Making a Real Connection: Islanders Give Back Through Student Volunteer Connection Program
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Growing a successful garden takes hard work, dedication, and patience — the same qualities it takes to earn a college degree.
On a beautiful spring afternoon in Corpus Christi, Grace Williams ’27 is learning that lesson firsthand. The mechanical engineering major is one of a dozen students volunteering at a community garden run by the nonprofit Grow Local South Texas. As she pulls away dead vines tangled around the garden’s fence, she sees the parallels between tending a garden and tending her future.
“Volunteering has taught me a lot about having initiative, leadership, and teamwork,” Williams said. “I really love giving back, and I am so happy I found SVC.”
Student Volunteer Connection (SVC) organizes volunteer and community service opportunities for students across campus. Open to anyone willing to roll up their sleeves, the student organization gives Islanders opportunities to make a meaningful impact while building friendships and skills that extend beyond the classroom.
For more than 20 years, SVC has helped shape civic-minded leaders one service project at a time.
“Our mission is to help students create their Islander Impact,” said Benjamin Oliveira ’22, Student Activities Coordinator for Service and SVC adviser. “It’s about helping our Islander students connect to service and understand that being an Islander means giving back.”
That commitment to service stretches far beyond the Coastal Bend. Each semester, selected students participate in an Alternative Break — traveling during winter or spring break to serve communities in need rather than heading off on vacation.
Last year, a group traveled to North Carolina to assist communities recovering from Hurricane Helene, which caused widespread damage after making landfall in September 2024.
“That was the largest group of students we’ve ever taken on an Alternative Break,” Oliveira said. “We had three vehicles full of students. It was the furthest and longest trip we’ve ever done. They worked incredibly hard, but they also got to see the real impact of what they were doing.”
Among them was Isabela Garcia ’27, an elementary education major. The experience was so meaningful that she now serves as SVC’s Alternative Break Coordinator, helping plan future trips.
“We met people whose homes we were working on — people who had been directly affected by the floods,” Garcia said. “To see the emotion and gratitude on their faces was life changing. I’ve fallen in love with volunteering. I don’t think I’ll ever stop.”
While the gratitude of those they serve keeps students coming back, their reasons for joining SVC vary. Some are looking to build their resumes. Others are looking to build their community.
“I joined SVC my freshman year because I was searching for friendships,” said Jacob Schirmer ’26, a graphic design major. “It has been fun meeting people, going to events, and volunteering. It is a very social organization, and it has really helped me with my communication skills.”
Isabella Bingham ’26, an environmental science major, credits SVC with strengthening her confidence and leadership since she joined in 2023.
“I want to work in a national or state park in environmental education,” Bingham said. “Those jobs involve public outreach and connecting people with the outdoors. This program has really helped me become more confident talking to different kinds of people and doing outreach.”
Each semester, hundreds of students participate in SVC, balancing volunteer opportunities — typically held on Fridays and Saturdays — with busy class schedules.
“SVC helps students connect with classmates they might not otherwise meet,” Oliveira said. “We have nursing students, fine arts students, engineering students — a little bit of everyone from across campus. It’s great to see them working together.”
One of the organization’s signature traditions is The BIG Event, launched in 2008 and now the university’s largest student-led day of service. Its success inspired a fall counterpart, The Little Event, doubling the opportunities for Islanders to serve.
From the Gulf Coast Humane Society and the Salvation Army to the Coastal Bend Food Bank and the USS Lexington, local nonprofits have felt the impact of SVC’s dedication.
“What makes SVC special is that the benefit truly goes both ways,” Oliveira said. “Nonprofits receive much-needed help, and our students gain leadership skills, connections, and confidence. Most importantly, they discover a passion for service.”
Like a well-tended garden, that passion grows — season after season — shaping not only stronger communities, but stronger students as well.
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