A state proposal in the works may require college students to complete community service hours as a graduation requirement.

Service learning would be mandatory at the state's 14 public universities and all community colleges. However, Penn State, the University of Pittsburgh, Temple University and Lincoln University would not be required to comply. These schools are state-related, not state-owned.

"State-related universities were not included at this time because there is a different dynamic between them and the state," said Bill Patton, spokesman for state Rep. Mike Veon, D-Beaver, who wrote the proposal.

Veon wanted the focus of the proposal to be small scale to start with, Patton said, which is another reason why state-related universities were not included. However, service learning could be expanded later on to include those schools, he added.

Veon plans to introduce legislation this month. If passed, the plan would require college students to complete 25 hours of community service each year in order to graduate.

"The aim of [Veon's] service learning proposal is to generate a larger number of people doing community service in Pennsylvania and to give college students a new learning experience which many of them are not currently receiving," Patton said. "Also, it is a way of making a statement that this is an important part of complete education."

Even though Penn State students would not be required to participate in service learning, some students think the idea has some value.

"Twenty-five hours sounds like a lot, because students are so busy with classes and different activities," Kerri Bielski (junior-psychology) said. "I think that if the university provided different opportunities on and off campus, students would be able to do it."

Bielski added she is required to complete 15 hours of service this semester for Global Food Strategies: Problems and Prospects for Reducing World Hunger (STS 430).

Kris Sedmera (graduate-civil engineering) said he doesn't think the legislation is necessarily a good idea.

"I don't really see where it's the university's job to impose civic duty, if you will, on anyone. I think civic duty is important, but it's not the university's job," he said.

Private universities also would not be affected by service learning.

"Many private universities already have a service requirement in their curriculums and Veon would like to see that expanded," Patton said. He added that those schools cannot be forced to take action because they are not state-owned.

One local legislator is not convinced regulation of community service is a state concern. State Sen. Jake Corman, R-Bellefonte, had not heard of the service learning proposal, but he did not think it would gain much support.

"I think certainly community service is always a great thing for young people to do, but whether the state should dictate it is another matter," Corman said.

Organizations and schools have been very interested in the service learning proposal because they are very short on money, and larger amounts of volunteers would help them meet their budgets, Patton said.

Ellie Beaver, executive director of the Centre County United Way, said though the organization gets a large number of student volunteers, anything that would increase the number would help.

"It would only be better," Beaver said. "We would probably be able to find work for them if we knew it was coming. We would just have to know how much and what kind of work was required. We want to do everything we can so the students have a meaningful experience."

If passed, enforcement of the legislation would be up to the governing bodies of the state system of higher education, Patton said.