Co-founded and developed by freshmen Alex Becker, Andrew Schiff, and Anthony Zito, Volunity is a website made to help students find community service opportunities in their area.
Volunity was built for students by students. The website features organizations that students are familiar with, such as El Sol, Loggerhead, and Place of Hope. It directly connects to students and steers them towards trusted organizations.
“The opportunities we list are ones that are loved and respected and used by students,” said Becker. “On other websites, how can you tell if it’s what the students really love or if it’s just some things posted online by adults?”
Becker recognized the desire among students to give back and the lack of accurate online resources. He quickly got to work, coding the website with the help of Lovable AI, an app-developing tool.
While Becker mainly codes and manages the website, his partners play other important roles: Schiff specializes in outreach and social media marketing, while Zito updates the large database of nearby service events. Many friends have also been recruited to advertise the website.
“Right now we’re doing vlogs with tons of interviews of what people think of Volunity,” explained freshman Izzy-Levi Minzi.
Levi-Minzi is a member of the social media crew. She and other members go around promoting Volunity to students during breaks and make videos and Canva slideshows for Volunity’s TikTok and Instagram.
The team is working hard to spread the word. Thanks to their efforts, most of the freshman class and beyond have already enrolled on Volunity’s website. And according to Becker, Volunity already has over 20 Oxbridge students signed up.
“I think it’s really helpful because I find it hard to find nearby opportunities, but [Volunity] has helped me,” said freshman Emilie Dunn.
In agreement, freshman Roman Levine commented: “I like that Volunity can help you to get community service hours while also making it fun with the leaderboard.”
On Volunity’s website, https://volunity.org/, students who are signed in can take part in the leaderboard Levine mentioned. Comparing hours with friends creates healthy competition and encourages students to sign up for more community service events.
For students looking to give back to the community, Volunity offers a starting point and connects them with local and reliable opportunities.
