I have been involved in the Ministry of Education’s Information Volunteer Program for years. Looking back, I began as a novice team leader who knew almost nothing about volunteer service. Through trial, learning, and reflection, I gradually came to understand what collective service truly means. Writing these reflections is, for me, both a way of preserving memory and a form of self-reminder.
More than that, I hope it encourages every student who has walked this path with us—and inspires others to step forward—so that service learning may take root more deeply on campus, enriching university life with memories that endure long after graduation.
One March, many years ago, a newly admitted graduate student named Chien-Ming Huang asked to meet me. Though he had not yet officially enrolled, he wanted to plan ahead for his future studies. His initiative impressed me. After discussing possible academic directions, our conversation naturally drifted beyond coursework. I encouraged him to hold on to this spirit of proactive learning, wherever his path might lead.
Chien-Ming had grown up in Taipei and only moved south for university. This led us to talk about the differences between northern and southern Taiwan, and how uneven environments often lead to unequal access to resources. We spoke of communities that remain disadvantaged not by lack of effort, but by structural constraints—and of how meaningful change often requires additional support. I shared my belief that students should be willing to contribute their own strengths to their schools and communities.
In doing so, they not only improve their surroundings, but also gain forms of learning rarely found in classrooms: human connection, collaboration, responsibility, and growth. When such service calls for professional knowledge, it further motivates deeper learning—and the satisfaction of knowing one’s skills have made a real difference. These are efforts that benefit both others and oneself, and they are worth promoting.
To make this idea concrete, I told him about a project then underway. With a university evaluation approaching, many departments urgently needed alumni websites as a means of connection. Under the encouragement of university administrators, our Department of Information Management took on the task of helping other departments build these platforms. Senior students led the effort, joined by first-year students from my advisee class, working part-time yet driven largely by a spirit of service.
Moved by the idea of professional volunteering, these first-year students even chose to donate all of their wages to establish an information technology club. This club—later named the Information Technology Sharing Society—was envisioned as a space where students could collaborate, share technical knowledge, and offer professional services to the university and nearby communities. It was, I told Chien-Ming, a living example of what I meant: learning through giving, growing through service, and contributing meaningfully to one’s institution.
When I finally paused, Chien-Ming smiled and said something unexpected. During his undergraduate years, he had already spent several consecutive years participating in information volunteer work through a Ministry of Education program. Everything I had described, he had already lived. In that moment, I felt both surprised and humbled. Words and ideals, after all, matter far less than real action.
Before leaving, he encouraged me to apply for the upcoming Information Volunteer Team Program myself—and promised that if the project were approved, he would give it his full support.
Sometimes, it is through our students that we are reminded: the most powerful lessons are not taught, but practiced.
