world, in ways that work for their local communities, while connecting students from around the world on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's).

Students of Service (SOS) develops young leaders who have a global perspective to solve local problems. Founded in 2014, SOS provides underserved young people in San Antonio, Texas with meaningful out-of-school learning opportunities. 

SOS centers on three core programs: Learn, Serve, and Explore. The Serve program promotes youth empowerment and socially conscious entrepreneurship through local community service at area nonprofits. The Make It Happen (MIH) initiative is student-driven; students submit their community service ideas to SOS and staff partner with them to bring their ideas to life. The Explore program exposes young people to new ideas through international trips with customized curriculum. The Learn program ties everything together, providing meaningful learning that enriches their experience.

SOS is the right team to deliver this solution because it has always been a bottom-up organization. We were designed with students, parents and teachers, for our community, and to make an impact globally.

We know that our work inspires students to want to improve their community. Many students have reported finding their passion and purpose after being inspired by their SOS journey. They come back more service-minded, and often commit to careers in education, environmental improvement, business, and government. Regardless of sector, they are committed to servant-leadership. 

Many organizations with a global focus also begin their work when students are already in post-secondary education. SOS believes that providing travel and service learning opportunities to younger students in middle and high school, especially students of color and from disadvantaged backgrounds, can be a game changer for students who might otherwise struggle to determine their path in life. Experiences SOS offers that connect young people to their peers and get them excited about their communities and their place in the world make a difference in stoking motivation to continue in school and level the playing field in access to skill-building and character development experiences for all students.

Our team leader is a person of color, who grew up low income. His first time doing community service was actually court-ordered. He understands the challenges of growing up with poverty, racism, and felt the sting of being not included in his community as a child. He could have easily ended up down the wrong path, like many of his friends, but he had good mentors, and was exposed to the power of service to others and international travel and it changed his life, and now he wants to share this model with youth to change their lives for the better.  Amir founded the organization in an inner-city, high-need school, as a middle school teacher of color over 9 years ago, and the organization grows stronger every day! The organization has been a team effort from the beginning and the model can work anywhere!

We are applying to Solve because we believe that the solution that we have created and implemented on a grassroots level here in San Antonio, is replicable around the world, and can have a massive impact in the aggregate, if we can scale it the way we envision that it can be done. Technology is a key part of the solution, but tried and true community building is the key ingredient that sets us apart.  We hope to leverage the best and brightest minds that Solve has to offer to help us make this vision a reality.

Our solution is innovative because it combines modern technology through our website, platforms, online curricula, with old-fashioned community organizing and community-building, meeting young people where they are, and bringing them together in ways that have served humanity well over millennia, and honestly, have suffered in recent years due to an imbalance in how we have used technology to connect.

We believe this will allow for cross-pollination of ideas around the world as we build this platform collectively, and in a way that encourages community-building.

I would like SOS to spend the next 3 years improving on what we have done, creating processes and “recipe kits” that can be used all over the country. I would like to decentralize the way people engage with the organization so that we are more student-driven, teacher-supportive, and community-based. I would like to see SOS create a global network of youth in action, making a difference where they live, breaking down barriers between people, and building bridges internationally.

Our goal for the next 3 years is to evolve SOS toward a refined model that will lend itself to scaling to a bigger movement, with eventual chapters all over the nation and the world. We need to take what we have done over the last 9 years and find a way to codify it, and create a toolkit and roadmap of change that empowers local leaders all over the world to bring positive change to their own communities. Instead of one leader that leads the movement, there will be thousands of leaders, all over the world, making a deeper impact on a smaller scale. Taken in totality, these deep smaller scale impacts will become a network of deep large-scale impacts. Each SOSer will be empowered to make a difference and be of service to others and their communities. The movement will be made up of and driven by students, teachers, parents, community, industry, nonprofits, and any other group that joins the movement to lift our communities up through service to others. We currently have nearly 2,000 students involved in San Antonio, but we will expand to 5,000 over the next three years. We will build up to 3 new chapters across Texas over the next three years and position ourselves for growth beyond Texas!

We currently work to solve all of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by allowing student to choose the areas and causes that they are most passionate about. We measure number of volunteers, numbers of events, hours served, and we can break them all down by UNSDG type!

If young people from diverse backgrounds engage in leadership development, global education, and service learning in developing countries, they will increase their potential to become succesful and responsible global citizens.

SOS is scalable and adaptable to communities all over the world thanks to the use of various platforms. Our website, community service portal, SMS messaging, social media, and the development of a web app all play a significant role in making SOS accessible to communities worldwide.

The website serves as a central hub for information about SOS and allows users to easily access resources and connect with volunteers. The community service portal provides a platform for users to request assistance and for volunteers to offer their services. SMS messaging is a useful tool for reaching people who may not have access to the internet. By using social media, we can reach a wider audience and spread awareness of our services.

The development of a web app is a significant step in making SOS even more scalable and adaptable. The app will allow users to access SOS services directly from their mobile devices, making it even easier for people to get the help they need.

By using these various platforms, SOS can adapt to the specific needs of communities all over the world. For example, in areas where internet access is limited, SMS messaging can be used to connect with those in need. Additionally, social media can be used to reach specific demographics or communities.

Taken in concert and with the development of our new app, SOS's technology will allow us to reach a wider audience and provide services to communities all over the world!