Make a Difference Day: Oct 25th, 2025 - Marietta College

Every year, McDonough Leadership Students at Marietta College coordinate service projects with local Community Partners for a fall campus-wide day of service called "Make a Difference Day." We wouldn't be able to do it without the partnership of community organizations like yours to work with student volunteers! 

This announcement is a request for project(s) for this year from YOUR organization!

Make a Difference Day will take place this year on Saturday, October 25th from approximately 9am to Noon.

Projects should have enough work for 8-24 volunteers for approximately 3 hours, should take place on Saturday, October 25th from 9am to Noon, and be within a 30-minute drive of the college campus. There is some flexibility, just let us know.

Host organizations should designate a contact person who is willing to meet with students approximately once per week for 30-60 minutes between September 3rd-October 24th. Additionally, we request this person also be available via email, text, or phone to provide guidance and answer questions as students plan the project. These meetings can be held via Zoom/MS Teams/Google Meet if needed. The first meeting must take place sometime between September 8th - 12th; this is where you'll first meet our students and discuss your project and organization. After that, please work with your group to schedule meetings at a time, location, and frequency that works best for everyone.

A sample Make-A-Difference Day timeline might look like this:

• July – Think of a project that you need a group of young volunteers to do in October. Most projects should occur on October 25th and typically take 3 hours. You can request any number of volunteers, as the students can recruit if needed.
• August – Finalize project plan and number of students needed. Submit to MC Office of Community Engagement on Engage Marietta. If you have questions, contact Dr. Amy Elliott (ace003@marietta.edu) 
• Week of Sept 1st – receive notification for project acceptance and receive contact information for student group(s).
• Week of Sept 8th – schedule initial meeting with student group(s) to outline your timeline and plan for the project. Agree on points and methods of contact.
• Week of September 15th through week of October 13th – Regular (weekly suggested) check-ins with student group(s) to confirm supplies, task delegation, volunteer recruitment (if needed), timing on project day, and other expectations including set up and clean up.  It is a good idea to have plans and assignments in writing in a shared format.
• Week of October 20th – Get and give final confirmation that all plans are a go!
• Saturday, October 25th – Make a Difference Day! — Have fun and take lots of pictures!
• Week of October 27th – Email oce@marietta.edu with pictures, feedback on process and students

If you are interested in hosting a project, PLEASE REGISTER HERE ON ENGAGE MARIETTA.  We will need a short description of the project plus name, email, and phone/text number for the person who will be the main contact for the students.

Please provide this initial information by Monday, August 25th. The rest of the details can be worked out before the event.

If you have questions or want to talk through some ideas, let us know and we’ll set up a time to talk on the phone or Zoom! Feel free to reach out with any questions!

Amy Elliott (740) 376-4561 or ace003@marietta.edu

Jason Nulton (304) 483-0948 or jdn001@marietta.edu