Community Education - Rochester, Minnesota

Summer of Service is a service-learning summer program for youth entering grades 5-12. During each two-week session, students will work in teams to perform service projects in our community, witness the missions of local organizations firsthand, and reflect on how their personal talents can be used in service to others. Fridays are designated for Fun Friday activities where we will celebrate our work! Join SOS for two weeks of fun today!

We recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of SOS, and we can't wait to continue our mission:

“The main reason to begin a Summer of Service program in our community is to show youth that our community values them and challenges them to contribute through service…This Summer of Service program will give our youth the skills and tools necessary to help our community, at the same time allowing them to develop through a structured program.”

-Proposal for SOS in 1997

Full Days of SOS

During COVID precautions, Summer of Service was split into half day camp. We are excited to announce that Summer of Service 2024 will be a full day camp! This will give us the potential for bigger projects and more elaborate Fun Fridays.

SOS Sessions

Session 1: June 17-21, June 24-28. No SOS on June 19

Session 2: July 8-12, July 15-19

Session 3: July 22-26, July 29-August 2

Students are welcome to register for multiple two-week sessions. Similar service projects may be repeated between sessions.

Community Partners

We are proud to serve non-profit organizations in Rochester and the surrounding area. We take buses to their locations, they teach us about their missions, and we help them with whatever projects they have planned for us. Ten students can get a lot done in just a few hours, and over the course of the summer, multiple teams of SOS students can leave a meaningful impact. These are a few of our partners from recent years:

Camp Companion

Channel One

Family Promise Rochester

Habitat for Humanity

PossAbilities

Seasons Hospice

T-Shirts

You will see us all over town in our iconic tie-dye t-shirts. Participants must wear an SOS t-shirt each day. One t-shirt is included, and additional t-shirts can be purchased during registration. Returning participants may wear SOS t-shirts from previous years.

Drop-off and Pick-up

Supervision and building access will not be available for students before and after the program. We kindly ask all parents/guardians to respect these times to ensure the safety and well-being of our students.

Drop-Off: 7:30-8:00 AM Students may NOT be dropped off prior to 7:30 AM.

Pick-Up: 3:30-4:00 PM All students MUST be picked up promptly.

Medications

Students must self-carry and self-administer all medications.

Keep in Touch

Please contact Rochester Community Education with any questions at RochesterCE@rochesterschools.org or 507-328-4000 Ext.1. A parent/guardian handbook will be emailed to all participants prior to each session start date.