Service Builds Leaders. Gallup Data Proves It.

Service isn’t just something young people do. It’s something that shapes who they become.

New research from Gallup and the Allstate Foundation confirms what buildOn students have been showing us for years: when young people lead through service, they build confidence, connection, and the skills they need for their future.

Why This Matters:

Service helps young people develop real-world skills like leadership, communication, and resilience. It strengthens how connected they feel to both their communities and themselves. And when service is youth-led, the impact is even greater, creating stronger outcomes and lasting change.

Across the U.S., buildOn students aren’t waiting for change. They’re leading it.

The Data Is Clear: Service Builds Skills for Life

According to the Gallup report, young people who engage in service are significantly more likely to feel prepared for their future, connected to their communities, and confident in their ability to overcome challenges.

More than half of young people say service improves their sense of career readiness. Nearly eight in ten report feeling more connected to their communities because of service, and two-thirds say it helps them better handle challenges. These outcomes become even stronger when young people take on leadership roles within their service experiences.

When young people don’t just participate in service, but lead, they build ownership, confidence, and purpose.

From Data to Reality: What It Looks Like in buildOn Programs

This isn’t theoretical. It’s happening every day in buildOn programs across the country.

In Chicago, buildOn students recently helped feed more than 5,500 families at Project H.O.O.D.’s Everybody Eats Giveaway, demonstrating how service can meet immediate needs while building leadership and community connection.

In the Bronx, more than 50 students came together to care for urban green spaces in Washington Heights with Big Reuse, supporting often-overlooked street trees in a city of more than 800,000 of them.

In Detroit, students rolled up their sleeves with Forgotten Harvest, packing 13,000 pounds of beans to help fight hunger across the region and showing how service can directly impact lives.

In Bridgeport, students built connections with seniors at Bridges by EPOCH through weekly visits filled with activities like games and music, fostering empathy, leadership, and meaningful intergenerational relationships.

And in Boston, students prepared meals for families navigating serious illness at the Boston House, creating moments of comfort and care when they mattered most.

Across every city, one thing is consistent: students are leading service projects that directly impact the issues they care about.

“I Feel Like I’m Making a Difference”

Behind every statistic is a student discovering their voice.

“Doing service is a way to help me connect with my community and I feel it has helped me be more sociable,” says Diana Majid, a student at Metropolitan Soundview in the Bronx. “Meeting new people and helping out makes me feel like I’m making a difference.”

Moments like these reflect exactly what the research shows: service strengthens connection—not just to others, but to purpose.

“Meeting new people and helping out makes me feel like I’m making a difference.” —Diana Majid, Metropolitan Soundview Student, the Bronx

Breaking Down Barriers to Service

One of the most significant findings from the study was that many young people want to serve but don’t know where to start. A lack of awareness about available opportunities remains the biggest barrier to participation: 53% of respondents said that they “didn’t know where to find opportunities.”

This is exactly where buildOn plays a critical role. By organizing consistent, accessible service opportunities and embedding them directly into students’ school communities, buildOn removes that barrier and makes it easy for young people to take action, get involved, and begin leading through service.

A Pathway to the Future

Service also shapes futures. 

Through service, students build skills like teamwork, leadership, communication, and problem-solving. These are not just helpful but essential for success in college, careers, and life.

As buildOn in Detroit Executive Director Rosann Jager explains: “Instead of sleeping in like teenagers often like to do, buildOn students gain confidence, they gain purpose, they create a solid pathway to college and careers, and they strengthen their own city at the exact same time.”

This is what youth development looks like when it’s done right.

Why Youth-Led Service Matters

One of the most important findings in the Gallup report is that service is most powerful when young people lead it.

That means young people are not only participating, but also identifying the issues they care about, planning projects, and leading the work itself. At buildOn, this approach is central. Students identify needs in their communities, organize service initiatives, and bring others with them.

Whether they are hosting a resource fair, leading a food drive, or organizing a service day, they are taking ownership of both their communities and their own lives.

The Bigger Impact

The research is clear. When young people serve, the impact goes far beyond a single project.

They build confidence, develop leadership skills, strengthen their communities, and begin to see themselves as changemakers. That mindset stays with them long after service ends, carrying forward into classrooms, careers, and the rest of their lives.

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