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Chaifetz Students Volunteer at Promise Christian Academy for Service Day 2022

Students, faculty and staff from the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business at Saint Louis University recently came together to volunteer in the school’s annual Service Day at Promise Christian Academy on April 2.

Organized by the Chaifetz School’s Service Leadership Program, Service Day supports SLU’s Jesuit tradition of serving others and connecting with the greater St. Louis community. Originally exclusive to Chaifetz School students, Service Day has since expanded to invite all members of the SLU community to participate. 

This year, Service Day served as the conclusion to Mission Meets the Market Week, an inaugural weeklong celebration organized by Chaifetz School students to celebrate the school’s focus on positive impact and its mission to leverage business as a force for good.

Service Day 2022

Volunteers with the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business and Saint Louis University came out to Promise Christian Academy on April 2 for a day of service that included lots of manual landscaping.

Promise Christian Academy (PCA) is a special education school located in Town and Country, Mo. which uses occupational therapy, speech-language therapy and other integrated therapeutic activities in the classroom. The school also uses individually-designed academics and therapies for students with special needs.

Volunteers began the day in Cook Hall at 7:30 a.m. and put in a full day of service at the academy, with activities ranging from landscaping to event planning. A total of 49 SLU-affiliated volunteers participated in the event, including Edward Jones Dean Barnali Gupta. Many Promise Christian students and their family members were also on hand to participate in the event.

“The turnout and enthusiasm from both the SLU students, as well as the PCA students and family was remarkable,” said Brent Smith, Graduate Advisor for the Department of Service Leadership. “The sense of community and mutual service was felt by all participants, and I was proud to have been a part of the day.”

Smith added that knowing that the costs PCA will save from their normal landscaping budget can now be put forth towards scholarship money for PCA families was especially impactful.

Service Leadership coordinator Ben Smyth said most of the volunteer work consisted of manual landscaping, including planting two Red Bud trees, several other plants and spreading nearly three dump truck loads of mulch. SLU volunteers also helped plan a number of activities for PCA students, including rock painting and an obstacle course.

Learn More About Service Leadership at the Chaifetz School

about the richard a. chaifetz school of business

Founded in 1910, the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business at Saint Louis University has shaped the future of industry for more than a century as one of the oldest business schools west of the Mississippi. Today, SLU's business school continues to build on its reputation as a leader in business education through its commitment to inclusion, innovation and impact. The Chaifetz School’s undergraduate and graduate programs have been nationally recognized by U.S. News & World Report, Poets&Quants and The Princeton Review.