Locating Volunteer Opportunities

CCEL resources for locating volunteer opportunities:

• Sign up for CCEL’s weekly e-newsletter to receive volunteer announcements local nonprofits share with the CCEL office for distribution.
• Follow CCEL’s CampusGroups page to stay informed on upcoming CCEL-coordinated service events.
• Explore CCEL’s Virtual Volunteering hub for ideas on how to serve remotely.
• Browse these issue area resource sheets to explore several local nonprofits by community issue area:
  • Health
  • Animal Welfare
  • Environment
  • Homelessness
  • Refugee and Immigrant Services
  • Food Insecurity
  • Youth and Education
• Make a community service advising appoint by contacting the CCEL staff (commservice@case.edu) - Zoom appointments available!

Local volunteer directories:

For date-specific volunteer options and other real-time volunteer listings in northeast Ohio, explore the following resources:

• Business Volunteers Unlimited
• Greater Cleveland Volunteers
• VolunteerMatch

National/international volunteer directories:

• All for Good, a service of Points of Light
• Catchafire, skills-based volunteering
• Idealist.org, resource to locate nonprofit jobs, internships, and volunteering
• omprakash, international service opportunities
• Taproot, skills-based volunteering
• United Nations, global and remote project-based volunteer roles

Many student organizations coordinate regular service opportunities with local nonprofits. You can search student organizations in CampusGroups (community.case.edu), and in addition to joining organizations' CampusGroups pages to stay informed, students are also encouraged to email club officers directly to learn how to become involved. Below are some organizations that have offered regular service opportunities in the past, and please browse CampusGroups for additional ideas of USG-recognized and UDC-recognized organizations to join.

• Advocates for Cleveland Health | Public health outreach, education, and advocacy opportunities
• Art Forward | Connects college student volunteers with youth involved in the juvenile justice system over monthly art projects
• Camp Kesem | Serve at day camps and fundraise for a camp experience for children affected by a parent's cancer
• Cleveland Public Schools Connection | Facilitating after school activities with middle school students
• Crossroads of Healthcare | Hosts dialogues on healthcare topics from all angles and strives to improve health literacy
• CWRU EMS | Support the workload of Cleveland EMS by responding to EMS calls on campus
• CWRU for Autism Acceptance | Advocacy, education, and awareness-raising about autism. Coordinates Sparties Running Buddies, running program with children on the spectrum.
• CWRU MedWish | Repair medical supplies that are donated to developing nations
• Equal Opportunity for All | Seeks to educate driven high school/middle school students on possible college pathways and job opportunities
• Food Recovery Network | Divert excess food from campus to area community centers
• Girls Who Code | Teach youth computer coding lessons
• Habitat for Humanity | Building and restoring homes. Volunteering at the Cleveland ReStore.
• Kids Against Hunger | Providing/packing food to be donated to local food distributors
• Labre Project | Building relationships with people experiencing homelessness
• Project Sunshine | Provide activities (arts, baking, games, etc.) for children with life-threatening illnesses
• Shadowing Case By Case | Engage in various service opportunities at nonprofits alongside a group of students interested in shadowing at area hospitals
• SpartanTHON | Support University Hospitals Rainbow Babies Children's Hospital through ongoing programs, including a 12-hour dance marathon

The below sites are located within walking distance from CWRU or are RTA HealthLine accessible from campus and are often popular service sites. Please visit the links below to learn more about volunteer needs. Here are sample email and phone call templates should you decide to reach out to any of these organizations in the future.