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Volunteer service programs provide students with different opportunities to dedicate time, enthusiasm, skills, and contribute their own strength to the local community and society. Participating in volunteer programs led by DKU Youth League Working Committee and Volunteer Association or becoming a volunteer in any activities they are interested in are both welcomed. Through our volunteer programs, students could find more diverse chances to connect with different local communities.
The Volunteer Association of Duke Kunshan University carries out volunteer service activities under the guidance of DKU Youth League Working Committee which includes voluntary teaching programs, community engaging activities, events support, donations, and library volunteer services activities. If you are interested in these programs, please contact us via dku-chinese-student-services@dukekunshan.edu.cn.
DKU Volunteer Association (DKUVA) was founded based on 3 student clubs which were KEY clubs, DKU home and DKU tree charity. These 3 clubs used to focus on voluntary activities such as local community services, volunteer teaching or donation events. DKUVA will keep on exploring more opportunities for DKU community to donate their knowledge, skills, and time.
Goals:
• To provide a platform for students to engage in meaningful volunteer work that aligns with the university’s mission of social responsibility and community engagement.
• To promote English language learning and education among students, especially among underprivileged communities.
• To carry out activities in communities near the DKU campus and build stronger connections between DKU students and the local community.
• To focus on volunteer teaching in rural areas during summer breaks and engage in charity activities like collecting and donating clothes to people in need.
• To foster innovation and creativity by encouraging the development of new project ideas and providing a platform to implement them.
• To streamline the organization’s management structure and recruit more volunteers to enhance its capacity and reach.
With the collaboration between CSS Office and Kunshan Education Department, more than 40 DKU students had the opportunity to be a volunteer teacher in the primary and middle schools in Bijiang District, Tongren, Guizhou in 2021 and 2023. Tongren is located at the junction of Guizhou, Hunan, and Chongqing provinces. Since 2013, when the central government made clear the pairing of Jiangsu province and Guizhou province, the two provinces have cooperated closely and continued to exchange and support each other in various fields and brought the cooperation between Suzhou and Tongren. Our student volunteers provided diverse courses for children, including English workshops, sports training sessions, calligraphy workshops, astronomy seminars etc. when they served in Tongren.
To support the consolidation and implementation of poverty alleviation achievements in Bijiang District, Tongren City, Guizhou Province, and to provide local students with a better learning environment, the Tongren volunteer teaching program ended successfully with the support of Kunshan Education Bureau and Bijiang District Education Bureau in June 2023. Adhering to the volunteer spirit of “Dedication, Friendship, Mutual Assistance, and Progress” and the goal of “Knowledge is to serve the Society”, we hope that we can continue to provide effective and helpful volunteer services for local schools and add a modest contribution to the development and improvement of education in Tongren.
Volunteers from DKU Volunteer Association visited Suzhou Star Primary School to assist in public welfare teaching activities from June 10 to June 11 in 2023. Our volunteers spent time with students from 3rd grade and taught them various courses such as arts, astronomy, geography, and English.
13 volunteers from Duke Kunshan University Volunteer Association, with a deep concern for the left-behind children and the mission of rural revitalization in mind, came to Changshan County, Quzhou City, Zhejiang Province, carrying out a one-week summer voluntary teaching activity entitled “Accompanying Communication, Embracing the World” from 3rd to 7th in July 2023.
Volunteer Association will collaborate with Kunshan local communities to organized events as English learning, art, or music workshops to help more people get these resources.
Tiancheng Primary school (天成希望小学) locates in one of the poorest towns in China, the Jinyang town in the Da-liang Mountain area. To help create a better learning environment for the children in Tiancheng primary school, DKU Tree Charity (now is part of the Volunteer Association) collaborated with the primary school and donated a fund raised by DKU students’ consumption which is usually used to by the bubble tea. The donation was used to buy school supplies and set up a scholarship in this school.
During every final week, students need to pack up all their belongings to a new dormitory and they may throw some used clothing. Therefore, it is an opportunity for students to donate their stuff. The Volunteer Association will send notifications about the donation activity, collect used clothing, and donate to the local charity.
During the prevention and control period of COVID-19, our students independently initiated donations and raised RMB 414,720 to purchase protective equipment for medics and hospitals in Wuhan.
When we are encouraging students to think globally, we hope them to start from acting locally as an engaged person, starting from the resources around them. So apart from engaging the local community, we also hope students can look inside DKU to find the chances they are interested in.
To help build a good learning environment in the library and enrich the on-campus volunteer service experience of DKU community, Volunteer Association is working with Library to find volunteers for help. Volunteers will help with shelving and maintaining order once every two weeks for 2 to 3 hours in the morning or afternoon on Thursday.
Library Volunteer program is a pilot program for DKU community volunteer programs. More programs are coming soon.
