The Fellowship of Community and University Services (F.O.C.U.S.) is the umbrella organization that oversees La Salle’s community service programs run from the UMAS office.  It fosters campus-wide programming and the planning of community service activities.  The groups extend out well beyond the La Salle community and, as always, are opens to any student here on campus.

The F.O.C.U.S. service groups are broken down into four different categories:

Advocacy Groups

The Alliance
A lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and straight alliance that provides support of LGBT students and creates campus awareness of LGBT issues through programming.

SAVE
Students Advocating for Value and Equality (SAVE) focuses on women’s issues and healthy relationships between men and women.

Students for Environmental Action
SEA aims to educate campus through discussion and debate on environmental issues.  SEA advocates for change on political and social level to help better our environment.

Tutoring Groups

Foster Care Tutoring
La Salle students assist with the academic, social, and emotional growth of children who are in the foster care system.

Team Lasallians
Volunteers go to San Miguel School and La Salle Academy for after school tutoring and mentoring.

Neighborhood Tutoring
An after-school homework help program for children in 1st through 8th grades.  La Salle students work one on one with the same child twice a week.

Urban Writers
La Salle students provide mentoring and writing assistance to local middle school and high school students.

Positive Youth Development Program -- Coming Fall 2009
The Positive Youth Development Program works with 8th graders to help ensure personal and educational growth before they transition into high school.

Outreach Services

AIDS Outreach
Students go to the Calcutta House to visit and participate in therapeutic social activities with HIV positive residents.

Homeless Outreach
Homeless Outreach partners with Face to Face, which is a local soup kitchen in Germantown. They work with the staff to prepare and distribute meals for those in need. They also help with the after dinner clean up and distribute necessities when available.  

Soup Kitchen
Students go to St. Francis Inn in the Kensington area to help prepare and serve food to the homeless.

Circle K
Students work with local clean-up initiatives, a Saturday tutoring program, and other needs that might arise in the local community.

Neighbor to Neighbor
Students assist the elderly and disabled in the Germantown, Logan, Ogontz, and West Oak Lane areas in community beautification projects to foster relationships between La Salle students and the local community.

Neighbor Goods
Neighbor Goods is an end up the year collection drive. Neighbor Goods collects any usable items that college students typically throw away at the end of the year and donates them to local charities in need.

Children’s Services

PAL Youth Center
The Police Athletic League program aimed at enabling college and primary school students to work together and build friendships.

LOCK
The La Salle Organization Caring for Kids (LOCK) students work with children at St. Christopher’s Children’s Hospital doing arts and crafts and other activities.