GVSU-authorized charter school volunteers for park project

On a chilly April morning, a school bus filled with teenagers and teachers from Byron Center Charter School pulled into the Lake Macatawa Campground in Holland. The visit was not a recreational excursion, but as a part of the 密歇根州重视旅游业’s volunteer initiative.

Since its foundation in 2012 by hospitality and tourism management 帕蒂·詹姆斯教授， 密歇根州重视旅游业 联合行业 professionals from across the state to build connections and to help refurbish Michigan’s state parks and recreational areas.

But with more than 40 high school students participating in the two-day effort to spruce up Lake Macatawa Campground, Holland State Park, Muskegon Luge Adventure Sports Park and Muskegon 州立公园, 琼斯说 she saw an opportunity to present the hospitality industry as a possible educational or career path.

“To introduce the industry to young people, especially at a time when our industry is suffering with labor shortages, only made sense,” 琼斯说. “So why not work together and collaborate?

“The students get to casually meet people who work in the industry, and then maybe this is something that they never even thought about for a career, let alone a summer job.”

The collaboration between the Michigan Cares and the school was 完美的时间. Janes was looking to expand to include a younger demographic when GVSU’s 特许学校 Office contacted her last fall.

“We said, ‘Hey, we've got a ton of high school students who Grand Valley supports and they all need volunteering hours for their degree,” said Michael Cousins, the 特许学校 Office’s assistant director of communications and external affairs. “这是一个 wonderful turnout, that’s for sure.” 

One of the GVSU-authorized charter schools, Byron Center, was eager to participate when presented with the opportunity, said guidance 霍莉·克拉维诺顾问.  

“We’re always looking for ways to 回馈,” Cravino said. “这是一个 really important part of our culture, our mission and our vision for 我们的孩子.

“We have very generous students who have big hearts, and they love to 回馈. They were really excited to be able to come and work outside for a couple of days, meet people in the different tourism industries as well as the DNR.”

Students spent time on April 18 at Lake Macatawa Campground and Holland 州立公园, painting office buildings and picnic tables, hauling fallen trees and branches, cleaning up boat access sites and refreshing the campground’s playgrounds. They were back at it on April 19 with a trip to Muskegon Luge Adventure Sports Park and Muskegon 州立公园.

Like Janes, Cravino said she hopes the students appreciated the inside look at what the hospitality and tourism industry entails. 

“There are a lot of opportunities in the industry for them, even at 他们的年龄，”克拉维诺说. “I hope they see the value of volunteering and also have some good career exposure.”