The profile of Windham High School senior Sydney Andrei and her work to coordinate the new community service requirement at the school is a refreshing look at someone who is determined to make a bad policy work well.

By beginning the Community Service Club and surveying the volunteer needs to help residents and organizations, Andrei is starting a network that could be beneficial to everyone in Windham and Raymond for assessing needs and who might fill those needs.

The problem comes in the Windham School Department policy that requires the class of 2008 to contribute 10 hours a year of volunteer service away from school and then adding 10 years to the requirement for each ensuing class until 40 hours is reached.

Compulsory service dictated on students away from school was a bad idea when conceived and remains a bad one when implemented. It is not that the workload is onerous, it is that demanding it is a step of assumed parenting the school department had no business taking.

It would be an entirely different matter if the policy dictated using portions of in school time for the requirements to be met. Five early release days for students and an additional five for teacher workshops dot the Windham High School 2008-09 calendar. Using those days to send seniors into the community to volunteer is not unreasonable.

Faculty club advisor Diane Leavitt said she expects participation in the club might peak next spring as seniors scramble to fill the service requirement. While the comment may be somewhat in jest, it is telling as to what the motivations of some students might be.

Kay Soldier has written often how volunteering bolsters a community, and the benefits young and old have seen from community projects. Those auditioning for the Windham Chamber Singers must show community involvement to accompany a good voice.

Making community service a part of extra-curricular activities and sports participation is always a sound idea, as those are things students are already choosing to do.

But choice is the key word. Enforcing good intentions can have bad consequences. While compulsory participation in community service on half days or when teachers are in workshops is still not volunteering, it is better than the idea of a senior worried about the prom, graduation, finals or anything else rushing in to find something, anything, to volunteer for just to meet one more requirement.

That point is more salient when knowing the requirement for seniors will increase fourfold by 2012. By that time, it could be likely the idea will be inured so well students will look immediately to what they might do to spread the time out over the school year. But if not, how is anyone well served by a student grasping for a task just to get it over with?

Ultimately, the good lessons coming from volunteer service are not taught by demanding it be done, especially when the requirement is made during the free time outside of the school day.

David Harry, editor