A message from our
Director of Community Outreach
Hello! My name is Alara Berkmen, and I am incredibly excited and proud to be the Helenes Director of Community Outreach for 2025.
Service is such a pivotal part of the Helenes, and it stands as one of our four primary pillars. Being able to expand our impact beyond USC, into the greater LA community, is an incredible and unique experience, and we strive to serve with passion and commitment in order to truly connect with our local communities through our work. Service events can range from boots-on-ground work such as Water Drop LA, working with the Ronald McDonald Foundation, Heal the Bay beach clean ups, and countless other orgs across LA, to on-campus fundraising for cancer research or creating cat toys for the Kitty Bungalow org. Additionally, our collaborations with other orgs such as Troy Camp, MadHatter Knits, and the Trojan Dance Marathon have brought us closer to our USC community and service counterparts on campus. Another fantastic part of the service pillar is its diversity, as there is never a shortage of opportunities to serve! If you have ideas on how we can expand our community outreach pillar, or any other related questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. Hope to see you serving!
Helenes love and all of mine,
Alara Berkmen
Director of Community Outreach
helenescommunityoutreach@gmail.com
A message from our
Director of Youth Engagement
Hello everyone! My name is Brenda Sampayo Vergara and I am your 2025 Helenes Director of Youth Engagement!
One of the main service opportunities Helenes gets to be a part of is the Junior Helenes program. Junior Helenes is an extracurricular club for high school students at 32nd Street School, located right across the street from USC. In Junior Helenes and Junior Knights, high school students, Helenes, and Trojan Knights engage in a range of community service activities, work on personal and professional development through various exercises and workshops, and grow in friendship through fun meetings and field trips. Not only do the Junior Helenes and Junior Knights benefit from mentorship and guidance throughout the high school experience and college application process, but Helenes and Trojan Knights also develop as leaders and community members through our meaningful relationships with the high schoolers.
Junior Helenes meets every Friday afternoon. During meetings, we could be doing icebreakers, discussing the realities of high school and college life, completing community service projects, or simply having fun! Other Junior Helenes events occur throughout the week and on the weekend to accommodate busy schedules and incorporate off-campus programming. You can find us eating lunch together in the USC Village or on campus, hiking, touring different nearby universities, watching a movie, or serving the community by doing a beach cleanup or playing soccer with Kicks for Kids.
We are currently in the process of rebuilding the program so any questions and suggestions are welcome! In addition to Junior Helenes, we also have weekly tutoring with students at 32nd Street.
If you have any comments, concerns, or want to get involved with Junior Helenes or tutoring, feel free to contact me!
Helenes love and all of mine,
Brenda Sampayo Vergara
Director of Youth Engagement