An important part of the Thomas College experience is learning how to be a community and how to give back and support your community.

That’s why all first-year students at Thomas College are required to take a course focused on community service.

The First Year Experience course is meant to give students an opportunity to learn about the mission and traditions of Thomas College and to facilitate engagement with key campus opportunities and resources. Through a combination of class meetings and outside of class experiences, the course introduces them to the campus community expectations and helps bridge their academic experiences with their co-curricular experiences, as well as introducing them to their peer mentor, who will help them navigate their first year and life away from home.

A group of 28 students recently volunteered downtown at the Waterville Rocks! Concert’s family component of creating vegetable instruments and then, using the leftover vegetable parts, making soup to pass out to the patrons. Later, there was an outside concert for everyone.

“Volunteering is one of the best ways to give back to the community. Community service brings the community together and unifies the community as a whole,” said student Zach Sukeforth ’21. “Volunteering at Waterville Rocks! was a great experience. I felt as if the whole community were one.”

The Thomas mission statement says Thomas College prepares students for success in their personal and professional lives, and for leadership and service in their communities.

“We saw numerous families come through our lines and play the instruments we created, as well as come and decorate pumpkins with us,” said student Paige Costa ’21. “It feels good to help people, especially little kids… it made me feel better as a person to be there helping out the community.”

Thomas College’s Jes Crowell took the students – and said it was a great event. She says community service is important in order to create a sustainable community.

“It is a chance for our students to see the area, in our case, the downtown of Waterville and its people, and see how important both are to the success of the community and to Thomas College.  It also allows us to teach and instill community service to our students, who will someday be the leaders in their own towns,” she said.

“Thomas College appreciates the city of Waterville and the surrounding areas for their support, and we want to show the communities that we care and appreciate them.”