When is Volunteerism Real?

Great post in the cheeky, chatty philanthropy blog Selfish Giving on the growing trend of young people and volunteering - volunteering to assure a good story to tell colleges that is. Selfish Volunteering takes a hard look at what motivates young people to wotrk at nonprofits, and then worries out loud that "may not be falling for it, which could dissuade teens from volunteering and lead to labor shortages for nonprofits." One question:

Would it be better if high schools didn't require volunteer work so colleges would know which students are truly committed to getting ahead community service? That probably won't happen, so teens may have to go well beyond any mandatory volunteering to gain an edge with college recruiters.

Technorati Tags: philanthropy, volunteers, nonprofits, future leaders in philanthropy