We Want You Back campaign still needs volunteers to invite youth back to school. Visit the We Want You Back website to sign up.

Como residents need help with a project to halt erosion and keep storm water runoff cleaner. The moderately steep bank that leads to the railroad track as it crosses Talmage Avenue between 20th and 21st Ave SE has been compacted and abused. The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board gave us two loads of woodchips to mitigate further runoff but they have not got the manpower to help us spread them. North Minneapolis clean up has taken all their time and set them behind on their usual busy summer schedule. Community gardeners can provide tools, including shovels, forks, rakes, gloves and wheelbarrows at the site to help spread the woodchips. These are lightweight, but there are a lot of them. The goal is to spread the woodchips evenly in a 4-6 inch layer. Any four or five two-person teams are needed to help finish the project done before the Minnesota fall monsoons set in. Send your volunteer request via the online form (preferred) or email Steph at gardens@secomo.org to make arrangements.

The University of Minnesota's Office for Public Engagement is co-sponsoring the annual Imagining America conference on the UMN Twin Cities campus on September 22-23 and are seeking volunteers to help guide conference-goers from the Holiday Inn on the West Bank to Coffman Union on Thursday the 22nd. Volunteers can choose one or more 60 and 90-minute shifts from 7:30am-10:00am and 5:00pm-8:30pm. Volunteers should be knowledgeable about the Twin Cities campus. As a thank-you for your support, you will be invited to a Friday, September 23rd breakfast and poster session at the Coffman Union. If you are interested in this opportunity, please contact Beth Dierker in the Office for Public Engagement - dierk020@umn.edu by Tuesday, September 13th. For more information on Imagining America and the conference itself, visit http://www.imaginingamerica.org/index.html.

Be a volunteer for Parent Weekend! Parent Weekend runs from September 30th to October 2nd. Volunteers will assist in various different activities, such as a scavenger hunt around campus (work at specific stations), direct visitors, inform visitors about the University, and help different activities run smoothly such as guest speakers, dinner, etc. For more information or to sign up, visit the Parent Weekend website.

Have a Volunteer Opportunity that needs some help or that students should know about? Share them with me at engage.umn.edu!