Community Service Organizations

Redlands is nationally recognized as a leader in community service learning. One way community service is advanced is through our community service clubs and organizations.

Current on-campus service clubs include:

• Alpha Phi Omega (APO)—a national co-ed service fraternity re-founded on campus in 2008. The group’s mission is to unite college students in a national service organization that stresses principles of good service practice, leadership development, the promotion of friendships, the providing of service to humanity and the advancing of the freedom that is our national, educational and intellectual heritage. The fraternity has supported Redlands Family Service, Boys and Girls Club of Redlands, Soles 4 Soles, Operation Christmas Child, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, AIDS Walk Los Angeles, Habitat for Humanity, Invisible Children, Big Buddies and the Special Olympics.
• Big Buddies—a service program that serves children and teens in the community by pairing them with a Redlands student. One program, Little Buddies, is for children ages 6 to 10, and a second, Middle Buddies, is for children ages 11 to 14. Redlands students work in groups with the children, and also are paired individually within the group model. The group meets weekly, providing tutoring and homework assistance and leading games and other activities designed to provide interaction between college students and their buddies.
• College and High-School Alliance Mentoring Program and Service (CHAMPs)—an afterschool program that serves graduates of the Middle Buddies Program who have moved into high school. The program is designed to allow high school students to continue to develop leadership and self-confidence and to expand on what they learned in the Middle Buddies program.
• Fidelity Isonomy Erudition (FIE)—a non-Greek, co-ed organization established to bring students together for community service and a sense of social belonging and siblinghood. Members work to promote campus and community-wide awareness about social justice issues and to serve the community in ways that address social justice issues, namely those created by inequality and poverty.
• Habitat for Humanity—an organization dedicated to improving housing for low-income families. The chapter raises funds to help build and improve local housing, providing safe, quality housing to low-income people. They also help to build the homes and spend time promoting awareness of poverty in our society. The group often works alongside the San Bernardino affiliate.
• Invisible Children—a campus chapter of the larger non-profit organization, which works to raise awareness and financial aid for war affected children in northern Uganda through film screenings, parties with a purpose, compassion fashion clothing, benefit CDs and concerts, book drives, letter writing campaigns and change for change collections

• KIVA—"Loans that change lives", Kiva empowers groups and individuals to lend to an entrepreneur across the world, carrying the mission to “connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.” Kiva operates under the following beliefs: People, by nature, are generous and will help others if given the opportunity in an accountable way; The poor are highly motivated and can be very successful when given an opportunity; By connecting people we can create relationships beyond financial transactions, and build a global community expressing support and encouragement of one another. The office of Community Service Learning has initiated fundraising on campus and has found great support from students. University donors have the ability to virtually see the individuals whose lives they are impacting through the entrepreneurs’ online Kiva profile.

• Maroon and Grey—an organization of students that exists to promote the University of Redlands and whose President is a non-voting member of the Town & Gown Board of Directors.
• Mortar Board—a national college senior honor society that promotes scholarship, leadership and service.
• Quarters for Kenya—a project of the Redlands Sunrise Rotary Foundation, the Redlands Rotary Club, the San Bernardino Crossroads Rotary Club and the Rotary Club of Downey, which focuses on raising funds to build sanctuaries/orphanages in Kenya through Discover the World and The Shepherd's Homes.
• Rangi Ya Giza (RYG)—an organization for male students interested in advancing race relations and racial understanding on the Redlands campus and beyond. The group is a non-Greek brotherhood that focuses on camaraderie, diversity, leadership and service at the local, national and international level.
• Read, Empower, Attain, Create and Hope (REACH)—a program that pairs Redlands student volunteers with youth who are in custody. Our students spend time reading, writing and cultivating hope with children who are incarcerated.
• Roots and Shoots—a global, youth environmental education program that works to provide service-learning opportunities concerning animals, the environment and the human community. Students are engaged through the education model that knowledge leads to compassion which leads to action. The Redlands Roots & Shoots group works with 5th graders at Franklin Elementary School, supplementing life-science education with global perspective and service activities.
• Rotoract—provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and builds good will in the community and across the globe  
• Service, Patriotism, Unity, Responsibility and Sacrifice (SPURS)—a national honorary for sophomore women dedicated to scholarship and service.
• TOMS Shoes—campus representatives of the philanthropic business, which works to bring awareness and support to children in underdeveloped nations by providing them with shoes, thereby preventing disease and infection, and allowing them to attend school
• University Humor Outreach Program (UHOP)—helps children in local foster homes and communities learn important skills and qualities through fun and interactive character building workshops.
• Wadada Wa Rangi Wengi (WRW)—a non-Greek organization of “womyn” on campus who work to create awareness for female-oriented causes and concerns. The group supports a number of causes through donations of time and money.

• Big Buddies
• College & High School Alliance Mentoring Program
• Alpha Phi Omega