Volunteer Venture

Volunteer Venture is a service-learning Leading Edge program for incoming students. Sponsored by the Shepherd Program, VV allows participants to build meaningful relationships and explore issues related to poverty, inequality, and opportunity through service with community-based agencies, guest speakers, and group discussion related to a thematic issue: 1) Food and Housing Insecurity; 2) Law and Justice; 3) Public Health; or 4) Local Community Immersion.

Volunteer Venture trips are facilitated by upper-class student leaders who are excited to meet you and make this the trip of a lifetime! We hope to make your introduction to Washington and Lee a memorable and meaningful experience. For questions about the Volunteer Venture program, please contact Jenny Davidson, Associate Director of the Shepherd Program, jdavidson@wlu.edu or 540-458-4669. For questions regarding registration, please email theleadingedge@wlu.edu or 540-458-8754.

"[The most valuable aspect of Volunteer Venture was] definitely the closeness of our Volunteer Venture group. I made some really great close friends all while learning about food and housing insecurity and serving the community. I liked that the opportunities we learned about were accessible for us to keep volunteering at during the school year as a student. I also liked how we could interact directly with some of the people we helped."
- VV Lexington: Food and Housing Security Trip Participant

"[We learned] up close and personal about poverty and how it connects to public health, even in ways you might not expect at first. It was valuable learning about the effects of poverty and exploring solutions in a hands-on way."
-VV Charlotte: Public Health Trip Participant

"The people that I was with were incredibly willing to engage with other and that was really comforting. Both the leaders and my fellow participants were amazing and helped me examine and grow in my personal views on poverty and the criminal justice system."
-VV Greensboro: Law and Justice Trip Participant

Trip Highlights and Overview:

You'll have the opportunity to meet your trip leaders before heading to your end destination but plan to stay in your dorm until the Monday morning departure.
Upon arriving in your destination city you'll arrive at your housing (most often a church gymnasium) and begin orienting to the city and topic of choice.
Breakfast will be provided at your housing each morning and you'll pack brown bag lunches throughout the week. Dietary restrictions will be accommodated but please be sure to communicate any needs to your trip leaders.
Be sure to pack clothes for a variety of volunteer sites and one nicer outfit for an alumni event. Don't forget a sleeping bag, toiletries, a water bottle, hats, closed toe shoes and sunscreen!
There will be a bit of down time each day, but most of the time will be spent in the group participating in group activities or involved in service.
Trips return to campus by noon on Friday. Reflect on the experience in the afternoon and conclude with a Leading Edge dinner on Canaan Green.

We hope to make your introduction to W&L a memorable and meaningful experience. For questions about the Volunteer Venture program, please contact Jenny Davidson, Associate Director of the Shepherd Program, jdavidson@wlu.edu or 540-458-4669. For questions regarding registration, please email leadingedge@wlu.edu or 540-458-8037.