Service Through Resume Building

        Jason Samuels and Christian Samuels

Jason

For the service-learning project, some students took part in supporting job seekers. Christian and I worked with former convicts to help them create or polish a resume. These sessions happened on Tuesday from 11:40 am-1 pm. Participants traveled to 50th Broadway up to the 18th floor, went through a quick orientation, and then helped a person either in the little classroom or in cubicles. For both sessions I helped polish an already-made resume, to make it more professional for seeking a job. It was fulfilling not only to help out a person in need, but also to see a smile on their face when I showed them the finished product, and to give them a handshake when we were done with the session. Not only the smile, but the handshake showed that I was comfortable with him and was not treating him like he was less of a person.

There were at least 7 to 9 other volunteers of all ages to help make a resume. Some volunteers have gone to every session or more than one, showing how working together can be beneficial.  Outside of the specific person that was helped, a positive consensus from the group was a feeling of giving someone a second chance. The first quote to show this is from Steger. It says, “They suggest that we are not moving towards a cultural rainbow that reflects the diversity of the world’s existing populations...London, Paris, and Milan” (84). I use this quote because it is ok if people are different (have a criminal background or not), it is about finding the right work for them to be in to help be productive in this world.  

Even though these individuals are in the process of going back into the world of work, it is important to treat everyone with trust and respect which will go a long way. The second quote is from Trust & Respect: The World’s Greatest Currency, a blog for human rights. Treating people with trust and respect is important because it is invaluable and “moves civilizations” (Natalye Paquin, 2019). Just because someone went through something does not make them less worthy of working. These individuals can just throw in the towel and continue being stagnant, but to witness the drive for betterment is a testament to turning a new leaf. The third quote is from the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” Article 1 says, “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.” This quote shows everyone has rights.

Christian

This concept was actively expressed during the time that Jason and I spent at the job center. This was shown to us in the way that we were told to handle the situation. I was personally told to not dwell on or discuss the place where former convicts were held, and our main focus was to prepare them for their second chance in life. I believe that the work that we did will help change the inequity between us and those who made unfortunate decisions and are now starting their second chance without the knowledge. Through this service we finally understood the quote made by Novella Zett Keith in Community Service Learning in the Face of Globalization: Rethinking Theory and Practice “There are implications here for the community that needs to be met through service-learning, such as the need for people to come together, across differences, to address local and global issues and develop more expansive communities” (6).

I realized the reality of this quote during my discussion with the former inmate, and even though I had previously discussed the emphasis of not focusing on a former inmate's past I realized that ironically while making the resume that's exactly what I did. During the process of adding things for their experience and education in their resume, I got a vague picture of what this former inmate's life was like before he went to jail. I found out that he had a pretty close life to me which helped me humanize him more, and kept me at ease for the entire process because there wasn’t that mindset of unfamiliarity anymore and I began to think of him as someone from my community something that is shown in this quote here “Reciprocity is a particular kind of exchange, which, when taken beyond personal relationships to the societal level, is linked to trust and solidarity in social groups, and is thus considered an important factor important factorial integration—the glue that holds society together” (Keith, 2005, 14).        

Overall participating in this particular opportunity, helped us both realize the reason we took part in the service learning project. Due to mistakes does not make anyone less of a person, or less worthy of a second chance. Seeing them trying to contribute to society in some way by perfecting an already-made resume with a volunteer, or making one from scratch was a testament to them trying to better themselves.

References

Steger, M. B. (2023). Globalization A Very Short Introduction (Sixth ed.). Oxford University Press.

Paquin, N. (2019, February 19). TRUST & RESPECT: THE WORLD’S GREATEST CURRENCY. https://www.pointsoflight.org/blog/trust-respect-greatest-currency-world/

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948, December 10). https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights

Keith, N. Z. (2005). Community Service Learning in the Face of Globalization: Rethinking Theory and Practice (pp. 5-24). Temple University. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning.