Contributed by Amanda Grace, OHS Public Relations Chairperson

The Organization of Human Services (OHS) is a small organization at Villanova, but it is making a big and powerful impact on the community.

OHS is dedicated to giving Human Services and related majors a chance to experience and gain knowledge in many areas of the helping field. OHS offers members a chance to become involved with the Villanova community and local area, as well as opportunities for professional development.

The Fall 2008 semester has been a very busy and successful one for OHS. On Sunday, December 7, 2008, OHS hosted seven Human Services alumni for a Career Panel discussion and Brunch. The alumni have each started his or her own path after graduating from Villanova, and OHS was fortunate enough to have them back to share their journeys. The former students are now employed in fields such as human resources, event planning for a non-profit organization, full-time childcare, school counseling, and as editor-in-chief of a Philadelphia magazine.

Other alumni are pursuing graduate school for their masters' degrees, and others for a Ph.D. in clinical psychology. The graduates offered invaluable advice on pursing internships, full-time jobs, and applying to graduate school while answering many student questions. Each member of the panel offered reassurance for those who may not yet know where they are headed with their undergraduate degree, because many of their paths have lead them in much different directions than they had once expected.

Along with the Alumni Panel, OHS members also have spent the semester diligently working with many other outreach activities around campus and in the local community. OHS has continued to host the Second Mile program at Villanova once a month to build mentorship between college students and at-risk elementary youth. In November 2008, the Tau Upsilon Alpha Honor Society for Human Services completed its Korean Toy Drive in which the group collected more than $400 worth of toys and supplies to send to an orphanage in South Korea.
 
Several new projects included both a Halloween and a Holiday craft party with senior citizens at the Golden Living Senior center in Rosemont; collecting books to fill a library for the High School for Human Services in Philadelphia; and partnering with other campus groups in the fundraising efforts to provide coats for students at Jay Cooke Elementary School in Philadelphia.

OHS members are dedicated to spreading their hard work and positive attitudes to many different places in the community.

The Organization of Human Services is always looking for new members, so please contact Carolyn Camire, OHS president, or Joan Capolupo, faculty advisor, for more information or to be added to the group's e-mail list. Learn more about the organization here on the Web.
 

On Sunday, December 7, 2008, OHS hosted seven Human Services alumni for a Career Panel discussion and Brunch. The alumni have each started his or her own path after graduating from Villanova, and OHS was fortunate enough to have them back to share their journeys. The former students are now employed in fields such as human resources, event planning for a non-profit organization, full-time childcare, school counseling, and as editor-in-chief of a Philadelphia magazine.