Tips for SLP service partnerships

Tips for SLP service partnerships

May 18, 2026 | General interest, Service Leadership Programs, Service projects | 0 comments

Here’s how to start the discussion about other Kiwanis family members’ role in club projects. 

By Tony Knoderer

More volunteers mean more impact. That’s why new members are a priority for every Kiwanis club. But when your club is putting together a service project, another source of new volunteers might be right under your nose: Kiwanis Service Leadership Programs (SLPs).  

After all, SLP members are part of the Kiwanis family because they have a passion for service. And one of the best reasons for Kiwanis clubs to sponsor SLP clubs is to show young leaders the impact they can have.  

Start the discussion about service partnership in your club! To help get things moving, we have a few tips:  

  • Find the right fit: Which of the Kiwanis club’s service activities would be most engaging to SLP members? Which are the best fits for the relevant age groups? Ask that question to your Kiwanis club’s SLP advisors — who can then share information about those opportunities at SLP club meetings. Maybe the SLP members should vote on the one that interests them the most! 
  • Issue invitations: Create an email or card to invite SLP members to one or more activities. Include dates, times and locations of each event if you already know these details. Give the email or card to the Kiwanis advisor to send or distribute to the SLP club and collect RSVPs for the Kiwanis club. 
  • Make everyone comfortable: How much does the SLP club know about your club — and about Kiwanis? How much do you know about them? The Kiwanis advisor could talk to each group about the similarities of the two clubs. And during a Kiwanis club meeting, encourage your own members to visit the SLP’s website. (Links to each program can be found on this page.) If you’re partnering with an Aktion Club, your fellow Kiwanians might also appreciate our guidelines for working with Aktion Club members.   
  • Make volunteering with SLPs easy for your own members. Your club’s webmaster could work with the Kiwanis advisor to create a webpage that shows the service activity schedules for your SLP clubs. Post a sign-up form for Kiwanians, including the Kiwanis advisor’s contact information so people can reach out withquestions outside of club meetings. 

Service projects with more volunteers reaching farther into your community — it’s just one of many reasons to build an ongoing partnership with an SLP club. In fact, the benefits of collaboration and mentorship are a two-way street — increasing the value of all Kiwanis family clubs that work and serve together. 

Does your club have a success story based on collaboration with one or more Kiwanis SLP clubs? Email it to shareyourstory@kiwanis.org. We might share it with other Kiwanis clubs! 

The two-way benefits of sponsoring SLPs

The two-way benefits of sponsoring SLPs

May 12, 2026 | Club building, General interest, Service Leadership Programs, Service projects | 0 comments

Mentorship boosts the value of clubs that provide it.

By Tony Knoderer

For a Kiwanis club, there’s no shortage of great reasons to sponsor a Kiwanis Service Leadership Program (SLP). Of course, many of those reasons involve the benefits to SLP members themselves — students in K-Kids, Builders Club, Key Club and Circle K International, as well as adults with disabilities in Aktion Club.

But SLPs also benefit the Kiwanis clubs that sponsor them.

Over the past two years, Kiwanis clubs that sponsor an SLP club are 1.5 times more likely to have grown their membership (31.5% vs. 20.9%) than clubs that don’t sponsor an SLP club. In that time, SLP-sponsoring clubs were also 6.7% less likely to have lost members.*

When discussing SLPs with your club, these key facts about retention and recruiting are worth remembering. So is every success story about club growth and leadership connected to sponsorship. 

The benefits for students
It’s no wonder that SLP sponsorship has a positive impact on a Kiwanis club’s value for its own members. By helping to fulfill a Kiwanis cause — youth leadership development — it’s the kind of mentorship that makes a noticeable impact.

Members of SLP clubs develop skills and self-discipline alongside like-minded peers. According to multiple studies, students who volunteer: 

  • Tend to get higher grades. 
  • Improve their social and emotional health. 
  • Strengthen their ties to other youth and adults. 
  • Feel connected to the larger community — and motivated to contribute to it. 
  • Develop leadership abilities that lead to better employment opportunities. 
  • Have better awareness and understanding of public issues. 
  • Get more first-hand experience of diverse cultures and communities. 

From elementary school to young adulthood, service matters — and so do mentors. For young leaders, Kiwanians model the value of a lifetime journey of service. Learn more about each program and find links on our SLPs webpage.

*Analysis based on North American clubs, 2023-25 certified membership data. 

Grants help CKI serve schools and communities 

Grants help CKI serve schools and communities 

Mar 20, 2026 | General interest, Kiwanis Children's Fund, Service Leadership Programs, Service projects | 0 comments

Six Circle K International projects receive Tomorrow Fund grants. 

By Erin Chandler

In college and university communities around the world, members of Circle K International are already making a difference through service and leadership. The Kiwanis Children’s Fund established the Tomorrow Fund to help these clubs and districts implement more creative solutions to problems and make the greatest possible positive impact.  

This February, the Children’s Fund awarded six Tomorrow Fund grants — all to improve the lives of people in CKI members’ schools and surrounding communities.  

Hygiene Kits for the Homeless
Circle K International of Johns Hopkins University, Maryland, U.S.
When Johns Hopkins University CKI teamed up with Hand4Hand Global to assemble and distribute 50 hygiene kits to people facing homelessness in their community last year, recipients were so enthusiastic that the club quickly ran out of supplies. This year, a Tomorrow Fund grant will help double the number of hygiene kits the club is able to make. Members also plan to add blankets, socks and hand warmers to the soap, shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, menstrual products and other essential hygiene items the kits contain. The goal of the project is to improve the health and dignity of people experiencing homelessness and prevent them from being denied work or housing due to appearance or hygiene. 

Finals Week Care Package Tabling
Circle K International of the University of California San Diego, California, U.S.
When the University of California San Diego Student Foundation was hit by a decline in membership and funding, CKI members stepped up to make sure the foundation’s longstanding Finals Week Care Package project continues. Together, CKI and Student Foundation volunteers hand out practical care packages to students during the week of final exams. A Tomorrow Fund grant will help fill the packages with snacks, small hygiene products, hand sanitizer, face masks and a few comfort items, like stickers. This small form of support reduces stress and financial strain on students during busy times, and it grows in popularity each year. 

UE Circle K International Prom
Circle K International of the University of Evansville, Indiana, U.S.
For over 10 years, University of Evansville CKI has hosted a prom for special education students in nearby school districts. A Tomorrow Fund grant will go toward decorations, food, and craft supplies for attendees. The event is an opportunity for high school students with disabilities and their families to dance and have fun in a supportive and welcoming environment. 

CKI Artsaya Maglaro 2026
Circle K International of the University of the Philippines Los Baños
University of the Philippines Los Baños CKI is working to guide kids away from screens and toward outdoor activities, social connection and creativity. A Tomorrow Fund grant will help cover food and supplies for the club’s Artsaya Maglaro project, where 30 kids — 10 more than last year — will spend part of their summer vacations taking part in traditional games of the Philippines followed by creative art sessions. The club hopes to make the project bigger every year to promote physical, mental and emotional health and development while reviving a deeply rooted Filipino tradition of play. 

Resiliency Ropes
Circle K International Georgia District, U.S.
At this year’s Georgia District convention, CKI and Key Club members will spend one hour making approximately 300 kid-friendly “resiliency rope” bracelets for children in foster care in the Atlanta area. A Tomorrow Fund grant will help supply the paracord, clips and other supplies to make the durable bracelets. Kids in foster care can then use their resiliency ropes as calming, sensory grounding tools during times of stress. The resiliency ropes also can secure items or bags. CKI members hope that the bracelets will help give kids in foster care a sense of control and continuity in the midst of instability. 

Food Pantry Meal Kits
Circle K International Nebraska-Iowa District, U.S.
A Tomorrow Fund grant will help purchase supplies for meal kits that CKI, Kiwanis and Key Club members will assemble at the 2026 Nebraska-Iowa CKI District Convention. Each kit will contain nonperishable foods, shelf-stable ingredients and a recipe card for a balanced meal that can feed a family of four. Convention attendees also will assemble birthday boxes with cake ingredients, a cake pan, balloons, candles and a birthday card. The goal of the project is not just to address food insecurity, but to alleviate the mental burden of planning a healthy meal and the financial burden that can come with celebrating important milestones. The project is designed to be easily replicable in convention attendees’ home clubs and communities.  

How to get involved
Does your Circle K International group have a project idea that could benefit from a Tomorrow Fund grant? Learn more about the grant and how to apply. If your Kiwanis club does not yet sponsor a CKI club, learn about the advantages of chartering one.