Students for Education, Equity, and Direct Service
SEEDS—Students for Education, Equity, and Direct Service—is Reed’s Community Engagement program focused on building and sustaining programs that foster positive, healthy change in the world and are mutually beneficial for Reed students, local community members, and community organizations.
Committed to enhancing Reed's academic mission, SEEDS provides Reed students with access to volunteer opportunities, fellowships and Federal Work-Study, and trainings and workshops. Through their work with SEEDS, students
- reflect on their position in the world;
- strengthen their commitments to social justice;
- build authentic, reciprocal relationships with community partners;
- gain skills;
- support positive, sustainable social change in and around Portland.
Mission Statement
SEEDS (Students for Education, Equity, and Direct Service) builds mutually beneficial relationships within the Portland community to foster sustainable and positive change. SEEDS is committed to enhancing the academic mission and supporting Reed students in developing tools for self-reflection and passion for lifelong community engagement.
Opportunities at a Glance
Depending on your schedule and interests, you can participate in weekly, monthly, or drop-in opportunities with SEEDS.
Collective Voices Speaker Series
Collective Voices is a speaker series that brings local organizers, activists, and speakers to campus to talk about their social change work, discuss pressing local, national, and international issues, and invite members of the Reed community to become involved. 4 Collective Voices Speaker events are hosted each academic year.
Community Engagement (CE) Internship Program
SEEDS's CE Internship Program houses Off-Campus Federal Work Study (FWS) and Community Engagement (CE/PE) Credit opportunities in which students can work for a community engagement partner in order to receive FWS or CE/PE credits.
Off-Campus Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program
Reed College subsidizes the off-campus Federal Work-Study (FWS) program in an effort to promote connections between the college and the Portland community and to support students in finding meaningful work off-campus.
Community Engagement (CE) Credit Program
For students, two units of Community Engagement (CE) credit can be earned to fulfill part of the Physical Education and Community Engagement (PEACE) graduation requirement at Reed. Participating in community engagement promotes a healthy balance between academic and personal life and fosters meaningful relationships between Reed and the Portland community.
Volunteer Programs
SEEDS coordinates opportunities to volunteer in the areas of education, food security, health, prison outreach, workers’ rights, and more.
Reed Community Pantry
The Reed Community Pantry (RCP) is part of Reed College’s Basic Needs Initiative. The RCP provides nonperishable food items, toiletries, hygiene products, clothing, books, and more at no cost to members of the Reed community. This resource is open to Reed students, faculty, and staff.
One-Time Community Engagement Event
Blood Drives
SEEDS partners with the American Red Cross to host four blood drives throughout the year. We encourage Reed community members to donate blood or volunteer.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Reed's MLK Day of Engagement honors Dr. King's legacy by transforming the day off into a day on. SEEDS, the Multicultural Resource Center, and the Office of Institutional Diversity invite the Reed community to participate in events that bring to life our shared mission to build mutually beneficial relationships within the community in order to foster sustainable and positive social change.
Clothing Swap
SEEDS partners with Greenboard, Office for Student Engagement, Residence Life, and Sustainability to host Clothing Swap events at the end of every semester to allow students to donate and take clothing and supplies. Extra clothing and supplies are donated to the Reed Community Pantry, the Swap Shop, and community partners.
Stay up to date with SEEDS!
Follow SEEDS's Instagram and/or look for on-campus flyers to check out for upcoming events and community engagement opportunities.
The Office for Institutional Diversity (OID) sends a weekly newsletter to the entire Reed community that includes updates from the OID, SEEDS and Multicultural Resource Center (MRC).