ISU students will be able to volunteer around campus and in the Ames community during Iowa State’s annual CyServe Week.

The Greeks Give Back group paired with CyServe Council for a mass philanthropy event this year in the hopes of giving students an opportunity to give back to their communities. CyServe week is Oct. 20 through 25.

“CyServe Week is an opportunity for the Ames community and the ISU students to work together for the betterment of our community,” said Mike Stewart, co-president of CyServe Council and senior in biology.

CyServe Council is hoping to fill 1,500 volunteer spots in various community organizations throughout Story County and the Des Moines area.

Project assignments are on a first-come first-serve basis, and students are encouraged to sign up for four or more time slots during which they’d be available to volunteer. Each time slot is one hour long.

On Oct. 20, students can pair with Food at First and St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital for their Up ‘til Dawn event. Volunteers will help fundraise for the event, as well as help run its email social event. Sign ups are from 4-6 p.m.

The second day of CyServe Week is dedicated to beginning the week-long food drive. Volunteers will walk throughout Ames with members of The SHOP to place bags on doorsteps and collect food donations. Time slots are available from 5-7 p.m. each day for the rest of CyServe Week.

Stewart said volunteers will pick up all the donations on Oct. 25.

“In previous CyServe Weeks, we did [door to door donations] and it’s been a lot of fun,” he said.

On Oct. 22, sustainability-oriented student organizations are celebrating National Campus Sustainability Day. Volunteers will be able to help set up for the event from 9-10 a.m. or tear down between 2-3 p.m.

On Oct. 24, volunteers can help with the Up ‘til Dawn tie-dye event from 12-3 p.m.

The last day of CyServe Week has multiple volunteer opportunities that last the entire day, between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Those opportunities include, but are not limited to working with Keep ISU Beautiful, Food at First, Youth and Shelter Services, the Iowa Arboretum, the Mustard Seed Farm and Goodwill, as well as helping Ames residents prepare for winter with Winter Weatherization.

Other opportunities, like building LEGO kits for First LEGO League, cleaning up Lake LaVerne, ISU buildings and Campustown, and pairing with Dance Marathon and Project Linus, are only available at specific times throughout the day.

Though students can volunteer without going through CyServe Council, the student organization holds the event each year to make volunteering easier.

According to its website, CyServe Council was created “to help students and non-profit organizations network with each other, making it easier for students to volunteer and area organizations to accomplish their goals.”

Tony Behnke, CyServe Council co-president and junior in agricultural and life sciences education, said CyServe gives students the opportunity to sign up easily and efficiently, while guaranteeing them a volunteer spot.

“CyServe is here to make volunteering opportunities easier to obtain and more simple for students on Iowa State’s campus,” Behnke said.

Behnke also said CyServe opportunities allow students to learn about the different facets of sustainability.

“In all of our events, we always work with environmental sustainability by cleaning up the community and also in all of our events, we do our best to make every volunteering event fun to add a lot to that social sustainability aspect,” he said.

Registration for CyServe Week opens Oct. 1 and will remain open through Oct. 16, and students can sign up on the website.

Behnke advised students to sign up quickly, as they’ll have a better chance of getting the volunteer opportunities they want.

“It’s great to be connected to where you live and to help in the ways you can,” Stewart said. “Through CyServe, we hope to create those opportunities.”