Merced High School offers a Purple Cord Program for students who participate in community service activities. The Purple Cord is awarded at a luncheon during the student's graduation year to those seniors who have completed a minimum of 250 hours of volunteer service in the community. The hours can be completed over the course of the student's high school career. The student is responsible for:
Contact Information
Carol Tippett
Guidance Assistant
Phone: 209-325-1025
Community Service Guidelines
1. All students are eligible to participate in the program.
2. Students may provide volunteer service to the school and/or the community.
3. Students must perform volunteer service on their own time. Service performed while classes are in session (with the exception of service performed by participants during their lunch period) may not be counted for awards.
4. Students may not receive academic credit or be paid for service rendered.
5. Service rendered as a prerequisite for employment will not be counted for awards.
6. Attendance at self-improvement workshops or conferences will not count.
7. All service must comply with school board policies.
8. Participation in performances, festivals or competitions does not count as volunteer service unless:
9. Rehearsal and practice time may never be counted for volunteer service hours.
10. Fundraising, except for specifically approved non-profit charities, cannot be counted.
11. Service performed for the student’s own family or for profit-making organizations (except for hospitals and veterinary clinics) may not be counted for awards.
12. Service performed as a result of disciplinary action cannot be counted.
13. Participation in varsity or junior varsity athletics does not constitute volunteer service in this program.
14. Attending meetings as part of a membership requirement cannot be counted.
15. Students may earn hours toward individual recognition while working on projects that will earn recognition for their club or organization as long as those hours also fit the Student Volunteer Guidelines for individual students.
16. Volunteer work done to promote a particular religious point of view cannot be counted as volunteer hours in the program.
17. Participation in Camp Green Meadows will earn 70 hours.
18. Activities occurring on weekends or school vacations will count for a maximum of 8 hours per day.
Camp Green Meadows
5050 Santa Fe Drive
Atwater, CA 95301
209-723-2178
Volunteer Programs:
Aircraft Restoration, Journalism, Artifacts, Computer Graphics, Special Events and Marketing
City of Merced Parks & Recreation
690 W. 16th Street, Merced, CA 95340
385-6894
Office Hours: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm
(Monday - Friday)
Volunteer Programs:
Youth Tutorial, Recreation, Seniors, Youth Sports, Special Populations, Special Events, After School Activities and the Zoo.
Franciscan Healthcare Center
3169 'M' Street
Merced, CA
209-722-6231
Duties may include playing cards or checkers with the residents, or just chatting with them. Many of them just need someone to spend time visiting with them.
The Hampshire Retirement Residence
3460 'R' Street
209-379-4589
Merced, CA 95348
410 West Main Street
Merced, CA
209-383-3123
Various duties include volunteering at the Valve Burners Car Show at Lake Yosemite in September.
Hylond Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center
3170 'M' Street
209-723-1056
Must be 16 years old and take a TB Test.
333 Mercy Avenue
Merced, CA 95348
209-564-5007
452 West Main Street
Merced, CA
209-725-8587
St. Paul's Lutheran Church
2916 N. McKee Road
Merced, CA 95340
209-383-3301
United Way of Merced County
658 W. Main Street
Merced, CA 95340
209-383-4242