Track Your Impact

In ServeUTK, you can track service hours (“Impacts”) after service opportunities and share them courses, programs, and campus organizations. “Impact” is used as an umbrella term to describe all potential forms of community engagement. An impact can be described as funds donated, funds raised, goods donated, hours trained, voting, training, research, and, most often, volunteer hours served.

If you registered for an event in ServeUTK, an Impact will automatically be created and verified after you are checked into the event through ServeUTK. 

To add an impact for volunteer events not listed in ServeUTK, follow the Track Your Impact Guide.

You can find more information with step-by-step instructions on this website.

Step 1: Register for an event in ServeUTK, attend, and be checked in to have your impact created automatically OR add your impact if you volunteered for an activity not listed on the ServeUTK calendar.

Step 2: Once your impact is added or you have been checked into an event in ServeUTK, it flows to the organization’s verifier for approval. This step is called Verification. The JCLS does not verify impacts on behalf of the nonprofit organization where you served.

Step 3: Once verified, the impact then flows to the Jones Center for Leadership & Service. All impacts are reviewed to ensure that the activity meets JCLS Service Guidelines. This step is called Network Verification.

All impacts that have been pending for more than 31 days will be disputed. This step will send a notification to the listed impact verifier to remind them to verify your impact.

To resend the verification request, you can log in and then go to My Activity –> Impacts. Find the impact you need to resend verification for and click the small blue arrow next to it and then Verification Log. At the top of the screen, you will see the option to resend the verification request. Please note that you can only resend it every three days.

Disputed Impacts

There are many reasons why an impact submitted to ServeUTK may not be verified.

The JCLS recommends reviewing the 2024 JCLS Service Guidelines before volunteering or adding any impacts in ServeUTK to ensure the activity meets the service guidelines and can be approved by the JCLS.

Here is a list of the most common impacts that can be submitted to ServeUTK but will not be verified (and will be disputed) by the Jones Center for Leadership and Service:

• Donations of any type, including but not limited to money, supplies, clothing, food, blood, etc. You can track this impact using the money or goods measurement in ServeUTK.
• Indirect Philanthropy and Fundraising Activities:
  • Attending meetings related to planning or organizing fundraising events, such as VOLthon, Relay for Life, etc.
  • Attending a fundraising activity (including VOLthon or Relay for Life) but not engaging in direct service
  • Running or walking in a 5K, walk, or race for charity
  • Greek philanthropic events such as percentage nights or working a phone bank or other events to raise money for the national Greek organization or the organization’s philanthropy.
• Projects completed with any for-profit organization/business, even if the work was unpaid. Any substantial activities of this kind should be pursued as an internship.
• Internships, clinicals, practicums, or field experience work in hospitals, clinics, or similar organizations. This includes time spend job shadowing and observing.
• Self-directed “projects” without the oversight of a supporting community organization, such as trash pick-up or recycling, tutoring for free, helping elderly neighbors with yard work, babysitting/pet-sitting for free for private individuals, etc.
• Activities completed for the benefit of a student organization or UT athletic team or department (i.e., tabling, Peer Mentoring, serving as an ambassador to a department, being a student organization officer, UT Sports Nutrition/Fuel Station, Sports Ambassadors, etc.).
• Participation in self-improvement workshops, clinics, conferences, or conventions.
• Participating in a research project either as a participant (i.e., focus group) or a researcher (i.e., a lab assistant).
• Helping with a campus program that does not directly serve a population beyond the UT campus.
• Partisan political activities (ex. working on a specific political campaign)