Orange County Animal Services | Adoption Awareness

Authors

• Cameron Braun, University of Central FloridaFollow
• Grace Exum, University of Central FloridaFollow
• Caitlyn Bray, University of Central FloridaFollow
• Mikaela Simpson-Hose, University of Central FloridaFollow
• Shelby Ferguson, University of Central FloridaFollow

Streaming Media

Files

Course Code

LDR

Course Number

2002

Faculty/Instructor

Professor Esther Mandelbaum

Faculty/Instructor Email

esther.mandelbaum@ucf.edu

About the Author

My name is Cameron, and I participated in a service-learning project focused on adoption awareness with Orange County Animal Services (OCAS). Alongside my four teammates, we helped promote pet adoption by engaging with the community and encouraging others to give animals a second chance.

This experience showed me how impactful community outreach can be in supporting animal welfare and reducing shelter overcrowding. I would like to thank OCAS, my teammates, and my instructor for making this project meaningful and rewarding.

Abstract, Summary, or Creative Statement

This project focused on promoting pet adoption awareness in partnership with Orange County Animal Services (OCAS). The purpose of our work was to help increase community awareness about the importance of adopting animals from shelters. Alongside my teammates, we participated in outreach activities where we held signs, interacted with the public, and shared information about adoptable animals and the benefits of adoption.

Through this experience, we aimed to encourage more people to consider adoption as a first option when looking for a pet. One key thing I learned was how effective and impactful direct community engagement can be in influencing people’s perspectives and decisions. I also gained a better understanding of the challenges animal shelters face, including limited space and resources, as well as the struggles the staff overcome to make the animals comfortable. Overall, this project showed me how small actions, like raising awareness, can contribute to meaningful change in the community.

Keywords

dogs; cats; adoption awareness; shelter; animals

Recommended Citation

Braun, Cameron; Exum, Grace; Bray, Caitlyn; Simpson-Hose, Mikaela; and Ferguson, Shelby, "Orange County Animal Services | Adoption Awareness" (2026). High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2026. 83.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/hip-2026spring/83