There are thousands of students in Hamilton County, each one of them possessing their own unique set of skills, experiences, and opinions. The majority of students, however, are not able to use these skills and their voices to help their community, as a lot of students do not know how.                                              

A Chance to Serve (ACTS), looks to fix this issue. ACTS is a Purdue Extension Program that puts students on community boards from a variety of organizations, allowing them to use what makes them special to improve their community. HSE students who wish to join must fill out and submit an application to be considered for the club. Once selected, students must attend meetings throughout the winter and spring months to be trained in leadership ethics and how to serve on a board before joining one of the twelve boards available to join. Applications open in January.                                                                 

Maggie Herrington is the current Program Coordinator for ACTS in Hamilton County. She was offered the position when she returned to the 4-H Fairgrounds after college      

“You can sign up to go a million different youth leadership conferences,” Herrington said. “This is the only one that you come together five different times and then we say, ‘okay, thanks for that, now you’re going to serve on a board.’”                                                             

One of the boards students have the opportunity to serve on is the Hamilton Southeastern Education Foundation (HSEF). Matthew Krohn, who’s been in the program since his sophomore year, is one of the four student representatives from HSE serving on the board.  
“I chose HSEF because that one offered something that the other boards that the other boards didn’t and that was a tie directly to our district,” Krohn said. “That for me is what sold it.”                                                                                                                                                    

Krohn’s role as a student board member goes beyond just meetings. He spends a lot of time outside the boardroom volunteering to help set up fundraisers and giving teachers grants they’ve been awarded.                                                                                               

Krohn’s unique position has allowed him to help give back to his community with him being able to see the results of his work every day. Going into his senior year, he is excited to be able to continue serving his community through HSEF.                                               

If you are interested in joining ACTS, you can reach out to the Purdue Extension Hamilton County Office at (317)-776-07854.