El Capitan High School offers a Silver Cord Program for students who participate in community service activities. The Silver Cord is awarded at the end of the student's graduation year to those seniors who have completed a minimum of 250 hours of volunteer service in the community. The hours can be completed over the course of the student's high school career. The student is responsible for:

• Locating a volunteer site
• Documenting their time
• Submitting time sheets before the deadline

*See Evelyn Garcia in the Counseling Office to validate your hours prior to beginning any community service.

• All students are eligible to participate in the program.

• Students may provide volunteer service to the school and/or non-profit organizations in the community. Volunteering only counts for NON-PROFIT organizations. For example, working in a restaurant, store, hair salon, etc. will NOT count towards community service. If people can profit off of the organization, it doesn't count!! NON-PROFIT, NON-PROFIT, NON-PROFIT!!

• Students must perform volunteer service on their own time. Service performed while classes are in session, with the exception of service performed by participants during their lunch period may not be counted for awards.

• Students may not receive academic credit or be paid for service rendered.

• Service rendered as a prerequisite for employment will not be counted for awards.

• Attendance at self-improvement workshops or conferences will not count.

• All service must comply with school board policies.

Participation in performances, festivals or competitions does not count as volunteer service unless:

a. the performance meets an identified community service need and

b. There is no admission charge or donation accepted for the performance and

c. student participation is of a voluntary nature and

d. the performance does not promote the sponsoring organization and

e. neither the student organization nor the sponsoring organization receives any form of payment for the performance.

• Rehearsal and practice time may never be counted for volunteer service hours.

• Fundraising, except for specifically approved non-profit charities, cannot be counted.

Service performed for the student's own family or for profit-making organizations except for hospitals and veterinary clinics may not be counted for awards. NON-PROFIT, NON-PROFIT, NON-PROFIT!!

• Service performed as a result of disciplinary action cannot be counted.

• Participation in varsity or junior varsity athletics does not constitute volunteer service in this program.

• Attending meetings as part of a membership requirement cannot be counted.

• Students may earn hours toward individual recognition while working on projects that will earn recognition for their club or organization as long as those hours also fit the Student Volunteer Guidelines for individual students.

Volunteer work done to promote a particular religious point of view cannot be counted as volunteer hours in the program.

• Activities occurring on weekends or school vacations will count for a maximum of 8 hours per day