Loyola4Chicago Volunteer Efforts Support Local Youth

Loyola4Chicago, a program within the Office of Community Service and Action, formed a partnership with the nonprofit Syrian Community Network in January. 

SCN is an organization dedicated to supporting both youth and adult migrants and refugees in the U.S. They provide support for refugee and immigrant youth living in Chicago through their partnership with L4C.

Under the partnership, two groups of L4C student volunteers assist with SCN’s youth after-school programs, according to CSA Community Outreach Program Manager Bizzy Stephenson, who said she oversees collaborations with outside nonprofits including SCN.

Last semester, Stephenson said she contacted SCN Youth Membership and Volunteer Coordinator Maggie Sestak, who expressed interest in having L4C student volunteers assist with their youth after-school programs at their North Side office. Stephenson said SCN also hosts adult programs such as beginner English classes.

Sestak said almost all the organization’s volunteer opportunities exist within their youth department, and their after-school program is the only consistently available opportunity. For this reason, L4C only volunteers in the youth department.

SCN’s youth department supports elementary school children from five Chicago public schools, most of whom are refugees or migrants, speak Arabic and have difficulty reading and writing in English, according to third-year psychology and neuroscience double major Lillian Sabolay, who’s served as an L4C volunteer group leader since the beginning of her second year at Loyola.

SCN staff work in collaboration with L4C volunteers to provide children with homework assistance, games and crafts and help with learning English, according to Sabolay.

“I love the fun games that they come up with,” Sabolay said. “We did an activity a few weeks ago where we helped the kids build boats out of aluminum foil, and then we had a contest to see whose boats could hold the most pennies without sinking in a bucket of water. I always know it’s going to be a good time when I go there.”

L4C volunteers’ first day at SCN’s office was Feb. 3 and Sabolay said since then, two groups of five have volunteered at the office two hours each week. One group, led by Sabolay, attends on Mondays, and the other on Wednesdays. 

Sabolay also said she’s greatly enjoyed volunteering with SCN because she enjoys working with children and helping cultivate a fun, comforting atmosphere with the staff.

“The staff there are just so caring and are willing to do whatever they need to do for the kids,” Sabolay said. “They treat them like their own children, and it’s just amazing to be able to be a part of that, honestly.”

Sabolay said her volunteer experience has led to many new connections since fellow L4C group leaders have become her closest friends. 

Stephenson said she always gauges the success of volunteer efforts based on the partnering organizations’ opinions. She regularly asks the leaders of partner organizations if they’re interested in receiving L4C volunteer support in future semesters.

“My policy is to always check in with our community partners spring and summer, to say, ‘Hey, how’s it going? Do you want the same involvement next year?’ And then go from there based on their experience as well,” Stephenson said. “We have yet to check in for the semester, but from what I’ve heard from our students who have volunteered, it’s been going really well.”

Sestak also said she believes L4C’s volunteer efforts are successful. She attends the after school program on Mondays and Tuesdays, so she has the opportunity to work with the Monday group of L4C volunteers. 

“The L4C volunteers are very reliable and capable and very competent when it comes to working with the kids,” Sestak said. “Not everybody naturally has the trauma-informed care and patience that is needed sometimes to work with refugee and migrant students, and all of the volunteers that we’ve had through L4C have just been a gift and a pleasure to have in that regard.”

Sabolay said she admires L4C’s partnership with SCN even though L4C had already affiliated itself with 10 other community organizations.

“It shows that we’re still reaching out into the community and seeing what more we can do on top of what we already do,” Sabolay said. “I think it’s more important than ever to give attention to children, especially to the specific groups of children who have gone through things that we can’t even imagine.”
Stephenson said students can apply to volunteer through Loyola4Chicago during the first two weeks of classes of a semester, with the next application window opening this September. Students who wish to volunteer within SCN’s youth program can do so through L4C or directly through SCN’s website.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated Bizzy Stephenson’s title and misspelled Lillian Sabolay’s last name. The article was updated April, 9, 2025 to reflect the correct information.