Christian Service
All students are required to complete 80 hours of Christian service before graduating, but many far surpass this goal. In fact, on average, our senior class offers a total of 16,000 hours of service before they leave our gates!
Caring for others is a fundamental part of our Catholic faith and Salesian tradition, and our academic and co-curricular programs work in tandem to reinforce this important virtue. While our Religion classes and Campus Ministry programs help students build the intellectual and spiritual foundations for a lifetime of service, our robust Christian Service Program provides girls with opportunities to put their knowledge and beliefs into immediate practice.
Each year, we sponsor dozens of service projects in the local area, across the country, and beyond our borders. These programs might include reading to children in Peru or breaking bread with the homeless here in DC. Though the school offers a diversity of service projects, students are also encouraged to find their own, with the approval of our Christian Service Director. Either way, these experiences cultivate and energize our girls’ understanding of their potential to be agents of positive change in our Church, our community, and our world. Students walk away with broadened perspectives and stretched comfort zones and a heightened sense of purpose.
To love our neighbor in charity is to love God in man.
St. Francis de Sales
Service Projects
- Pack-a-Backpack Drive
- McKenna's Wagon
- Saturday School
- Gold-White Canned Food Drive
- Pine Ridge Immersion Trip
- St. Francis Inn Trips
- VISTORY (summer service week with other Visitation schools)
- International Service Trips
- Lent & Advent Drives
- Days of Service: MLK, Columbus Day, 9/11
My service experiences helped me see God through actions and taught me to be patient with others.
Calia '20
Service Hours Required Each Year
| Freshman Year | 15 hours |
|---|---|
| Sophomore Year | 15 hours |
| Junior Year | 25 hours |
| Senior Year | 25 hours |
I believe that service is found in everyday actions and conversations and that everyone who practices service is a leader. Through my Visitation experience, I’ve developed my roots in women’s leadership, roots that I will carry with me for the rest of my life.
Patricia '20
