Ten years ago, Connecticut led the nation in youth community service engagement. But between 2016 and 2023, Connecticut experienced the second-steepest drop in participation nationwide, according to a recent report.
Data compiled by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Connecticut Voices for Children show that only 43% of Connecticut youths aged 14 to 17 participated in community service or volunteer work between 2022 and 2023, the most recent data available. Eight years earlier, that number was 70%.
Connecticut ranked seventh in the nation for overall child-wellbeing in the Foundation’s 2026 Kids Count report. According to Emily Knox, research and policy director at Connecticut Voices for Children, community service participation did not factor into the score because updated data was unavailable. The Foundation defined this indicator as youth that “participated in community service or volunteered work at school, church, or in the community during the past 12 months.”
Community service benefits children in many metrics, Knox said, including positive mental health outcomes, professional development and connection to local communities.
“When we think about young people’s exposure to the outside world, most oftentimes that is through school and these volunteer opportunities,” she said.
From 2022 to 2023, the nationwide percentage of youth engaged in community service was 46%. States in the West and Midwest saw the highest levels of participation.
2022-2023 was the first period of time since 2016 where Connecticut youth community service engagement fell below the national average.
Kate Scheuritzel, director of programs at Serve Connecticut, attributed part of the decline to the coronavirus pandemic. Data shows that Connecticut did not experience a significant drop in community service participation until 2019 and 2020. During this period, engagement in most states dropped to 40 to 55%.
Even after schools reopened, Scheuritzel said, a lack of “connectivity” between schools and local community organizations may have contributed to Connecticut’s continued decline in youth engagement.
“There are pockets of really good service opportunities for youth, but they’re not connected with each other,” she said. “Then there are challenges for youth to access those opportunities — students either don’t have busing after school, or they don’t have reliable transportation with parents or their own vehicles.”
Knox, the director at Connecticut Voices for Children, believes greater economic strain may have also contributed to the decrease.
“Kids who are engaged in volunteer work have free time,” she said. “My guess is that we’re going to see more young people in the labor market and potentially less volunteering.”
