Earlier this week, a Dear Colleague Letter was issued by the Department of Education regarding the Federal Work-Study (FWS) program reminding colleges and universities about certain parameters related to community service activities. The guidance issued by the Department removes the ability of students performing some types of work on campus to count toward the seven percent community service requirement.  This is a particularly important issue for institutions in rural settings whose access to a non-campus community may be geographically limited. 
 
The new guidance clarifies that “community service activities” include activities in which a student serves as a mentor for such purposes as tutoring, performing the duties of a student success coach, supporting educational and recreational activities, and counseling, including career counseling. However, the Department clarified that jobs where services are offered exclusively to the students, staff, and faculty of an institution of higher education, and are not open or accessible to the public, cannot count toward the community service requirement. According to the Department, public K-12 schools are considered to be open and accessible to the community at large, allowing community service activities to count for work performed at these schools.
 
The Federal-Work Study program provides part-time employment for undergraduate and graduate students with financial need, allowing them to earn money to help pay education expenses. The program encourages community service work and work related to the student’s course of study. An institution of higher education must use at least seven percent of the sum of its initial and supplemental FWS allocations for an award year to compensate students employed in community service activities.