Dwight Hall Service Series Bridges Campus and Community through Weekly Volunteer Opportunities

Dwight Hall Service Series programming offers accessible, flexible, and hands-on service opportunities for Yale students. Launched in January 2023, the series began with weekly Tuesday morning volunteering at Sunrise Cafe, a soup kitchen in New Haven. 

Two years later, weekly volunteering continues at Sunrise Cafe and has expanded to include opportunities such as tutoring students at Cooperative Arts and Humanities High School, mentoring students at Truman School through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Connecticut, sorting and distributing clothing donated to Dwight Hall’s clothing bin, and supporting educational programming at the Monk Youth Jazz and STEAM Collective Afterschool Program. 

These service opportunities are offered on a weekly basis during the academic year, and students register on Yale Connect to show their interest. Dwight Hall Volunteer Coordinators–typically undergrad or graduate students–then reach out to the registrants and facilitate their service. 

“The first goal of Service Series is to support the New Haven community that we as students benefit from,” explained Yusuf Rasheed ’24, Programming Fellow at Dwight Hall. “The second goal is to give Yale students the opportunity to engage in some sort of meaningful volunteer work during their time at Yale.”

As a Programming Fellow, Yusuf’s main responsibilities include fielding incoming requests for volunteers from community organizations, recruiting students to manage service activities, and assisting Dwight Hall’s team of five Volunteer Coordinators.

To accomplish these tasks, he works with Lizzie Chiarovano ’25 M.A.R., who serves as Volunteer Coordinator Lead at Dwight Hall. Having previously organized Dwight Hall volunteering at Sunrise Cafe, Lizzie now plays an advisory role, supporting the current Volunteer Coordinators in planning their activities and developing reflexive practices. 

“I think the Volunteer Coordinator position is so essential because it helps students feel comfortable about whatever space they are stepping into,” emphasized Lizzie. “It also means that even if no volunteers signed up for the week, we committed that we would serve, and we did, even if it was just me.”  

Consistency is a guiding value of Service Series programming. Whether at a soup kitchen, school, or community center, showing up regularly builds trust and deepens relationships.

Read on to learn more about each of the current Service Series opportunities and the students that lead them.

Sunrise Cafe

Every Monday and Tuesday morning of the academic year, Ben Reilly ’27 M.A.R. leads a team of volunteers to Sunrise Cafe, a unique soup kitchen in New Haven that serves breakfast to guests in a restaurant-style setting. Volunteers meet at Phelps Gate at six in the morning and walk together to Wooster Square, where they take food orders, serve meals, and engage with guests. They typically wrap up by 8:45 a.m., at which point they walk back to campus together. 

This biweekly interaction with guests is a highlight of Ben’s experience, who makes a point of writing down their names when they order their meals. “I like learning people’s names and then seeing them around town,” he shared. “It has been a really great way to be in community with New Haven.”

For Ben, a Yale Divinity School student who previously worked at a migrant center at the U.S.-Mexico border, service is deeply integrated with education and personal growth. At the end of each volunteer session, he encourages participants to reflect on their experience, reinforcing that service is not just about what they contribute, but also how they are shaped by it. 

Dwight Hall Clothing Sort

Led by Allie Lopez ’27, Volunteer Coordinator and Co-Coordinator of Dwight Hall’s 2025 Student Executive Committee, the Dwight Hall clothing sort provides necessary clothing items to community members in need. Volunteers gather biweekly to sort donations to Dwight Hall’s clothing bin and distribute them to local organizations like Community Soup Kitchen, Loaves and Fishes, and Downtown Evening Soup Kitchen.

Recently, the program has also partnered with a Cooperative Arts and Humanities High School (Co-Op) service group, which brings local high school students to Dwight Hall to assist in sorting efforts. 

“Sorting the clothing is the tip of the iceberg,” Allie explained. “A majority of my time is spent actually distributing donations to our community partner sites. It has been truly incredible to work so closely with our partners as I have been able to establish personal relationships with staff and guests, and deepen my understanding of their operations, their needs, and how Dwight Hall can best be of use.” 

Co-Op After School Volunteering

As an Education Volunteer Coordinator, Lua Prado Souza ’26 coordinates tutoring at Co-Op’s Open Library, a free period after classes where Co-Op students can elect to receive academic support or mentorship from Yale students. This work complements Co-Op After School (CAS), a partnership between Dwight Hall and Cooperative Arts and Humanities High School in New Haven that has been providing after-school programming for students since 2009.

Volunteers primarily assist with students’ homework and exam preparation, but the program is evolving to meet broader student interests, incorporating language learning, book clubs, and film discussions. As participation fluctuates, Lua and her team continuously adapt strategies and incorporate feedback from Co-Op students and CAS Program Director Paul Bryant Hudson. 

“We are in this moment of reimagining what Open Library could be,” Lua emphasized. “Our priority is to foster a space that students want to be in.” 

For Lua, tutoring is not just about academics: “The moment that students say, ‘Oh, I understand,’ a connection is being built, and knowledge is being shared…I think that is very rewarding.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters Mentorship

Every Thursday, a consistent group of Yale volunteers, led by Education Volunteer Coordinator Yvonne Trenh ’25, mentors students at Truman School through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Connecticut (BBBS). This structured program pairs Yale students with local youth for weekly sessions that include help with homework assignments and group activities like scavenger hunts, Jeopardy!, and playing tag. 

“The most rewarding part of this experience is the relationships we build,” Yvonne reflected. “It is rewarding to watch [our ‘littles’] grow the confidence to try something new with a few words of encouragement and to be trusted enough as a ‘big sibling’ for them to reach out for support when they are going through something challenging…or when they have something amazing to celebrate.”

For students interested in getting involved with BBBS mentorship or any other service opportunities in New Haven, Yvonne has a simple instruction: “Just take the first step and go for it! You don’t need prior experience–just show up, listen, and be present…Service is not just about giving back; it is about connecting with the community and learning from it.”

Monk Youth Jazz and STEAM Collective Afterschool Program

At the Monk Youth Jazz and STEAM Collective, students engage in arts and STEM education at the Dixwell/Yale Community Learning Center under the guidance of Marcella Monk Flake, a longtime educator in New Haven. Yale volunteers assist with activities ranging from mock trials and human anatomy lessons to music and dance classes.

Currently, Yale volunteers support programming one to two days a week, with efforts underway to expand volunteer responsibilities to include one-on-one mentorship. 

. . .

As Dwight Hall continues to expand its Service Series, the programming team remains open to new partnerships and ideas. “If anyone sees a need that Yale students can help meet, we want to hear about it,” Yusuf emphasized. 

Service Series is a part of the Engage pillar of Dwight Hall’s Engage, Grow, and Advance program delivery model. Whether sorting clothes, mentoring a student, or serving breakfast at Sunrise Cafe, each volunteer contributes to a broader culture of service—one that fosters lasting relationships and meaningful change in New Haven.

Students interested in getting involved may view and register for upcoming Service Series opportunities here.