By Jeanine Budd

Volunteering is sometimes seen as a way for students to reach out to those in need. But for senior music industry major Brittany Manley, a transfer student, it’s been a way for her to meet students within the Northeastern community.

Manley, who transferred from St. Anselm College in fall 2006, said she gets a lot of personal satisfaction out of giving to others.

“It’s been a way for me to get to know people and to make lasting friends,” Manley said.

This fall, Manley and junior anthropology major Michael Grant, will be the co-coordinators of nuSERVES, the newest volunteer program on campus, and one of the first aimed at incoming freshman to the College of Arts and Sciences. NuSERVES, which will give students a taste of volunteerism opportunities in Boston, will run Sept. 2 – Sept. 5.

Manley said she and Grant have teamed up with eight organizations from the Boston area, like Boston Rescue Mission and Greater Boston Food Bank, to give new students a chance to combat issues like hunger and homelessness.

So far 30 incoming students have signed up through orientation, leaving 20 spots still open, she said.

In part, the program was modeled after other schools’ in the area, like those at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Boston University (BU), who both have active community service programs, Manley said.

MIT currently uses it’s Freshman Urban Program to introduce new students to their surrounding community and BU’s First-Year Student Outreach project takes four days out of orientation to educate students and give them the chance to volunteer in areas like gender focus, HIV and AIDS awareness, human rights and hunger, according to the universities’ websites.

Manley said she met Grant through her previous volunteering experience with Northeastern’s chapter of Alternative Spring Break, where she traveled to Texas and Arkansas and acted as a team leader.

In Texas, Manley said she worked with children with special needs through the organization Peaceable Kingdom Retreat for Children. In Arkansas, she said she helped to build a house with Habitat for Humanity.

“It’s a great experience. You get to live and work with these kids for a week,” Manley said. “And you keep in touch with most of them afterward.”

Manley said through volunteering she’s been able to use her experience to make valuable friends and get to know the Northeastern community, which is hard for transfer students to do. And despite the occasional feeling of being overwhelmed, Manley said it’s worth it and can’t imagine her life without volunteering.

“I’m one of those people who, the busier I am, the better I can do, in a way,” she said. “It’s definitely something that will be a part of my future.”