Let me be honest with you: sometimes things are not what they seem.

(A shock, I know.)

Sometimes things are advertised or labelled without actually being true. Sometimes people say or write things that aren’t necessarily accurate in the hopes of catching your interest and hoping you’ll focus on other things instead of their tricks. (I’m looking at you, clickbait article headlines.)

I won’t name names or point fingers at other colleges and universities around the world, but I’ll tell you what I know: Loyola doesn’t do that.

(A shock, I know.)

Loyola really does have a huge commitment to social justice and social issues, commitment to service and cares about the individual. I could write a million blog posts on how Loyola really cares for the student, but I’ll keep myself focused on one particular topic – service.

First off, you might not know, but Loyola has Learning Communities that unite a group of like-minded people, whether it be Leadership, Honors, Research, or – you guessed it – Service & Faith. These people are very involved and are constantly involved in ways they can help.

Second, though (I believe) this is rote for all fraternities and sororities, our chapters are heavily involved in their charities and work tirelessly to go above and beyond to raise money for osteoporosis, the Ronald McDonald House, Make-a-Wish Foundation, and so on. There’s even a service-oriented co-ed fraternity, APO.

Third, clubs and organizations often do more than their focus. Honors Student Association, for example, not only hosts events and programs for Honors Program members but organizes weekly volunteer trips to places like Just Harvest to lend as many hands as they have. The Quidditch team raises money and support in ‘Febru-Harry’ for Relay for Life.

Fourth, Loyola requires every student to take at least one Service Learning class before graduation. This means that the class is tightly intertwined with volunteering and may require a set number of hours per semester at a site or other such actions that mean that the student and class are actively making a difference.

Fifth, Loyola has a program called Loyola 4 Chicago that sets up sites such as Misericordia or Sarah’s Circle and organizes groups of students that go weekly to lend aid. Though it may be nothing more than helping a person with developmental disabilities with their knitting project, they still emphasize the difference the students are making without, perhaps, realizing.

Although Loyola has many, many more ways that show how much both the student body and the administration are committed to service, I’ll leave you with these to think about. Of course you’re totally free to learn more, and if you have any questions I can help too! But trust me when I tell you Loyola really means every word they write on those stacks and stacks and stacks of paper they send in the mail.