May 15, 2026
By Gabriella Cerreta
Deputy Editor
High schools across the state and country require community service for graduation. Among them are The Lawrenceville School and Newark Public Schools in New Jersey and Maspeth High School and Pelham Memorial High School in New York.
Thankfully, LHS does not have a community service requirement for graduation. While volunteering is valuable, making it mandatory is a bad idea.
Service is most meaningful when it is freely chosen. When students are forced to complete a certain number of community service hours, the focus shifts from helping others to fulfilling an obligation. It undermines the purpose of volunteerism by compelling students to complete required hours rather than serving out of genuine desire.
Adding a service requirement could also reduce graduation rates. From an ethical standpoint, it would be wrong to delay or prevent a student who has passed all of their classes or has enough credits to graduate from doing so.
Furthermore, high school students already have huge demands on their schedules, including after-school activities, caretaking responsibilities, homework, part-time jobs and sports. Many are also enrolled in Advanced Placement, dual enrollment and honors classes, which come with heavy workloads. Requiring volunteer hours in addition to these commitments can push students past their healthy limits.
When students are forced to complete a certain number of community service hours, the focus shifts from helping others to fulfilling an obligation.
When students feel overwhelmed, they may begin to resent volunteering. A responsibility meant to inspire empathy and engagement could create frustration and stress. In some cases, students might even drop hobbies and interests they are passionate about to make time to meet such a graduation requirement.
Instead of making volunteering compulsory, schools should focus on encouraging it. They could highlight the value of volunteering and expose students to a range of optional volunteer opportunities. This way, students could select events that fit their interests and schedules.
Volunteering should be about heart, not hours. While high schools can promote service, they should not mandate it. By doing so, schools can encourage students to give back in sincere and meaningful ways.
