Why we give back

Volunteer Center
The UCLA Volunteer Center coordinates service activities on campus and throughout Greater Los Angeles to inspire members of the extended UCLA family to give of their time and talent. Through the Volunteer Center, students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members can participate in ongoing and annual service opportunities, suggest volunteer site locations, and lead service projects. The Volunteer Center also maintains an online listing of campus-wide service groups, and a volunteer database of community service opportunities.

The Center for Community Engagement promotes and supports community-engaged research, teaching and learning in partnership with communities and organizations throughout Los Angeles, regionally, nationally and globally. The Center facilitates faculty and student work that integrates sustained, reciprocal engagement with the public and helps transform UCLA’s mission to support the co-creation, co-dissemination, co-preservation and co-application of knowledge for the betterment of society.

Since 1973, the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank has distributed more than 1.7 billion pounds of food. The Food Bank collects food from hundreds of resources. With the help of 30,000 volunteers annually and an agency network of more than 700 partner agencies, we serve more than 900,000 people on a monthly basis.

Baby2Baby provides children living in poverty with diapers, clothing and all the basic necessities that every child deserves. Led by Co-CEOs Kelly Sawyer Patricof and Norah Weinstein, Baby2Baby is a mega diaper bank and nonprofit organization providing essential items to children in need across the country. In the last 10 years, Baby2Baby has distributed over 175 million items to children in homeless shelters, domestic violence programs, foster care, hospitals and underserved schools as well as children who have lost everything in the wake of disaster.

For 33 years and counting, My Friend’s Place has been assisting and inspiring youth experiencing homelessness to build self-sufficient lives. From our early beginnings as a volunteer-based group serving meals from the trunks of cars to the dynamic resource center we operate today, My Friend’s Place offers a comprehensive continuum of services to nearly 1,200 youth experiencing homelessness between the ages of 12 and 25, and their children, each year, helping our young people who are experiencing homelessness to move toward wellness, stability and self-sufficiency.

The UCLA Blood & Platelet Center is committed to providing potent, pure, and safe blood components for our patients. In 1975, the UCLA Blood & Platelet Center opened its doors for the first time. We are responsible for providing a healthy blood component supply for patients at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, the UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital, and the Santa Monica UCLA Hospital. The UCLA Blood & Platelet Center collects approximately 60,000 donations per year. These donations yield about 75% of the blood and platelets transfused to our patients.

The UCLA Volunteer Center works with many internal and external partners to provide this list of current volunteer opportunities. Interested in technology? Mentoring? Search here for an opportunity in the community that suits your interests or skills.

Ready to volunteer? Reach out directly to the contact listed for each organization. Be prepared to provide your own transportation and meet any of the organization’s training requirements. Good luck!

Find more information about funding available, insurance and risk management, and transportation opportunities.