Community Service

The Khabele School does not require a minimum number of community service hours. However, our students typically complete  40  to 60 hours per year through structured initiatives . Some students serve up to 150 hours per year depending on what classes, clubs and projects they choose.

Project Week

Project Week is a one-week period in which we take off from classes and regularly scheduled activities to complete individual projects. Project Week takes place once per semester. Students must create a project proposal, timeline, and list of goals and objectives. Proposals must be approved by the student’s advisor and parents. Students must also complete daily journals, photo journals, a reflective essay, and a presentation to the school upon completion of the project. One of the two projects per year must have a community service focus. Many students choose to volunteer for local nonprofits for that week, organize fundraisers, and spearhead donation drives.

One-for-One for Education
In 2011-2012 we expect Khabele students will send over 20+ students to school around the world through their efforts to establish a revolutionary program where each Khabele student sponsors the education of someone that otherwise could not afford an education. Students are raising money and raising awareness in their advisory groups to support a world of increased possibility. By 2012-2013 we expect we will be sponsoring 200+ students around the world. Over time, we will develop our interaction with our partner schools, incorporating their issues into our curriculum, and taking foreign trips to visit these partner schools.  By 2015, we expect other like-minded schools will join our efforts, making use of the partnerships developed in this first year and together we will be sending 2000+ children to school that otherwise would have had that opportunity.   We predict the One-for-One program will eventually have a profound impact on the world, as well as on our small community here in Austin.

Student Initiated Philanthropy

There is a feel to Khabele. It’s not something easily described, but it’s the reason we’re here and it’s what makes our community’s culture so open and vibrant. Perhaps the reason students and staff receive so much from this school is because it’s not all about what we’re getting – it’s about what we’re giving, too.

Student service projects are a core component of the curriculum, and philanthropic ventures range from benefit concerts to service overseas. Our students are learning what it means to give.

“The whole thing was an interesting learning experience,” says 11th grader Josh Newburger about his recent benefit classical concert for the HAAM organization. “I learned how to work with money, I learned management and I got to use my public speaking skills.” His benefit, which featured musicians from the Austin Symphony as well as himself and the members of the Austin Chamber Music Center scholarship string quartet, raised $3,135 for the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians. The money will go towards providing health care for local musicians.

11th grader Brittney Williams, who organized a shoe drive to benefit people in Kenya infected with the “jiggers” parasite, says that once she initiated the idea, plenty of other students jumped in. “The drive was a success,” she says, “I’m happy that once I extended the opportunity to help, people participated.”

This drive to help underlies a number of projects that happened throughout the semester: Jennifer Carlson and Elle Van Tilburg’s “Decorate Your Sole” party to support TOMS shoes, Seth Jackson’s benefit concert for the SIMS foundation, Ming Tai’s and Everett Webre’s KYP benefit concert, Kelley Janes’ advisory’s canned food drive to benefit SafePlace and Caritas. Khabele was awarded Austin’s 1st place high school fundraiser at this year’s Race for the Cure by the Comen Foundation. Gade Morris raised funds for the Animal Trustees of Austin in memory of Noah Tshumy.

This kind of philanthropy is happening the entire year here, and it’s the kind of giving that shows that our students are “getting” it.