How will you use your degree to better the community?

[brickhouse492]

I think it's really important for all of us to give back to our community. Those of us who are in college, college bound or degreed are a "privileged few." How do you plan on using your degree to improve conditions in our community? Or How do you/did you use your degree to these means?

I'll start:
I'm majoring in Computer Information Systems (learning to write programs, databases, etc.). I love it but I had to ask myself: How can I use my degree to help the community?

Well, I want to improve the tired computer systems and the policies of the Public Assistance Offices. I would like to do so internally (as an Executive).

To give you an example of the problems I see:

-You must work or attend school for a Total of 32-35 hours/week when receiving Public Assistance.
-Let's assume Janet takes 6 - 3 credit classes (18 hours).
Well Janet still has to have an additional 14 hours of work.
-Janet has 1 infant (childcare issues) on top of that.
-Let's also assume that Janet has a 3.0 GPA. Not bad right?
-Guess what, if Janet doesn't make up all of those hours, the computer automatically reduces her benefits and won't pay her childcare.
-Also, there is no way to override THE SYSTEM.


Call it a policy, politics or just a Techinical Error. I'd like to make a change. What about you?