Volunteering: When you volunteer, you choose to help your community (maybe by cleaning up a park, working at a food pantry, helping at a shelter, etc.). The main goal is to help. There might not be any connection to your schoolwork. Volunteering feels good, helps people, and might give you experience - but there usually isn’t a requirement to reflect, link it to classes, or get academic credit.

Service-Learning: This is a combination of volunteering + learning + school together. With service-learning, you help in your community, and you connect that work to what you learn in class or team sport/club. Before you start, you get approval (complete a Google form so the school and district coordinators know it connects). Then you do the work. Afterwards, you reflect - think about what you did, what you learned, and how it relates to your class, your goals, or bigger issues in the community. Because of that connection and reflection, you get credit (or hours that count toward an award or diploma). Follow the IPARD Process (Investigation, Preparation/Planning, Action, Reflection, Demonstration)

Bottom line: Volunteering = good for community. Service-Learning = good for community and helps you learn and grow in a way connected to school. Both are essential and both are excellent experiences to include on resumes and various applications; service-learning opportunities are optional hours tracked by our school/district and the hours count toward an award or diploma.

Service-Learning Checklist

Ask yourself:

Did I get pre-approval using the Service-Learning Approval Form?

Does the activity connect to something I’m learning in school (a class, a team sport, or a group/club you are apart of)?

Will I complete a reflection afterward (think about what you did, what you learned, and how it relates to your class, your goals, or bigger issues in the community)?

If you answer YES to all three = Service-Learning.

If you answer NO to any = Volunteering.

Key Terminology

• Personal Projects - opportunities with organizations outside of the school

• School-Approved Projects - opportunities with clubs/organizations who have cleared their responsibilities as service-learning.

• Verification - a step needed from each students' supervisor/opportunity contact to acknowledge that the work claimed has actually been completed.

• Entering an opportunity - Student's responsibility. 1. Students have to complete their approval form prior to service; 2. students need to log their time into X2Vol within the deadline. 

• Submitting an opportunity - Student + Supervisor's responsibility. A project is considered ready for final approval once the opportunity is entered and verified by the supervisor. 

Service-Learning Process

1. Get approved first (necessary for personal projects; school clubs/organizations complete this step for their student members)

   • Submit the Service-Learning Approval Form (formerly known as "pre-approval") before starting any personal project.

   • No approval = no credit toward award or diploma.

   • Service-learning contacts within GCS are given a two-week turnaround to approve opportunities. If an opportunity needs to take place sooner, students/guardians can request earlier approval by submitting a request through the Google Form below (highlighted in orange). In the "Details of the Request" section, simply say "I am hoping to start my personal project by" and then add the date. I check that form daily.

   • New this year: only one approval submission needed for each organization. Example: student approved for YMCA in 9th grade can continue with YMCA through 12th grade without a new approval submission.

2. Complete the Service

   • Keep track of dates, hours, and duties/responsibilities

3. Log Your Hours

   • Create an account with X2Vol - join Northern Guilford High School

   • Submit times for individual opportunities or combine the opportunities into one submission as long as specific dates/times are provided within the reflection. 

   • Hours must be entered in X2Vol the same semester they have been completed (see below for breakdown).

   • Students' hours must be verified in X2Vol by the supervisor or contact person for the organization (this is timestamped also).

   • Seniors have a different Spring Semester timeline (see below for breakdown).

   • Complete the necessary reflection for the service.

4. X2Vol Approval

   • Students are responsible for entering AND submitting their opportunities within the deadlines

   • I will approve opportunities within the 2-week period that their submission is listed as complete.

• • • • Students will not be penalized if corrections need to be made after a deadline as long as they have done their part.

2025-2026 Deadlines

• Semester 1 service opportunities (grades 9-12):

  • Must be entered and verified by your supervisor/contact in x2VOL by January 23, 2026 at 11:59 PM (timestamped)

• Semester 2 service opportunities (grades 9-11):

  • Must be entered and verified by your supervisor/contact in x2VOL by June 10, 2026 at 11:59 PM

• Seniors: 

  • Last day for 1st-time service-learning approval forms (formerly known as pre-approval forms) submissions - March 31, 2026

  • Last day to submit hours (meaning entered and verified in X2Vol with time stamp) - April 29, 2026

• GCS Service-Learning Webpage (handbook and other county resources located here)

• Service-Learning Approval Form (formerly named pre-approvals) – form for opportunities starting June 1, 2025 * One entry per organization/opportunity going forward.

  • ALL Service Learning Approval Forms must occur PRIOR to service as indicated in the diagram above. If a pre-approval form is not complete, hours will be denied. This electronic form has been a county requirement since January 1, 2023.*Only one approval needed for each organization if the coach has record of the submission. Students will have to submit a new form if documentation has not been transferred from a previous coach.

  • All summer projects MUST have a pre-approval submitted PRIOR to the start of your service. If it is not submitted prior to service, your submission will be denied in x2VOL.

Please note – the SL coordinator does not work through the summer but will check SL periodically. For summer inquiries, please reach out to our district lead, Miss Jay (Ms. Jordan Cameron, email: cameroj2@gcsnc.com).

• Service Learning Hours Log – Please use this log to keep a record of the hours you completed for long-term projects. It will aid you in your X2VOL submission. You can even upload it directly in x2VOL instead of listing dates and hours for each day of service.

• X2VOL (Help Videos/FAQs)

  • • How to set up your X2VOL account

    • X2VOL Student Registration Powerpoint

    • X2VOL Frequently Asked Questions

    • X2VOL Instructions and Tips for Using the x2VOL Mobile App 

Important Reminders:

• GCS policy: hours must be submitted (both entered and verified in X2VOL) within the semester that they are completed.

• Do not complete service-learning hours without first submitting your approval form. SL approval forms must be submitted within the semester that service is completed with the organization and should be submitted PRIOR to beginning service. *Approval form needed once per personal project club/organization

• Seniors will have a different timeline from underclassmen for the spring semester. 

  • Last day for 1st-time service-learning approval forms (formerly known as pre-approval forms) submissions - March 31, 2026

  • Last day to submit hours (meaning entered and verified in X2Vol with time stamp) - April 29, 2026