ExploreDC Service Projects

We will be selecting leaders in July and they will lead service days or trips to DC neighborhoods or both! Explore DC students will work as a team with their leaders to learn about and serve the various neighborhoods of the District. Learn more about your service site and the District's major neighborhoods.

 

A Wider Circle

A Wider Circle's Neighborhood Partnerships Program works to end poverty from directly within low-income neighborhoods. The program utilizes a collaborative model that focuses on the creation of safe neighborhoods, the provision of education and workforce readiness programs, the development of long-term support networks, and the assurance of quality housing and basic need items for all.

Martha's Table

Martha's Table began in 1979 as a result of the partnership between Dr. Veronica Maz and Father Horace McKenna, who wanted to create a safe place for children to eat and read after school. In response to the needs of the community, they were forced to expanded their services. Now, they address emergency needs with food and clothing programs, and work to ensure a bright future for children and families through education and family support services.

Food and Friends

Food & Friends is the only organization in the Washington, DC, area providing specialized, nutritious meals, groceries, nutrition counseling and friendship to people living with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other life-challenging illnesses. Their confidential services are free of charge to individuals and their families and caregivers living throughout Washington, DC, 7 counties of Maryland and 7 counties and 6 independent cities of Virginia.

Thrive DC

Thrive DC serves over 250 men and women each day, and couldn't do it without thousands of volunteers each year. Thrive DC works to prevent and end homelessness in Washington, DC by providing vulnerable people with a wide range of services to help stabilize their lives. They are a safety net for people experiencing homelessness, unemployment, housing instability, and food insecurity. With their services, our clients take the first steps toward independence and self-sufficiency.

dc reads

DC Reads is an umbrella of collaborative off-campus literacy programs that provide quality tutoring to children in need. It is a joint effort of local American University, its students, DC Public Schools, and community-based organizations to support literacy in Washington, DC.

Latino student fund

The Latino Student Fund’s (LSF) mission is to provide opportunities for a strong academic foundation for underserved PreK12th grade students of Hispanic descent to promote higher education and professional leadership. The LSF provides free programs for students from PreK-12 as well as their adult family members throughout the entire DC metro area.

For love of children

Nearly 75% of DC students perform at or below basic levels in reading and math. For Love of Children’s one-on-one tutoring program helps students achieve grade-level competency in reading and math. Each new tutor impacts the life of one more child. 

Ronald McDonald House

Ronald McDonald House Charities help provide financial assistance to families with children battling an illness. RMHC can help address those problems, whether they involve housing that's near a hospitalized child, the expense of staying together in another city, or even getting basic medical and dental care in a vulnerable community. RMHC cares about keeping families close to each other and the care they need.

Iona Senior Center

The birth of Iona stemmed from a growing number of questions to neighborhood churches on medical care, public services, and other social assistance. To improve their ability to handle such requests, several faith communities joined forces to establish a community service center. Staffed by enthusiastic volunteers and parish members, the center began offering information and referral services to all visitors, both old and young, as well as a few recreational classes. Less than a year later - and countless calls concerning older adults in the community - Iona took notice and shifted its role to focus primarily on aging services. Iona believes in education, advocating, and providing Community-Based services to help people age well and live well.

Metro Teen AIDS

Metro TeenAIDS provides resources to help young people fight AIDS and support each other. Metro TeenAIDS is the only organization in the D.C. area focusing all of its efforts on the unique prevention, education, and treatment needs of young people. During our more than 20 years of service, Metro TeenAIDS has provided education programs and prevention resources to well over 300,000 young people, family members, and youth workers living in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

National Park Service

The National Park Service preserves unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations. The Park Service cooperates with partners to extend the benefits of natural and cultural resource conservation and outdoor recreation throughout this country and the world.

Dumbarton Oaks Park Conservancy

Dumbarton Oaks Park Conservancy is a non-profit organization established in 2010 that is working to restore one of the United States of America's ten greatest garden landscape designs. The estate is a milestone in the history of American landscape architecture and a landmark in our social history, as it represents the finest work of Beatrix Farrand, America's first professional female landscape architect. Unfortunately, the Park has deteriorated significantly during the last half century due to resource limitations faced by the National Park Service (NPS), which has managed it since the Park passed from private to public hands in 1940.

Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture

Since its establishment in 2010, Arcadia's mission has been to improve the health of our community, support the viability of local farmers, and preserve the environment for future generations. Through our programs, we: Work to address issues of food access and food justice

Raise awareness about healthy food and its sources

Establish innovative connections between local, sustainable farms and consumers Arcadia Farm is located on the historic grounds of Woodlawn Estate in Alexandria, Virginia, thanks to a landmark partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the support and vision of Arcadia's Founder and Chairman, Michael Babin.

Spanish Education & Development Center

The Spanish Education Development (SED) Center was founded in 1971 when a group of community leaders and parents joined together to establish daycare services for their children. These services became the first bilingual preschool in Washington, DC. As the population grew and diversified, the SED Center developed programs to meet the changing needs of immigrants and their children. Today, the SED Center provides bilingual infant and preschool programs for children ages three months to four years old and a high quality adult education program that includes English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), computer training, and GED classes. For over 40 years, the SED Center has helped families take full advantage of all the social, educational, and economic opportunities available to them. Our programs reinforce positive interactions, the celebration of cultural and linguistic differences, and the enhancement of bilingualism and multiculturalism.

Bread for the City

The mission of Bread for the City is to provide residents of Washington, DC with comprehensive services, including food, clothing, medical care, and legal and social services, in an atmosphere of dignity and respect.
We recognize that all people share a common humanity, and that all are responsible to themselves and to society as a whole. Therefore, we promote the mutual collaboration of clients, volunteers, donors, staff, and other community partners to alleviate the suffering caused by poverty and to rectify the conditions that perpetuate it.

The Ethiopian Community Development Council

The Ethiopian Community Development Council serves the African immigrant and refugee community in the United States through a broad spectrum of programs that are conducted locally and nationally.ECDC's programs assist newcomers and improve their quality of life by helping them become productive individuals who give back to their community. On a national level, ECDC resettles refugees from around the world through a network of community-based affiliates and serves as a voice for African newcomers.